More than a team
How sport partnerships are bringing athletes and fans together for children
Sport has always had the power to bring people together across stadiums, courts and communities. And over time, that connection has grown into something bigger than the game itself, helping give children a better chance at life.
Most recently, in 2025, the Inter Miami CF Foundation and UNICEF partnered to support UNICEF’s education programmes in Latin America and the Caribbean. The three-year partnership provides students in Argentina, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras and Mexico with the quality education and digital skills they need to thrive.
Fans are part of the effort too, through matchday fundraising, stadium activations and community campaigns that turn moments in football into support for children.
Inter Miami co-owner and longtime UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador David Beckham has witnessed the impact first-hand.
UNICEF/UNI907721/UNICEF India
“Through my work with UNICEF for the last 20 years, I have seen the difference education can make to children, their families and their communities.”
– David Beckham
Elsewhere in football, UNICEF and Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club are working to strengthen children’s rights within the game itself.
Launched in 2024, the partnership is dedicated to building sport-for-development tools and strengthening child rights in sport, particularly in academy environments, where young players first enter the professional pathway. Through staff training on children’s rights, it aims to ensure that children play in safe and respectful environments. One Goal, the sector-leading child rights action plan launched by Brighton & Hove Albion FC, supports the rights of all children, fans, players and foundation participants.
Across clubs and communities
UNICEF’s partnerships with the sports world build on a history of helping bring opportunity to children globally.
One of the earliest and most visible examples came in 2006, when FC Barcelona made a historic decision before a ball was even kicked.
For the first time in the club’s 110-year history, the team placed a logo on the front of its jersey: the UNICEF emblem. At a time when jersey sponsors dominated football, FC Barcelona chose to dedicate one of the sport’s most visible spaces to children around the world.
During the following 16 years of the partnership, FC Barcelona helped generate more than €19 million for UNICEF programmes in Brazil, China, Ghana and South Africa, reaching over one million children through initiatives promoting education and development through sport and play. Earlier, the partnership supported programmes in Angola, Malawi and Swaziland, reaching children affected by HIV and AIDS.
UNICEF and the FC Barcelona Foundation also launched the “Eat Like a Pro” campaign with Beko in 2018 – combining player-led content, social media engagement and fan participation – and reached its €1 million fundraising target in just 11 days. The initiative supported UNICEF programmes focused on promoting healthier food environments for children in Latin America.
Playing for the future
The pitch is only part of the picture. Building on its support of Soccer Aid for UNICEF, EA Sports FC FUTURES partnered with UNICEF in 2024 to launch Namibia Futures, a programme helping adolescents build skills through football, digital learning and STEM education.
The initiative supports tens of thousands of young people in Namibia through a model that combines sport-based learning with mentorship and vocational opportunities. For girls, it provides access to football coaching alongside interactive STEM learning, digital education and female role models who can help shape their ambitions.
From community pitches to classrooms, programmes like Namibia Futures show how sport can build confidence, leadership and practical skills both on and off the field.
The influence of sport on children’s lives can begin even earlier. Through a partnership between the WTA Foundation and UNICEF, efforts have also focused on maternal health and child nutrition, helping give children a healthier start from the very beginning.
By mobilizing resources for women and children, including access to essential prenatal care, the WTA Foundation supports the UNICEF-led Child Nutrition Fund, strengthening responses to malnutrition and improving nutrition outcomes for women and children globally.
Through Desert Smash, a tennis exhibition event, and player-led campaigns, the partnership brings athletes and fans together around a shared goal to help give children the healthiest possible start in life.
Maria Sharapova, former professional tennis player and spokesperson for the WTA says, “As an athlete and a mum, I understand the powerful role that good healthcare and nutrition play in determining life outcomes.”
When the world plays together
Partnerships between UNICEF and the world of sport show that the biggest wins come when we play for children – opening access to opportunity, protection and safety. The legacy of sport is no longer measured only in trophies, but in the families who gain access to health and nutrition support, the children who are able to go to school, and the girls who gain skills, confidence and the freedom to discover their ambitions. This is what sport looks like at its best.
Whether you're watching from the stands or following from home, you can be part of it too.
