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September 2020

WFS and Common Goal team up to turn discussion into action at WFS Live

WFS and Common Goal team up to turn discussion into action at WFS Live 1200 675 WFS Live

World Football Summit and Common Goal are moving a step forward in their commitment to promote football’s contribution to social change. At November’s upcoming WFS Live event, the organisations will partner up to provide a platform for stakeholders from the football industry, the non-for-profit and private sectors, as well as the global football community to discuss how the sport can maximise its contribution to our people and our planet

It is a discussion becoming increasingly critical in the current landscape that will feature prominently under the title of the next edition of WFS Live from 23-27 November, 2020: “Building football’s roadmap for the future”. The event’s opening day will be entirely dedicated to promote discussions around how to embed purpose at the heart of football and invite participants to reimagine the football industry over the next 10 years, driven by the ambition of maximising its positive impact.

From the very outset, the event will also seek to create alliances and opportunities for collaboration between stakeholders from the industry and the wider global community. The intention being to take conversations beyond the summit and turn discussions into actions that positively transform both the industry and the future of our society.

“Promoting football’s power to drive social change has been at the core of World Football Summit since its foundation, but we believe the time has come to take a step forward,” said Jan Alessie, Director of World Football Summit

“As the world’s biggest shared passion, football has a key role to play in raising awareness and tackling crucial issues like racism, climate change and so many more. Through this partnership with Common Goal we aim to place the need for football to maximise its contribution at the center of the industry’s agenda and start turning discussions into actions.”

Common Goal, the football industry’s fastest growing social impact movement, encourages professional footballers, managers, officials, clubs, businesses and all other stakeholders from the football industry to donate a minimum 1% of their earnings to support high-impact initiatives that use football to drive progress towards the United Nations’ Global Goals. The movement’s long-term vision is to unlock 1% of the entire football industry’s revenues — estimated at €50 billion per year. 

Over previous years, World Football Summit and Common Goal have established a long-term partnership. Since 2017, WFS has pledged 1% of its revenues to Common Goal and Common Goal has actively participated at every event organised by WFS over the past four years. 

At the inaugural edition of WFS Live, Common Goal co-founder Juan Mata took part in a purpose-led discussion with Ronaldo Nazario on philanthropy in football and their individual personal commitment towards social change

WFS also donated part of the proceeds from the event to support the Common Goal COVID-19 Response Fund, a collective fund aimed to support young people in the most vulnerables communities around the world affected by coronavirus. In anticipation of the second WFS Live edition, WFS have committed to increasing this support, and will donate 10% of all ticketing to Common Goal.

Industry Awards 2020TW

WFS Industry Awards now open to applications until 18 October

WFS Industry Awards now open to applications until 18 October 2333 1313 WFS Live

This year’s WFS Industry Awards are now open to applications and will take place virtually at WFS Live on Friday, 27 November.

With applications now open, the deadline for submissions is 18 October.

The WFS Industry Awards were created exactly to acknowledge and reward the achievements of executives, managers, sponsors, agencies, media, NGOs and so many other professionals whose talent, passion and dedication help make football the world’s greatest game and a thriving industry.

Since the inception of the WFS Industry Awards in 2017, the ceremony has been a part of World Football Summit’s annual congress in Madrid.

Unfortunately, this year the event has been suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but there are even more reasons to celebrate the work of the industry.

During the past months football has faced the biggest challenge of its history – one that is being overcome thanks to the talent, commitment and brilliant work of outstanding professionals.

This year they deserve to be rewarded more than ever, and with the invaluable support of our partners we are committed to doing so, and that is why we have decided to maintain the WFS Industry Awards.

The winners of each category will then be announced on 16 November and they will have the chance to be interviewed on our digital stage in a 20-minute session that will be part of the WFS Live Conference Programme.

There are also two new categories to make sure all professionals have the chance to join our Hall of Fame: Best Digital Platform and Outstanding Innovation Initiative.

As such, the WFS Industry Awards 2020 categories read as follows:

You can find information on how to participate, HERE.

WFS Live tickets go on sale with very special promotion

WFS Live tickets go on sale with very special promotion 2333 1313 WFS Live

Tickets to the second edition of WFS Live are now on sale, after launching with a very special promotion that saw 10 people book their place at the virtual event from November 23-27 for just €10.

With just 10 weeks to go until WFS Live gets underway, our €10 offer on Monday, 14 September sold out inside just 30 minutes.

But our WFS Live ticket offers do not stop there and you can purchase your ticket to November’s online event via THIS LINK with a 50% discount at the price of just €35 until September 30.

WFS Live’s inaugural event – which gathered 158 speakers and over 3,400 professionals across five days of fascinating discussion – committed all net profits to both Common Goal and Fundação Fenômenos and 10 per cent of all ticket sales this time around will go to Common Goal’s COVID-19 Response Fund.

The donation of a proportion of ticket sales for the follow-up event is in keeping with its aim to change football for good, while building the industry’s roadmap for the future.

This is the full WFS Live ticket calendar for the coming weeks;

  • 15-30 September: 50% Super Early Bird discount, with tickets costing €35
  • 1-31 October: 20% Early Bird discount, with tickets costing €55
  • 1 November onwards: Full price tickets, costing €70

July’s WFS Live debut was the biggest industry event of the year and saw leading speakers such as FIFA president Gianni Infantino, Brazil legend Ronaldo Nazario, Common Goal co-founder Juan Mata, ad-guru Martin Sorrell and many others take to the virtual stages for panels in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

If you are interested in being a part of WFS Live and want more information on how to participate, to attend, become a partner or exhibitor, send us an email to: live@worldfootballsummit.com

WFS Live returns in November, to build football’s roadmap for the future

WFS Live returns in November, to build football’s roadmap for the future 2560 1440 WFS Live

After the success of its inaugural edition, which gathered 158 speakers and over 3,400 professionals, WFS Live returns from November 23-27.

The second iteration will bring the football industry’s most influential community together once again to share experiences and lessons learned during the restart of competitions after the hiatus imposed by coronavirus, while pooling strategies for the crucial times ahead and exploring new paths for the industry to continue moving forward in the so-called ‘new normal’. 

Building football’s roadmap for the future will be the motto of this virtual gathering in which industry leaders will share strategies developed to cushion the multiple effects of the pandemic on their businesses, new opportunities they have encountered along the way, and their future prospects in light of the knowledge and experience gained in recent months. 

WFS Live will also stress the need to take this opportunity to evolve towards a more modern, more digital and more interactive industry, as well as one that is fairer, more inclusive and more supportive. The event will continue contributing to the fight against the effects of coronavirus on vulnerable communities, and 10 per cent of the ticketing revenues will be donated to Common Goal’s Covid-19 Response Fund.

“Resuming competitions and finishing them successfully has been the biggest challenge the sports industry has ever met,” said Jan Alessie, Director of World Football Summit.

“The experience and knowledge gained by the different stakeholders during the process is huge and it should provide invaluable guidance for the industry in the crucial times ahead of us. It’s therefore essential that leaders share their experiences, learnings and vision for the future, and together build a roadmap that will allow the industry to move forward with a firm step in this new and still uncertain normality.”

As in the inaugural edition, the WFS Live platform will allow attendees to engage with speakers by submitting questions during the sessions and to interact with other attendees via group discussions or scheduling one-on-one meetings and video-calls. In addition, new features will be released to improve the user experience and provide new networking opportunities for attendees, partners and exhibitors. 

The quality of the platform was the second most valued aspect according to the WFS Live Satisfaction Survey only after the quality of the speakers. A total of 94.1 per cent of respondents said they had met their goals, while 86.3 per cent of them were sure they would participate in a second edition.

Covid-19 has marked 2020 in every sector linked to sports, but the pandemic has not been the only significant event. The year will also be remembered as one in which sport firmly stood up to racism. The actions taken both individually by athletes of all sports, and collectively by organisations and companies across the industry undoubtedly signal a turning point in the need to eradicate racial discrimination. 

There were also significant statements of intent to bring greater parity between the men’s and women’s games, with the decision taken by the Football Associations of England and Brazil to pay their international female teams the same as their male counterparts, following the steps of Australia, Norway and New Zealand.

WFS Live: Building football’s roadmap for the future

These events are also featured in the comprehensive WFS Live Conference Concept, which pivots on five main themes:  

  • Explore: The ‘new normal’ in football
  • Bridge the gap: Partnerships, investments & more
  • Discover the next step: Sports technology & OTT
  • Inclusivity: This game is for everyone
  • Breaching boundaries: New global possibilities in sport

The WFS Live Programme, which will be released in the coming weeks, will also feature the final of the WFS StartCup by GSIC – the annual startup competition promoted by WFS and the Global Sports Innovation Center (GSIC). The WFS Industry Awards, issued annually by WFS to recognise outstanding works done by professionals of the different fields within the football industry, will also take place. Due to Covid-19, this year the awards will be handed virtually. 

Tickets for WFS Live will go on sale next Monday September 14th with a unique special offer, so keep an eye on your mailbox and the World Football Summit’s social media networks to make sure you don’t miss it.

In the meantime; if you are interested in being part of WFS Live and want more information on how to participate, send us an email to: live@worldfootballsummit.com