Impressive €605,000 collected from Match for Solidarity to help children worldwide

Impressive €605,000 collected from Match for Solidarity to help children worldwide

Thanks to the first annual Match for Solidarity, UEFA and the United Nations have raised an impressive €605,000 for the UEFA Foundation for Children to fund humanitarian and development projects for disabled children around the world.

On 21 April, in a sunny afternoon at the Stade de Genève, UEFA and the United Nations Office at Geneva came together to organise the first-ever Match for Solidarity charity football match, featuring a star-studded cast made up of football icons. 23,654 fans turned up to see Ronaldinho and Luís Figo captained their team in an exciting match that saw Figo’s team narrowly won 4-3.

With an almost sold-out stadium, Match for Solidarity proved to be extremely popular. The event achieved its overriding aim to promote peace, human rights and well-being across the world through the Sustainable Development Goals as set out by the United Nations.

Aside from the game itself, Match for Solidarity included a unique digital auction for global fans and a live auction at a gala dinner after the match. A total of €605,000 was raised from the match and auctions. All proceeds are being allocated by the UEFA Foundation for Children to humanitarian and development projects selected by a committee of representatives from UEFA, the United Nations Office in Geneva and the Foundation du Stade de Genève. The objective was to support initiatives that use sport, and football in particular, as a way to protect the rights and promote inclusion of disabled children in our societies.

Aleksander Čeferin, the President of UEFA, commented:

“I am delighted that both fans and football legends were able to come together to raise money for good causes and help those in need. We are in a privileged position and we must use this to help children living in challenging and difficult circumstances around the world.”

Michael Moller, Director-General of the United Nations Office in Geneva, said:

“Solidarity is key to creating a fairer world for everybody. This match proved it one more time, by bringing together stakeholders of International Geneva to help reduce inequalities – Sustainable Development Goal number 10 – and to support projects for children with mental and physical disabilities worldwide. Together, our actions can produce results and have an impact in people’s lives; we need to put aside our differences and focus on our mutual goal to create a world of opportunities.”

Pascal Torres, General Secretary of the UEFA Foundation for Children, also commented:

“We are pleased that the momentum and support we received from the Match for Solidarity event has allowed us to assist programmes that improve the lives of children across four continents. Children living with disabilities are particularly vulnerable and therefore need more support to have their basic rights respected, including access to education, sports and leisure activities.”

Helping children both locally and globally

The fund raised from the Match for Solidarity are allocated to both local and global projects that support disabled children.

At local level, support is being given to an awareness campaign run by Autisme Genève, an association that promotes a better understanding of people living with autism and an appreciation of diversity in society. The non-profit organisation was founded in Geneva in 2007 on the initiative of parents of children with autism spectrum disorders.

At international level, the approved projects are:

• Blind soccer in Bamako (Mali): A project run by Libre Vue since 2012 to give the visually impaired greater opportunities to play football.
• Everyone invited to the pitch! (Argentina): Run by Asociación Civil Andar in the Moreno district of Buenos Aires for over 20 years, this project fosters the development of people living with mental disabilities through employment, sport, arts culture and health initiatives.
• Inclusive sports for peace (Sri Lanka): This project, run by local NGOs und supervised by Handicap International, is active in the districts of Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara and helps young people living with physical disabilities by ensuring sport is available to all and by promoting social cohesion.

Highlights from the Match for Solidarity event can be viewed below