World Football Day 2025: a universal language that speaks to all
Sunday, May 25, 2025
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We are joining the United Nations in celebrating World Football Day, which aims to galvanise the global football community around sustainable development, peace, diplomacy, human rights, healthy environmental practices, cooperation and inclusion.
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Today’s date honours the first international football tournament in history, when teams from all regions came together to compete at the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, laying the foundation for a global phenomenon which transcends borders and unites people across cultures.
In 2024, to mark the 100th anniversary of that tournament, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly passed a resolution creating World Football Day, which is being celebrated for the second time and provides an opportunity to discuss how football can continue to support the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
"On this World Football Day, we celebrate more than just a game," said UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin. "We celebrate a global movement that inspires, unites, and uplifts. We celebrate healthy lifestyles, teamwork, respect, and inclusion. Football is a universal language that speaks to all ages and cultures, building bridges where words sometimes fall short."
"At UEFA, we are proud to have been among the first to sign the United Nations’ Football for the Goals initiative. One year on, we reaffirm our commitment to using football’s unique power to drive positive change, support communities, and promote the values that make the game truly beautiful."
Football's contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals
On Wednesday 21 May, in the lead-up to World Football Day, UN leaders and some of the top voices in world football, including UEFA’s executive director of social and environmental sustainability Michele Uva, gathered at UN Headquarters in New York for the inaugural Football for the Goals Forum and World Football Day UN Member State event.
The discussions aimed to mobilise the football community for action across key areas linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, including the football industry’s commitment to climate sustainability, football’s role in addressing global inequality through grassroots initiatives, and football as a powerful tool to help close the gender gap.
UEFA is a founding member of UN Football for the Goals, which serves as a platform for the global football community to engage with and advocate for the Sustainable Development Goals, creating impact on civil society through sustainability practices. A further 37 of our National Associations have become members since the initiative launched in 2022.