Championing an Inclusive Future through Football 2.0

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Germany, Hongary, Spain
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2027
Cost of the project €260,544
Foundation funding €260,544
Project identifier 20245000
Partners FedEx
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment

Context

As an official sponsor of the UEFA Champions League during the 2021–2024 cycle, FedEx extended its commitment beyond commercial sponsorship to include a robust social responsibility programme. This initiative spotlighted key social issues in the host cities of the UEFA Champions League finals: Paris in 2022, Istanbul in 2023, and London in 2024. Through the Championing an Inclusive Future through Football programme, FedEx provided financial support to non-profit organisations that use football as a platform to promote inclusivity and social cohesion within local communities.

Building on this success, FedEx will continue its engagement for the 2025–2027 cycle, supporting projects in the UEFA Champions League final host cities: Munich in 2025, Budapest in 2026, and Madrid in 2027. This renewed commitment underscores FedEx’s dedication to creating lasting social impact through sport.

2025

SCORING GIRLS* was founded in 2016 by former professional footballer Tugba Tekkal with the mission to empower girls* through football. While the work begins on the pitch, it goes far beyond sport, rooted in a strong pedagogical concept. The approach integrates five key competence areas—Teamwork, Self-efficacy, Resilience, Body Positivity, and Social Participation—into football training and educational activities.

Through this, participants not only enhance their athletic skills but also strengthen confidence, resilience, and personal development.

The target group includes girls* aged 8–18, with and without refugee or migration backgrounds, most coming from marginalised communities. SCORING GIRLS* currently operates at three sites in Cologne and four in Berlin, and in 2025 expanded to Munich in partnership with FC Bayern München.

2026

 

Project goals

2025

SCORING GIRLS*

  • Promote social participation and equal opportunities for girls
  • Build a strong, inclusive community and give visibility to strong role models
  • Empower girls* through competence development and mentoring for personal growth and responsibility.

 

Project content

2025

SCORING GIRLS*

Weekly Football Training

Core activity: weekly football sessions led by coaches and pedagogical staff. Training blends fun, education, and football to build confidence, resilience, responsibility, and teamwork. Feedback follows each session. Experienced girls (17 and older) act as peer mentors, fostering collaboration and role modelling.

Educational Activities

Beyond training, we offer vacation programs with matches, excursions, and workshops, as well as year-round tournaments and dialogues with inspiring figures from politics, media, culture, and sports.

Mentoring Programme

Launching in 2025: SCORING GIRLS* mentoring initiative with support from high-profile ambassadors (e.g., Nikeata Thompson, Fabian Reese, Lena Oberdorf) to enhance visibility and provide strong role models.

Public Relations & Networking

We actively promote SCORING GIRLS* to raise awareness and engage participants in advocacy, leveraging high-reach partners for stronger community impact.

Use of the FedEx/UEFA Foundation Grant

  • Infrastructure for the new Munich location
  • Staff and trainers
  • Transport costs
  • Events and workshops

Partners

FedEx_UEFA Champions_Lockup_Hor Pos RGB

Legacy for the Future: Changing the game for girls and women

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Europe
Start date 07/01/2025
End date 07/01/2026
Cost of the project €800000
Foundation funding €400000
Project identifier 2025007
Partners adidas Foundation
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Sponsors

Context

Legacy for the Future is a collaborative project initiated and funded by the UEFA Foundation for Children and the adidas Foundation, involving national football associations and local organizations. After a thorough RFP process, each of the 16 teams competing in the UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 was invited to select a gender equity project led by a local organization to champion in their home country. The Legacy for the Future program ensures financial support but also visibility, inspiration, networking, and capacity building. Legacy for the Future harnesses the power of women’s football to dismantle barriers and open doors for girls and women across Europe.

Project goals

The aim is to create a legacy that supports girls and women in claiming space, leadership, and recognition – not only in football but across all areas of life. Aligned with UEFA Women’s EURO 2025, Legacy for the Future is grounded in the belief that sport can be a powerful catalyst for social change, inclusion, and equity.

Project content

These are the gender equity projects led by local organizations that Legacy for the Future is partnering with.

  • Belgium: BX Brussels works with many girls from migrant and Muslim backgrounds, focusing on creating equal opportunities for women on and off the pitch and challenging stereotypes.
  • Denmark: Girl Power partners with young women refugees, immigrants, and marginalized communities in Denmark and across Europe to enable them to play football and take on leadership roles.
  • England: Rio Ferdinand Foundation supports young people from marginalized communities in the UK and Ireland, with a focus on increasing girls’ participation in sport.
  • Finland: Louhento Foundation develops a shared, nationallevel playbook and pilots inclusive football pathways for girls from ethnically diverse backgrounds.
  • France: Kabubu uses sport to support migrants’ social and professional growth through sport-based integration, childcare-inclusive activities, and creating safer spaces.
  • Germany: Safe Hub advocates for gender equity in sport, creates safer spaces for collaboration, and supports young girls from marginalized communities in Berlin’s Wedding district to play football.
  • Iceland: Bergið headspace offers mental health education and support to young players, promoting positive communication and well-being in sport.
  • Italy: ASD Balon Mundial helps young women and nonbinary people develop soft, social, emotional, and leadership skills through sport.
  • Netherlands: Klabu Foundation connects refugees and locals in Amsterdam through sport, removing barriers for girls and women to move, play, and thrive.
  • Norway: Rosa Sko creates safer, peer-led football spaces for girls from marginalized communities and builds pathways for young female coaches.
  • Poland: Trenuj Bycie Dobrym collaborates with schools across Poland to connect girls with women football role models and helps women’s clubs recruit girls for training and feel supported by students and teachers.
  • Portugal: Integrated Dreams promotes the inclusion of professionals living with disabilities, especially women, in the football industry by developing personal and professional skills.
  • Spain: Fútbol Más uses football to help girls in Madrid and Seville, who are facing social and economic exclusion grow as players and people.
  • Sweden: En Frisk Generation aims to get girls traditionally excluded from sport to play, feel seen and heard, and learn leadership skills.
  • Switzerland: The Swiss Academy for Development uses football in a dedicated project to strengthen learning, inclusion, and well-being among children who face systemic barriers to education and sports.
  • Wales: Cymru Football Foundation improves off-field facilities for women and girls across Wales, helping create a safe, welcoming, and inspiring space for grassroots players to thrive.

Partners