Khalida Popal and Javier Zanetti were among the soccer stars named UN Champions

On Monday, current and former players and coaches representing the global men’s and women’s football elite, taking on the role of informal ambassadors to promote sustainability, gender equality, inclusion and human rights.

From league and cup-winning manager maestro Carlo Ancelotti to Women’s Super League and Serie A winner Eni Aluko, Inter Milan hero Javier Zanetti and exiled Afghanistan women’s national team player Khalida Popal.

The most popular and accessible sport in the world

The scale of football makes it an incredibly powerful communications platform, reaching audiences across regions, generations and communities.

At the launch of the FFTG initiative in 2022, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed said, “The United Nations recognizes the strong voice of football in the global community and its role in raising awareness of the SDGs through the popularity of the game.”

“Football is not only the most popular sport in the world, it is also the most accessible sport”

World Football Day

The FFTG champion was announced on World Football Dayis celebrated annually on 25 May – the date chosen to mark the 100th anniversary of the first international football tournament featuring representatives from all regions, in 1924 during the Summer Olympics in Paris.

The UN General Assembly passed a resolution establishing World Football Day in May 2024, recognizing the global reach of football and its impact on peace and diplomacy, and recognizing that football creates space for cooperation.

Football’s global popularity and accessibility makes it a powerful platform for public engagement on issues ranging from climate action, health and education to inclusion and gender equality. It is in that spirit that the FTG Champions program was created.