One World, One Game, One Goal: Football as a Catalyst for Youth Mental Health and Well-Being (Global Celebration of Football and Youth Mental Health)

Good afternoon to everyone joining us here in the General Assembly Hall and online from across the world. Welcome to the United Nations.

And now we gather in one of the most important rooms of our United Nations, the General Assembly Hall, to continue this conversation on the world stage. We want to highlight that there is interpretation available in the 6 official UN languages throughout the events today. My name is Anthurium Lewis. Not early enough.

Could everyone please take their seats? Thank you. Good afternoon to everyone joining us here in the General Assembly Hall. and online from around the world. Welcome to the United Nations.

We're honored to have you with us today as we conclude a full day of activities across UN Headquarters dedicated to the power of sport for mental health and well-being. More than 100 speakers and leaders, over 30 partner organizations, and more than 2,000 participants have come together as part of this global celebration including football activities on our gardens and spotlight sessions.

And now we gather in one of the most important rooms of our United Nations, the General Assembly Hall, to continue this conversation on the world stage. We want to highlight that there is interpretation available in the 6 official UN languages throughout the event today. My name is Anthurium Lewis, United Nations Young Leader for the SDGs, founder of Roots for Tomorrow and Child Rights Ambassador.

My name is Enzo Romero. I design and I develop personalized prosthesis for hands. This is through 3D printing for the Global South, and we're also young leaders for the SDGs. We're pleased to be your hosts for the next 3 hours at this special occasion in this world celebration organized by the UN Youth Office with The group of member states, Friends of Football or Soccer at the United Nations, we will be listening to world leaders, athletes, activists, and above all, young people themselves. Together, we will review the current mental health situation and the well-being of young people in the world. Through this journey from darkness to light, we will recognize the challenging realities that young people are dealing with when it comes to mental health, and we will progressively move towards recovery, solidarity, and action.

Let us begin by inviting the first-ever Assistant Secretary-General for UN Youth Affairs, Dr. Felipe Paulier, Head of the United Nations Youth Office, to open this important celebration.

Felipe?

Dear colleagues, friends, especially young people in the room, welcome.

Welcome.

I want today to start acknowledging something I feel it's very critical. I want to speak to you about pain. Some might think I picked the wrong speech for a celebratory moment, but no, this is the right message I want to bring you. Because I'm not here actually to speak about pain as a negative force. I want to speak to you about pain as a transformative force. We are here because we have felt the pain in our communities. We have seen young people struggling. We have listened to stories of loneliness, of uncertainty, and of exclusion. And that pain brought us here, to this house, the United Nations. And we are here with a responsibility to act. Today, we are not just here to celebrate football. We are here to recognize and to leverage the power of football to transform communities.

Thank you, José Luis.

Around this world, young people are living through a time of profound uncertainty. Uncertainty because of wars and conflicts. Uncertainty because of technological change. Change that sometimes can feel that the future is actually unpredictable. But amid this uncertainty, young people are not standing still. They are leading. They are transforming communities through sports, through arts, through innovation, through civic engagement. They are creating community initiatives that bring people together. They are building connection where others see division. Over the last 2 and a half years working for the United Nations, I've had the privilege of traveling to many parts of the world. And in every country, one of the most important things has been to meet young people where they are. And one issue always comes up: mental health. Not mental health as a statistic, not as a report, but as a lived reality. For young people, mental health is about care, it is about connection, and most importantly, it's about community. It is about us bridging the gaps between generations. Colleagues, especially those decision-makers in the room, young people expect something different from us. They want leaders that understand. They want genuine partnership. That is why we are here. We know the unique power of sports, and especially the power of football. Every 4 years, the world comes together. Different cultures, different languages, different circumstances, and for a brief moment, billions of us, we share the same emotions. We celebrate, sometimes we cry, we cheer, but most importantly, we come together not only to play, not only to watch, but to connect. And in a world which is often divided, connection is one of the most powerful things we can do. So let us come together as one global humanity, as one global community, with one goal: to partner with young people. Let us come together to change the narrative and to place youth mental health at the heart of our global agenda, because youth mental health really matters. Thank you very much. Muchas gracias.

Thank you, Felipe, for the remarks and the leadership. Now, I trust you all want to join me in wearing your pretty scarves that you all received. Now, we are excited to show you a special video from FIFA on the power of football to unite the world. Please turn your attention to the screens.

If football were a nation, If football were a nation? If football were a nation?

If football were a nation?

If football were a nation?

If football were a nation?

If football were a nation?

If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation?

If football were a nation?

If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation? If football were a nation To learn.

To dream.

Para construir un futuro mejor.

Also lassen Sie die Welt Ihre Unterstützung hören.

Because we are part of the biggest team on the planet.

Unite for Education.

El fútbol une al mundo. Football unites the world.

Now please join us in welcoming the President of FIFA, Mr. Gianni Infantino.

Thank you.

Okay, hello everyone.

Hello everyone.

Well, what, what a great pleasure, dear friends, Felipe, everyone here, colleagues, What an honour, what a pleasure to be here with you in this incredible room, in this room full of emotion, full of passion, full of history, full of heartbeat. Thank you for having me here, thank you for having FIFA here, thank you for having the FIFA World Cup here as well. So I'm here today together with you and I brought this, which is, as you know, I was here a couple of months ago and we experienced it. This is, or looks like, right, a ball. More specifically, it is the official ball of the FIFA World Cup 2026 final. It's the ball of the final, but it's much more than that. As we all know, it is a magic object. I say this to our friends of football here who are part of this great organization, and they know it very well. It is a magic object which has the power to unite the world, which is what the United Nations is doing as well. The power to unite the world, the power to bring people together, the power to transform people, children, girls, boys into happy, Happy children, happy girls, happy boys, and happy people. Just try it by yourself. Take a ball, give it to anyone, whether it's an adult or a child, and you will see the face of that person instantly transforming into a happy face. So we are here organizing, of course, this World Cup, uniting the world into a moment of joy, into a moment of passion, into a moment of community, and we are here to lend our full support to this so important cause of youth and mental health. It is important that we take these topics very seriously. It is important that we support, it is important that we educate, it is important that we speak, it is important that we act, as you were saying earlier, and that we show to the world that not only we can unite but that we can really do something. We hear it. many times, don't we, that we live in a divided world, that we live in an aggressive world, that there are so many things that divide us, that create us problems. But we know as well, and if there is one thing, if there is one thing that this World Cup has shown us and is showing us, We know that there are many more things that bring us together than things that divide us. And we owe it to our youth— and that's why I'm here today— we owe it to our future generation that we create opportunities and chances to bring the world together. And we have seen millions of people coming together in the last month and a half to the United States, to Canada, and to Mexico, but in every corner of the world, coming together in a peaceful way, in a joyful way, wanting to spend time together and wanting to celebrate a moment of community. This is the strongest message ever. And this is the message on which we have to build our future. A future of unity and a future of community. We can speak different languages. We can come from different cultures. We can cheer for different teams. Of course, all of us have our favorites. In 2 days, we will know if Spain or Argentina will be the world champion. Who will be the— who is for Spain?

Me!

Who's for Argentina?

Me!

But what we know already, what we know already, dear friends, is that football is not just the most popular sport in the world. Football has definitely become that common, that universal language that everyone speaks because everyone wants to come together, to join forces, to support and help good causes like the one that we are supporting here today and to give a better future to our girls and our boys from all over the world. So from my side, after having enjoyed like you the last 37 days of World Cup, I wish you another 2 fantastic World Cup days. a great final. I thank you very much for your attention. I tell you to count on FIFA, to count on me, to count on all these legends and players who are supporting you and what you do every day of your life in your action, because it is really worth it. Thank you very much. Merci beaucoup. Shukran jazilan.

Enjoy football.

football and enjoy the World Cup. Thank you.

Thank you so much. Thank you so much, Mr. Infantino, for that inspiring speech. Now it is our pleasure to welcome Tanatswa Amanda Shikora, one of the United Nations Young Leaders for the SDGs. Tanatswa is a mental health advocate from Zimbabwe, a researcher, and the founder and director of Nindawe. Tanatswa's speech will include references to suicide. We are offering this note and will keep doing so whenever needed because we want you you to feel comfortable, whether that's staying to hear the speech or stepping out for a moment. If anything that's shared brings up difficult feelings, or if you're struggling with thoughts of suicide, please know you are not alone. Reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988 in the US. Please join us in welcoming Tanatsua on stage. Thank you.

Your Excellencies, young leaders, and esteemed attendees. My name is Tanatswa Amanda Chikaura, and 8 years ago my life changed forever. I learned of the deaths by suicide of fellow university students. Initially, I was met with shock and confusion, but what followed was a deep desire to understand how we can better raise mental health awareness and most importantly, provide support to young people. Today, I lead a mental health organization in Zimbabwe called Ndiniwe, which is a Shona word that means, I am with you. Through mental health literacy, we're providing young Zimbabweans with the tools and resources they need to not only support their own mental health, but that of others. Today, We gather here today because we believe in a simple fact: youth mental health matters. Like Dr. Philippe Pollier said, today's youth are living in a time of unprecedented uncertainty. From geopolitical conflict and climate anxiety to rising youth unemployment, these challenges are not only testing our economies and institutions, but also the resilience and well-being of an entire generation. Good mental health and well-being is not a luxury. It is a fundamental human right and the foundation upon which systems such as education, employment, peace, and opportunity are built. Around the world, young people are being left behind in many different ways. Those living through conflict are forced to leave their homes and carry invisible psychological wounds. Millions of girls are still denied access to education in 2026, widening the societal inequalities. Inclusive education, healthcare, social services, and support remain out of reach for far too many. While neurodivergent young people continue to face barriers in accessing the support they need to truly thrive. Yet, despite the scale of these challenges, the World Health Organization's 2024 Mental Health Atlas highlights that on average, governments spend only 2% of their healthcare budgets on mental health. In developing countries, That is less than a percent. This underinvestment costs economies billions of dollars annually, continues to widen health and societal inequalities, and sadly leads to preventable deaths. Mental health continues to receive far less political attention than the evidence demands, despite being fundamental to sustainable development. Our continued underinvestment is our collective failure. The evidence is no longer in question. What remains in question is whether we have the political will to act. The good news is that there are many young people across the globe that are championing incredible initiatives. These young people are capable of shaping international policy. Pioneering groundbreaking interventions and leading national and regional mental health strategies. Do not just invite these young people to the table, let them lead. To every single person in this room and across the globe who is a pillar of one or more communities, I ask that you please Practice kindness. A single action or conversation can potentially be someone's lifeline. Let us create safe spaces where seeking help is not stigmatized and where asking for help translates to actual support. Most importantly, let us create a world where young people's lives are worth living.

With that, Thank you, Tanatswa, for that strong and inspiring message. This event would not be possible without Bahrain, Libya, and Tajikistan, the 3 co-chairs of the Friends of Football. We will hear from them in a moment, but first, I invite you to turn to the screen to watch a video about communities of care, to pass the ball challenge inside and out of the soccer field.

Football for us is like a piece of pizza. And strong communities do the same.

A simple pass can change a game.

A kind word can change someone's day.

Every child has the right to play, to belong. and to be part of a team.

Let us make sure that children with disabilities are not left on the sidelines. Play for Every Child, because every child has the right to play and the right to mental health and well-being.

Play changes lives. Through Play for Every Child, UNICEF is ensuring that every boy and every girl has a chance to play, to belong, and to thrive.

Pass the ball, pass the support.

Pass the ball and join the challenge for every child, the right to play and the right to belong.

As the world comes together through football, let's remember what makes the game so powerful. Every pass builds connection, every team creates belonging, and when children have the chance to play safely and participate, they build confidence, resilience, and hope, the foundations for positive, mental health and well-being.

For every child, the right to play. For every child, the right to belong. Wonderful. And now we'd like to pass the ball to the next speaker. We are pleased to welcome Mr.

Kurshed Mirzo, First Vice President of the Football Federation Excellencies, colleagues, young leaders, athletes, and friends, it's a great honor to join you today at this important event, One World, One Game, One Goal, dedicated to football, youth mental health and well-being. Football is more than a sport, it's a universal language. It brings people together across borders, cultures, languages, and generations. On the On the football field, young people learn teamwork, discipline, respect, confidence, and solidarity. But most importantly, football creates a sense of belonging, and belonging is one of the strongest foundations of well-being. Today, young people around the world face many pressures. Worries, loneliness, economic challenges, digital stress, and many changes. In this context, sport can play a very important role. Football gives young people a safe space to connect, to express themselves, to build friendship, to develop resilience, resilience, and to feel that they are part of community. This is why Tajikistan strongly supports the idea of using football as a catalyst for youth well-being, inclusion, and social unity. In Tajikistan, football has a special place in society. It is loved in cities and villages, villages by children and young people, by girls and boys, by families and communities. Through football, we can promote not only physical health but also confidence, discipline, mutual respect, and hope. As Senior Vice President of the Tajikistan Football Federation, I would like to underline that we see football development not only through the lens of competition and results, but We also see it as investment in people, especially in young people. With the support of our partners, including FIFA, AFC, Tajikistan has been improving football infrastructure, youth football, women's football, futsal, and grassroots programs. FIFA has also recognized the importance of investing in football infrastructure in Tajikistan as investment in society, youth, and children. But our next task is to go further. We need to make football more inclusive, more accessible, and more connected to education, health, community development, and youth empowerment. This is especially important because according to the World Health Organization, 1 in 7 young people aged 10 to 19 has a mental health condition. This reminds us that youth well-being is not a secondary issue. It is a development priority. We believe that football can be part of the solution. Football can help reduce loneliness. Football can build trust. Football can support inclusion. Football can create safe spaces for dialogue, friendship, and mutual support. Tajikistan is ready to work with the United Nations Youth Office, FIFA, member states, national football associations, civil society and young people to promote football as a practical tool for youth well-being. Our message today is simple: when we invest in young people, we invest in peace, resilience and the future. And when we use football for good, we create stronger communities. Let us make the game not only about the goals in the field, but also about a greater goal: the well-being, dignity, and future of every young person. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Mr. Mircea. Now, I invite His Excellency Ambassador Jamal Fares Al-Rwayeh, Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United Nations.

Sports and football fans, To the youth, to the power, to the future, welcome. On behalf of the co-chairs of the Group of Friends of Football, namely Tajikistan, Libya, and my country Bahrain, it's a great pleasure to join you today. in celebrating the remarkable power of football to advance youth mental health and well-being. At the outset, I wish, I wish to express our sincere appreciation to the Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs, Mr. Filippi, and also to the President of FIFA and FIFA team, and all partners whose leadership and dedication made this meaningful event possible. Today, we celebrated far more than sport. We heard compelling stories from young leaders, athletes, and advocates that reminded us how football can inspire hope, foster resilience, strengthening a sense of belonging, and empowering young people to overcome challenges. These stories reaffirm that football is not only a game. It is a force for communications. It is a force for connection and well-being, empowering boys and girls everywhere to realize their potential and contribute to more peaceful and resilient societies. As a co-chair of the Group of Friends of Football, we remain committed to harnessing the power of sport to promote solidarity, coexistence, and sustainable development. So let us continue working together so that every young person has the opportunity not only to play the game, but also to find hope, confidence, and belonging through its— today's youth and the future generations. And I thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you, Ambassador. Now I am pleased to invite His Excellency Ambassador Tahir El-Sonyi, Permanent Representative of the State of Libya to the United Nations.

Welcome.

Thank you.

Thank you very much. Good afternoon, fans of football around the world. My dear friend Philippe, my dear co-chairs Jamal and Johnny Baig from Bahrain and Tajikistan, President of FIFA Gianni Infantino. It's a great pleasure to be with you all. Libya, as a co-chair of the Group of Friends of Football, is pleased to participate today, and I wish to thank the UN Youth Office for organizing this event. This engagement builds upon Libya's commitment together with its partners, which led to the adoption by this Assembly of the resolution establishing May 25th as World Football Day. Through this initiative, and with the group of Friends of Football, we sought to recognize this game not merely as the world's most popular sport, but as a powerful instrument for inclusion, human development, well-being, dialogue, and peace. At a moment when the World Cup has captured the attention of people across every continent, and when many of us have suddenly become coaches, referees, and technical experts, it is timely to reflect on what football can achieve beyond a game to watch. Mental health has become one of the defining challenges facing young people today. More than 1 billion people worldwide are living with a mental health condition, with approximately 1 in 7 between the age of 8— 10 and 19 experience a mental health condition. Libya recognizes the profound impact that prolonged instability around the world can have on young people. Millions are growing up amid armed conflicts, forced displacement, economic hardship, social division, and uncertain future. They require not only humanitarian or medical assistance, but also they need safe spaces, supportive relationships, and opportunities to recover their confidence, strengthen their resilience, and rediscover hope and belonging. And football can help provide such space. As highlighted by the United Nations Youth Office, football promotes physical health, emotional regulation, social bonds, joy, and sense of belonging. WHO also confirms that regular physical activity can reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, enhance brain health, and improve overall well-being. Football is particularly valuable because it is accessible and universally understood. It requires no translation. A pass, a goal, or an encouraging gesture from a teammate carries the same meaning whether it's from Libya to US or whether it is from Spain to Argentina. On the football field, young people learn discipline, teamwork, leadership, responsibility, and respect. They learn how to manage pressure, recover after defeat, and trust others. Perhaps most importantly, football reminds us that asking for support is not a weakness. Even the most talented players couldn't succeed alone. Well, that goes also with the legends, whether you debate Pelé or Maradona or Ronaldo or Messi. It goes for everyone. Every player needs teammates, guidance, and occasionally someone to remind them that missing a penalty does not define their entire career. or their entire life. A football team can also provide a young person with an identity, a routine, and support network. For refugees, displaced persons, young people with disabilities, and those living in marginalized communities, participation in sport can restore dignity and reduce isolation. However, these benefits are not automatic. Football environments must be safe, inclusive, and free from discrimination, bullying, violence, and abuse. The current World Cup has indeed given us many stressful moments, moments of disappointment and moments of joy. And now even celebrating a goal goes over the VAR, where it's another stress whether it's a goal or not. I don't know if President Infantino needs to change this. I think you guys agree that this VAR is causing us problems, right?

Yeah.

So, but a VAR reminds us that even with the most advanced technology, football and life will always require sound human judgment, and only that will keep our spirit alive. Nevertheless, football can unite billions of people around the world, and responsibility is to ensure that this energy does not disappear after the final whistle. In football, the best formation may be debated— 4-4-2, 4-3-3, whatever it is— but for youth mental health, the best formation is the one which families, schools, communities, and institutions play together, and no one, no young person, is left on the bench. The World Cup this Sunday will soon have one champion, but if we properly harness the social power of football, Its benefits can reach every community and every young person. So let's all be champions for the benefit of all. And I thank you.

Thank you, Ambassador. We're grateful to the Friends of Football for all the support. And now, the first female professional footballer from Argentina and one of the key supporters of the UN Youth Office mental health campaign, that is launching today, Ms. Maca Sánchez. Maca?

Wow.

Ladies and gentlemen, friends, colleagues, many thanks to the UN for this space. Many thanks to my friend and companion Felipe. When I was little, it was hard for me to imagine myself being here at the United Nations. The only thing that I really wanted was to play football. And it seems like a very simple dream, but for many of us it wasn't. For years I had to explain why a woman could also play football. Why did we deserve the same opportunities? And why this sport also had a place for us? And I kept on thinking that that was really the challenge, opening doors that for many years had been closed. And of course, that was an important struggle. But over the years, I also understood that there are many doors that are much more difficult to open, because there are battles that no one sees. When I dealt with depression, I understood that I could have achieved a lot of things that I struggled for, but still I could have felt very sad or lost. I discovered that strength is not just about dealing with everything. Sometimes it has to do with allowing somebody to help you if you aren't doing well.

Thank you.

My personal experience also helped me understand young people. Sometimes we ask them to be resilient, we tell them to be leaders, or sometimes we tell them even to change the world, but we forget to ask them how they're doing. We forget to build spaces for them where they can make mistakes, where they can feel vulnerable, and know that they aren't going to be judged for that. And I think that there sports has a great responsibility, and this is why football has an impact that goes way beyond the 90 minutes. Not because it resolves mental health problems on its own, but because it can create something that many times is the first step to preventing them: community ties and a sense of belonging. Today I have the privilege of accompanying some organizations. One of them is Love Football, that understands that building a field is more than just building a physical space. It's creating community, strengthening ties, and offering new generations a place where they can see, feel visible, listened to, and valued. This is why when we talk about young people, when you talk about mental health in football, we're really talking about the same thing. We are talking about people who need opportunities, but also they need to be listened to. People who need spaces to be able to develop themselves, but also places where they can feel safe. And they need to know that asking for help doesn't make them weak. It makes them human. If we manage to build communities together where every young person feels that they belong, we are not just creating better athletes. We are training people with more tools in order to live, in order to take care of others and to build a better future. Mental health is important. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Macarena. We would like to recognize the World Health Organization for their critical leadership And as such, we are honored to receive a special video message from the Director-General of WHO, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Excellencies, colleagues, young leaders, friends, the Football World Cup is the best possible demonstration of the power of sport to inspire and motivate. The evidence is clear. Regular physical activity is beneficial for both physical and mental health. It reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety and improves well-being. Globally, WHO estimates that 1 in 6 adolescents live with a mental health condition, but most remain unrecognized Sport can provide stability during uncertainty, hope during adversity, and is a powerful foundation for lifelong health and well-being. WHO guidelines recommend that children and adolescents do, on average, at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity every day. But around 85% of girls and 78% of boys worldwide are not sufficiently active. For many young people, safe spaces, facilities, and trained mentors for sport simply don't exist. Many people with disabilities and refugees and migrants also lack access and opportunity. Supporting countries to close this gap is a key priority for WHO. This includes working with youth networks and sports organizations and advising governments to invest in promoting sport as integral to mental health, with young people themselves at the center of decisions. This weekend, the world's top footballers will compete for the sport's biggest prize. Our goal, and our prize, is even bigger: a world in which every young person thrives. I thank you.

Thank you, Dr. Tedros, for sending us this powerful message. Our next guest is Sahira Al Nahari, a UN Young Leader for the SDGs, physician, health law strategist, and social entrepreneur. As founder of Shifa Art, she explores the role of creativity, dialogue, and healing in promoting healthier and more inclusive societies.

Hello, everyone.

Welcome, Zahira.

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. Excellencies, distinguished guests, and fellow young leaders. As an emergency physician, I am sometimes required to face young people at their most vulnerable moments. I still remember that day where the emergency room doors burst open, the sounds of monitors, and the silence of a terrified family. A young person had been brought in after trying to end their life. A room full of healthcare providers rushing urgently to save a physical body while a devastating truth lingered in the air. Long before reaching those doors, a soul had been suffering in the dark. Moments like that stays with you. When you meet a young person at the point of no return, Mental health is no longer an abstract topic. It's no longer statistics or a campaign. It is a crisis where we are demanded to place the tools of survival directly in their hands. And I know this might seem like a medical syringe, and I promise you I'm not here to draw blood today, but I use this tool during my therapeutic art workshops, and it's quite symbolic. It resembles that hope sometimes must be injected into the places that are needed— that needs it the most. And so rather than me talking to you about healing, I would like to invite you all into a brief exercise. To start off, I would like you to be seated in a comfortable position. Soften your shoulders and place your foot firmly on the ground. And slowly take a deep breath in. And slowly breathe out. Picture one young person, a child in a hospital room, a student overwhelmed by expectation, a young athlete under immense pressure, or a displaced teenager forced to start over. Or perhaps someone you know, someone from your family, from your community. Think of someone who deserves to feel safe, seen, and truly alive. Now, I would like you to hold your hand open in front of you. I want you to pretend as if it's a piece of paper, and your other hand, with your— with the tip of your fingerprint, Fingerprint. Fingerprint as a pen. And I want you to send a message to this young person. It could be a word, a symbol, a shape. Now place that hand on the left side of your chest. Allow yourself to feel your heartbeat. Let the message rest there for a moment and take one deep breath in and breathe out. Ask yourself, why was that very first message that came to mind? Perhaps it was what the young person needed to hear. Or perhaps it was also something you once needed to hear yourself. So without saying a single word, you have just communicated through the language of healing. And I must say, I've witnessed the profound truth of this language myself. During medical school, we organized a field trip for kids with autism and Down syndrome. We put stations for arts and crafts, and we allowed them to ride on horses. And then beautifully unplanned, a volunteer brought out a football, and that football became a universe of its own. I saw the parents proudly look at their kids as they saw them play and run around. And for a moment, there were no clinical labels, there were no limitations, there were— there was only presence. And that is the undeniable power of sports and art. And this is not just a beautiful statement, it is hard evidence. World Health Organization confirms that movement rewires an anxious and depressed brain. And while over 3,000 studies prove that art actively prevents and helps the treatment of illnesses. Therefore, a paintbrush and a football are not child's play. They are vital tools for survival. As a physician, the responsibility to protect life is a principle I live by every single day. It is a duty that extends far beyond the walls of a hospital, echoing a profound truth in our faith. In the Holy Quran, we are commanded, woman, ahyaaha, faka annama ahyaan nasajamiyaan, and whoever saves one life, it is as if they have saved all of humanity. And to live up to that command, We must build a world where young people can express their pain before they disappear into the statistics. Thank you.

Thank you, Sahira. Enzo, did you know that mental health is not only essential for young people to thrive, it is a fundamental human right?

I did, but it doesn't seem that the reality young people are facing right now backs that up.

I agree. 6 in 10 young people report experiencing systemic mental health challenges in the past year.

And over half of youth report a lack of hope for the future. That's more than a statistic. That is a generation telling us something.

Exactly. Mental health is shaped by the environments in which young people live, learn, work, play, and connect. It is influenced by opportunities for participation, belonging, community, and hope. Our next conversation brings together voices from across these sectors to explore how we can work together to advance youth mental health and well-being worldwide. To moderate this discussion, we welcome Melissa Fleming, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications, who has championed efforts to elevate the voices of young people and strengthen public engagement around the world. Welcome, and please join us, Ms. Melissa Fleming.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, ma'am.

Hello. I'm feeling very, very relaxed after that session, and I'll share that I thought of somebody very, very close to me, a young person very, very close to me, and I wrote on my hand I believe in you. And I think that that's a message that we who are maybe not struggling with mental health, but who have become so much more aware, especially after today and after learning so much today, of how prevalent mental health issues are. And I'm sure everybody knows somebody in their family or in their community who struggles.

Yeah.

And I think that if we can exercise that meditation every day and deliver those healing messages, I think it will go a long way. So it's amazing to be talking about this issue in the General Assembly Hall. And to those tuning in live to the High-Level Expert Panel on Youth, mental health, and well-being. I would like to say welcome to those online, and nice to see all of you in the room. What an amazing crowd that we have here in New York City at the United Nations. Wonderful to have you here. And now I would like to welcome our panelists to the stage. We have Neela who is a young— a UN Young Leader for the SDGs, among so many other things. Neela, please come to the stage. James Sale, Deputy CEO for United for Global Mental Health. And Mahmoud Khedour, co-founder of the Hidden Healers Movement. Thank you all for being here.

Hi.

Some of you have fans already in the audience, I see. So it is, it is great to have you here as panelists, and I'm not going to speak too much because I really want to hear so much from you, but I do want to say that But, you know, we are very cognizant at the UN that young people have an especially challenging world to live in right now. We have the climate crisis, we have horrific wars, and we have, you know, of course, the ongoing inequality, and then the rapid technological transformation that is all-consuming. But we also think that it is a moment of enormous possibility because youth mental health is finally being acknowledged. And there are so many people who have woken up that this is not just an anomaly, it is central. It's a central issue. It is central to our own well-being as, as a society and as families. families and as communities. So we have 1 in 7 adolescents who live with a mental disorder, 1 in 7. And so we need to figure out how we can help them. These mental health conditions begin before— almost all of them, 3/4, before the age of 24. And more than half of young people are reporting feeling less hopeful about the future. I have been— for those of you who know me and those of you who don't, one of my big obsessions leading communications for the UN is the effect of social media and now increasingly large language models and AI on young people and mental health. And we are, you know, really advocating to the global— to the platforms to take responsibility for safe designs and really to do much more. So we have seen that it has left, and it does leave people feeling more isolated, not rather than— rather than pulling people together in friendship, it is actually making people, especially young people, feel more lonely and more anxious. And it is exposing them to harm. And one of the things that we're really concerned about also is that countries are investing too little in health. 2% of their health budgets go to mental health. So we need to make and shift this as a priority. And what we need more is environments where young people can thrive with dignity, belonging, and hope. And sport is such a powerful example. We heard so much. We heard data about this. We heard— had wonderful speakers who attested to this, athletes themselves, or the head of the World Health Organization, who has the proof. So that's why initiatives like the Football for Mental Health really matter, using the universal language of football, not simply to celebrate the game, but to promote inclusion, resilience, and mental well-being under the vision of One Game, One World, One Goal. So before we dive into this discussion, I would like to acknowledge that today's conversation may touch on difficult experiences. So please take care of yourself throughout. And if anyone needs to step out at any time, that is fine. This is our United Nations a safe and supportive place for everyone. So I'm going to give— begin with a question to all 3 panelists, and Naila, James, and Mahmoud, I'm going to start with Naila. As we saw, young people today are facing increasing pressures from conflict, from displacement, economic uncertainty, climate anxiety, social isolation, demands of the hyper-connected world, not to mention people who are fleeing conflict and persecution. You yourself came from Afghanistan, very difficult circumstances that you had to flee from. So the question is, from your perspective, what do you see is the most urgent challenge of all of these challenges affecting young people's mental health and well-being today? Are there any opportunities that you see for action?

Thank you so much, Melissa, for that question, and thank you everyone for being here. It's a great honour to be on this panel with 2 incredible leaders in the sector of mental health. I think this is my very first time speaking about mental health, and some of you might know that my work is in gender equality and girls' education. because of where I come from. But one thing that I would like to take the chance to acknowledge is that I've lived 14 years of my life in Afghanistan, and in a country like Afghanistan where there's so much conflict, mental health isn't part of the conversation. And you might think why that is. It's because survival takes up the whole room, takes up the whole space, because there are so many struggles, economic struggles, there's insecurity, there's inequality, There's discrimination and lack of unity, just to name a few things that is on the mind of an average Afghan on a day-to-day basis. So of course they're going to be distressed if they don't know when their next meal is going to be there or where it's going to come from. Of course they're going to be distressed if they don't know if they're going to be safe or alive by the end of the day. And so being in that state of fight or flight and being in that survival state pushes them to put up a strong front and push for hopes of a better tomorrow. And I think that that's what a lot of people, not only people from Afghanistan, but people who have the same struggles of living in a conflicted area, are dealing with. And the politics of it all dismisses that when we make decisions that are made in rooms like this with pressing a button or with a flick of a pen, that those decisions impact real people. I found a quote from one of the Afghan girls who was saying that school was their only place where they could find happiness. And ever since not being allowed to go to school for 4 or 5 years by this point, they don't think that anything is ever going to be okay again. And according to BBC, 1 in 2 women suffer from mental health in Afghanistan. And while the stigma around mental health in Afghanistan and the lack of research leaves a lot of ambiguity among the numbers of who's struggling and how many people, I don't think we need a survey to know that Afghanistan is in distress. The people are struggling, and they need our attention more than ever.

Thank you so much, Naila, and I think let's give an applause, and let's all continue to raise our voices and demand that all girls in Afghanistan can go to school, and young women. Again, thank you very much for sharing that. And I'd like to now ask James, Deputy CEO of United for Global Mental Health, if you could just say 3 sentences on what United for Global Mental Health is.

Yes.

And then also, in your perspective, what can we do to make— to address mental health today?

Thank you. Thank you very much. But firstly, I just want to say huge congratulations and thank you to the UN Youth Office for a wonderful day. I think you've done something really marvelous here. So big thank you, Matthew, Finn, Marta, Bianca, all of you MVPs for today, certainly. So thank you, thank you so much. United for Global Mental Health, we are a global organization that is calling for greater political and financial investment in mental health around the world so that everybody everywhere can— has someone to turn to in support of their mental health. And we push governments, we push the private sector, multilaterals, people with money, people with power. We push them all to realize that this is the greatest investment they can make. And so that's who we are. But in terms of the question, I genuinely feel that the greatest risk to mental health, or to youth mental health, is that investing in youth mental health continues to be viewed as a nice-to-have or a luxury, rather than understanding that by investing in young people's mental health, we have the opportunity for the greatest of returns. From educational attainment to youth employment, from healthier young people to increased social cohesion, youth mental health is the investment of our time. Globally, the rate of suicide for total populations is declining. That's a good thing, and we are pushing hard to make sure that continues. But for young people, that rate's increasing. Just because something is precious doesn't mean it has to be a luxury. But one of the greatest opportunities, I think, is to take an ecosystems approach to youth mental health. That means understanding what affects a young people's— a young person's mental health and how their mental health affects their life. And then building systems and structures that focus on prevention and promotion of good mental health, as well as support and treatment. A great example of this is the Being Initiative led by Grand Challenges Canada, and this has taken an ecosystems approach, and they asked young people in depth About their mental health and the world around them, and then invested in youth-led solutions. We heard this morning from, from 3 of the projects from the Being Initiative who use sport, exercise, and movement to transform young people's lives. As well as recognizing that youth mental health is a cross-societal issue that requires a broad cross-governmental health approach, We cannot forget the bedrock of quality mental health services within health systems, at your local health facility, so that everybody everywhere has someone to turn to in support of their mental health when they need it. But ultimately, the opportunity to change how we look at and how we look after young people's mental health through exercise and movement and sport, the opportunity is in this room. It's everybody that's here today. You have the power to make that change, and that, I find, is really exciting.

Thanks.

Let's give James a round of applause. Investment in youth mental health is the investment of our time. I think we will all— we would all agree with it, and some of it is actually free, but it still does require some investment and organization and community projects and And of course, that's only possible in a free society, and we have the extreme example of Afghanistan where just even going to school, I mean, that's a fundamental mental health intervention. Deprive young women and girls of that and you have a real crisis, but generally we need to invest in mental health. Is there, would you, from your perspective, Mahmoud, I mean, I'm very intrigued by the name of your— it's not even an organization, you're called— it's called a movement, Hidden Healers. That doesn't sound very conventional. Can you just say a bit about what Hidden Healers is, what made you start it, and then let us know what you have to say?

Absolutely. Thank you so much. Assalamu alaikum, everyone. My name is Mahmoud Kader, and I'm so honored to be here with you today. Hidden Healers started as a movement intentionally to highlight the disparities that exist in our mental health infrastructure, how we push young people to start getting help, but they're met with a help that's not fully ready to receive them. So often young people are pushed to go to therapy or to go to health or clinical systems, and sometimes that becomes a worse experience than they were before. Those systems for them can be inaccessible. They could meet a provider that doesn't understand their culture or their language or where they come from. They meet a system that's not available for them. And so the hope that they had when they mustered up the courage to get help gets diminished and they're in a state of hopelessness. And ultimately, for majority of the world, You know, in the U.S., we have a healthcare shortage. We have a mental healthcare worker shortage. When you look globally in the world, it is much, much worse than you can imagine. And so we love and appreciate our clinicians, our health systems. We know that the job they do is very important and hard. And at the same time, we know that that's not a sustainable and accessible way to address the crisis that we're facing. So Hidden Healers exists as a movement to highlight the type of ancestral, communal, and cultural healers and healing methods that have existed for thousands of years, some of them that we are building on now and innovating on, and some that we're reaching back into through time to bring to the present moment. I'll give a few more examples a little bit later about that, and that connects to the most urgent challenge. And, you know, for us to keep asking young people to heal inside the very conditions that are hurting them, that is one of the most jarring things to do. For us to tell young people to seek help when the actual conditions that they live in— you know, Neila did an incredible job sharing her story, thank you for that. That's one example.

Thank you.

Of millions of young people, billions of young people around the world who are facing these systemic type of challenges that need to be addressed. And so education in a way becomes an incredible mental health intervention. To build on that, another incredible example is imagining and thinking through young people who go through these type of circumstances but a lot more all over the world. There's Samah Jebber, who's the head of the Ministry of Mental Health within the West Bank, within Palestine, said something really insightful and incredible that I think applies to many young people across the world, that the Western framework of healing around mental health, that framework is oppressive within itself because it doesn't appreciate or has not built for and designed for the conditions of the majority of the world. And so trying to force that does not work. And the example that she uses is with post-traumatic stress disorder, which is a disorder you can experience if you've went through a really traumatic event and how you react to that event. And she shares that, for example, for Palestinian children and what they've endured, that they— that doesn't exist because they have continuous traumatic stress disorder. The trauma never stops.

Yeah.

And so in that scenario, the best mental health intervention would be to end the genocide that's happening. That's the best mental health intervention in that scenario. And we see this all over the world. I'm so happy that you mentioned social media and AI. That's another great example at a very different scale where these tools are designed with the best psychologists in the world and the best designers, behavioral designers, to make young people addicted. And young people are expected to— we guilt and shame young people for this. We tell them, get off your phones. And yes, we should. We should keep pushing for power and agency. But at the same time, the best intervention in this scenario is to hold these systems accountable and force them to design healthy ecosystems and places for young people to be able to thrive. The last thing I'll say is that the opportunity we see with Hidden Healers is that, you know, and this is one of the most exciting things about this event that makes this such a critical convening and framing around mental health, that sports is a way of medicine, that a football pitch, a mosque, a church, a temple, a campfire, an older sibling, a grandmother, a family. These are all different types of healers. This is what we'd call hidden healers. Healers exist in entrepreneurs and organizations like the ones on stage. They also exist like my friend Omri Gall, who's the founder of Design FC, where they use sports jerseys and work with young people across cities to help tell their stories. Design, creativity, these are all different types of healing, and I think these are some of the greatest opportunities as we think about how we connect young people to all different types of healing with creativity, with joy, and addressing the underlying causes that are pushing them in the scenario that they're in.

Thank you, Mahmoud. That was very— you gave us, I think, a lot of food for thought, and outside the usual box of the way we, and many of us, see mental health. And I like that you're calling it healing, and also looking at ancestral and communal and cultural strategies for helping our young people. I'm going to— we're going to do one final round, and I would like to ask— I know that— is it Naila or Neela? I should have asked you before to pronounce it correctly.

It's Neela, but I get Naila a lot.

It's Neela. Neela, Mahmoud just mentioned storytelling. And you run an organization where you bring voices of young Afghan women and girls out for the rest of the world to learn about. Do you consider that also a mental health intervention? And maybe you want to say a little bit more about some of the solutions that you see, particularly how can we help—

Yeah.

these women and girls in Afghanistan not feel so alone?

I honestly loved what Mahmoud shared about these systems contributing or kind of being the source of why mental health crisis exists. And when we compare the world of the West with countries like Afghanistan where there's so little resources and there's a lot of conflict, I think we do see that the young people are struggling with mental health, but there's just different reasons. And mental health seems to be a side effect of the inner and a lot bigger problems that the societies of all of these countries are dealing with. And I think I can speak about Afghanistan only. And through the storytelling that I do with our nonprofit, Her Story, we try to interview girls who are in Afghanistan and let them share their stories because I started Her Story because I thought that Mainstream media just wants to narrate the stories of Afghan girls just in one narrative, but I wanted to give the mic to them and see what they have to say. And I think what's really powerful about that is that they feel empowered when they are asked to tell us what the differences are, tell us about their lives, and tell us their message to the world. And so we interview girls in Afghanistan, we post and publish their written pieces. And so they can feel heard and seen. And lately, we've started doing interviews with Afghan women from across the world who are outside of Afghanistan so that we not only contribute to the bigger narrative of, you know, Afghan women aren't always oppressed, but also we empower the Afghan women who are inside the country so that they don't lose hope. And when they look up to these people, they can see a little bit of themselves in them. And I think I really appreciate the opportunity to be here because at first I thought that it would be difficult for me to talk about mental health, but now that I think about it a bit more, mental health is a side effect to the bigger problems that Afghanistan and other countries in conflict are dealing with. And so, yeah, I thank you for that question.

Absolutely. Thanks for sharing. And it's— I've actually read many of the of the stories on Her Story, so look it up. It's called Her Story. It's a wonderful website. It has a collection of these amazing stories, and it's a fantastic initiative. James, you make the case for investment.

Is there—

are you hopeful that— and is there any success story? And if there's one thing that you could ask for, what would it be?

I mean, there are a lot of things I want to ask for. when it comes to mental health and investing in it. But, you know, seeing as we're here to talk about sports and mental health or, you know, alongside the World Cup, it would be to integrate movement for mental health across, well, everything that we do. And for this to have maximum impact, we need to recognize its value and take an equity approach. What does that mean? Well, it means that we don't assume that movement for mental health is only for able-bodied young men, but we see it as a role— we see the role of movement, and that's not just sport, for everyone and across a spectrum of mental health conditions as well, from well-being to severe mental health conditions. Understanding the universality of movement and how it can be an entry point to address other social issues issues as well, and bringing in those with influence to lead and to support change. And that's not just governments who gather in rooms like this, but let's look at companies within the exercise sector who have strong moral values. We work closely with Lululemon. I would class them as one of those. And using sport events like the World Cup to convey messages and convince national and global leaders that change needs to happen. Why can't LA '28 be the first mentally healthy Olympic Games? We need to think differently. We need to not stand still, and, well, we need to move for mental health.

Fantastic. Well, that's great, and thank you for bringing it back to the World Cup and the reason that we're all gathered here. And there are so many ways to move, as we heard. You can also move a paint a paintbrush, but there's art therapy, dance, and I'm just wondering when you're thinking about movement, you were mentioning cultural interventions, and I mean, is there a bigger cultural sport than football? And what for you, is football part of a healing intervention that you would recommend?

Hmm.

Wow.

Well, football is definitely the biggest sport in the world. I was going to say something controversial that is bigger, but it's not bigger, so I'm going to hold it back. I will say sports— yes, sport is an incredible way of healing. And I'll say what I want— would want people to know and how we would take this forward. World leaders, all of us to walk out with. I realized that so much of the movement work we were doing around highlighting healers and hidden healers and ways of movement and ways of healing, that that wasn't enough and that we really need to embed these ideas into our systems. And so I'm very excited about a movement that's starting, that I think started in the UK and is now evolving all over the world called social prescribing. And the idea is to allow and be able to provide clinicians and other people who work with young people the tools and the ability to prescribe movement, sports as medicine, nature, community, just like we prescribe medication. And I think this is one of the most fascinating and interesting ways to institutionalize and think about this. How a government would think about this is around thinking around reimbursement and paying and funding for these things as movement. Even when we think about, you know, sports and football as an example, it is not cheap to enroll your young person in a football or a soccer or a basketball program. It is not easy. And so making it easy, I've been really excited about building for that with a company that I'm working on, the next venture, Healers Health, which will use AI to help enroll young people in that. So it's a more responsible way of using AI. I think that's the most exciting thing is to embed it as an infrastructure where we can actually enroll young people in these things. Even when they seek mental health support, we can redirect them towards many other communal sports and well-being programs and not just rely on a clinical system.

Thank you.

I think that that's very aligned with what James was saying, and we need some of these big companies to be part because his in that investment. And doctors, yes, should prescribe sports as medicine. And then we need to keep telling, telling stories, to telling stories also to reduce the stigmatization around mental health, and, and to realize that it is, it is something that we need to all work on and address for a healthier society. Thank you very much to my panelists here. This This was such an important and interesting conversation. And thank you all for being so engaging and listening. Thanks.

Thank you. Thank you to our moderator and panelists for that insightful discussion. We are delighted to welcome Michael Sani, founder and CEO of PlayVirtu, to share some of the key findings and reflections emerging from the collaboration between the UN Youth Office and PlayVirtu. Welcome.

Hello.

It says breathe. Sometimes it's a timely reminder, and I think I'll just take that moment now to take this in. You see, as all of us, where you're born often determines your trajectory in life, the opportunities that you have, Whether you're on a pathway to thrive or survive. And the community that I grew up in, in Southeast London, it was about surviving. No one asked us how we felt or what we needed. No one told us the pathways to power or how we could use our voice. And that does something to you. You lose agency. And so I decided that I would spend the rest of my life to bring agency to others, to help others find their voice, because quite simply, I don't believe that anybody is hard to reach. I think they're still waiting to be asked. So in collaboration with the UN Youth Office, we created a play-based experience and we could go out and listen to the voices and realities of young people and bring them into the room today. We harnessed the power of play and gamification, of creativity and imagination, because that builds trust. And when you build trust, you can get heartfelt responses from people, you can unearth their realities. And we got realities. 970 people from 125 countries. No country making up more than 10% of the dataset. Of course, not statistically representative, but truly global. For the next few minutes, I'm going to speak directly to the young players, the people that shared their realities, some of you in this room and many of you out there in the world. And for everyone else, of course, you're invited to listen in. So you told us sport is where you cope, it's where you hope, and it's where you belong. 90% said sport is important to their wellbeing. 92% said it shapes how you feel hopeful. 73% said it helps you deal with challenges in life, and almost two-thirds of you said sport is where you belong. So you already value sport, you already value participation, we don't need to convince you. But the truth is, do you feel heard? Last year, some of you may know, the OECD launched a new initiative, Education for Human Flourishing. Simply put, it's to ensure that young people in education, and in informal education develop the competencies to be able to act in the world. Awareness, readiness, and agency. We saw from the last slide awareness is in abundance, but the drop-off is in readiness. 1 in 4 people told us that they simply cannot access sport where they live. 1 in 4. And the main reasons for that was price, proximity, and not feeling welcome. Price, proximity, and not feeling welcome. I'm sure you'll all agree that there's a solution to each of those barriers. Now when it comes to agency, 79% of you told us that you can bounce back when things get hard. So it's not your resilience that's lacking, it's your say. 51% of you feel like your voices are not heard when it comes to decisions about sport in your community. So we can see that play doesn't just reach people, it unearths actionable insights. And so at PlayVerto, we believe that if you democratize that data, if you put those insights into the hands of impact leaders around the world, they will make the changes with the communities that they represent. So together we can catalyze everyone's journey From awareness to agency. You told us the importance of having someone in your corner, a trusted adult, a mentor, a coach. 92% that trusted— said that trusted adults help them create safe environments. 90% said they make you feel included, and 87% of you feel comfortable asking for help. So organisations like Football Beyond Borders are already actioning those insights when they're campaigning for every young person to have a trusted adult in their corner. So you told us the importance of having someone beside you, but you also told us it's about where you play. 2/3 of you told us sport is where you feel connected to nature. And of those that feel connected to nature, you're twice as likely to bounce back when things get tough. You're twice as likely to feel calm and steady when it's difficult in life when you've got that connection to nature. So the pitch and the planet are one. The places where you play are not just where you do sport, but it's where the well-being is built. And it's exactly why we must protect the places where you play from extreme weather. So Football for Future is protecting the game, and it means protecting the places where you play. Major tournaments come to countries and they get the investment, stadiums get the shade and drainage, but what about where you play? Every tournament should leave behind more than memories, It should leave the resources in the hands of communities that can come up with the solutions to the issues that they experience. In both of these examples, it's those that are experiencing the issues that often have the solutions. Our job isn't to decide and assume, it's to connect you to the people of power so you can take your place at the table and have your say so that you can participate and co-create. I thank you to all of those that played the experience, and I say this today on the world stage: you have been heard. This is just the beginning. We now know the importance of what we ask and how we ask it, the power of play and gamification to engage communities and bring agency. So I'll leave you with this: it's not the voices that are missing. Quite simply, it's the invitation. Thank you.

Thank you, Michael, for reminding us that the importance of engaging young people and ensuring that they are part of the decision-making processes, and highlighting the role of sports in contributing to young people's mental health and well-being. It's in this spirit that the #FootballForMentalHealth initiative was born, developed by the UN Youth Office in collaboration with UN country teams and a growing network of partners across sectors.

To introduce this initiative, We are pleased to welcome a leader who understands the unique potential of acting locally for global impact. Please join us in welcoming the President of the FIFA Master Alumni Association, Pedro Trengrus. Thank you.

Good afternoon. First of all, I would like to commend Dr. Philippe Pollier and the whole team of the United Nations Youth Office for organizing this event. Philippe, please stand and receive a round of applause from anyone in this room because you deserve it, and the whole team. We have heard today inspiring voices from the United Nations, governments, athletes, sport leaders, civil society, and above all, from young people themselves. They have reinforced that young people need environments where they feel connected, respected, supported, and able to thrive. Sport has an extraordinary ability to create those environments. And football, the world's most popular sport, has the power to unite people across cultures, languages, and borders. It creates belonging, builds friendships, teaches resilience, and strengthens communities. This is the conviction that founded Football for Mental Health a couple of months ago when we started this journey. But ideas alone are never enough. They require people, institutions, and partnerships capable of transforming a vision into action. We have visualized that one year ago, Philippe, and now look at this room full of people. But not only here, in the whole world we have this Football for Mental Health initiative being implemented. The FIFA Master was created to educate and leaders for sport. And now they are helping mobilize the world of sport in service of society. Our community brings together more than 700 graduates from over 100 different— 120 different countries working at FIFA, the Olympic Movement, the Paralympic Movement, all sports federations, It's a network of sport leaders capable of connecting institutions, sharing knowledge, and turning ideas into practical action. This strong network is what makes our partnership with the United Nations Youth Office so powerful. Ideas can rapidly become initiatives implemented all around the world. We have already helped launch Football for Mental Health in Qatar, Pakistan, Egypt, Indonesia, and Brazil. And the strength of the FIFA Master Alumni is not simply professional expertise. It is the will to work together across institutions, countries, and sports for a common purpose. Today, we celebrate the progress of football for mental health, and this is only the beginning. The FMA has long been at the forefront of leveraging the power of major sporting events for the greater good. And now, by collaborating with partners on flagship social issues, what once was an opportunity to do good is now the expectation. And that same conviction that sport can protect and empower is what drives the next chapter of this journey. Tonight, we launch an initiative to amplify the impact of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2027. Together with the United Nations Youth Office, the No More Foundation, UNESCO, UN Women, and companies helping us, driving these initiatives, with the purpose of preventing violence against women and girls, we are building an enduring platform for cooperation through sport. One that evolves from one major sporting event to the next, creating partnerships, sharing knowledge, and leaving a lasting legacy long after the final whistle. In 2028, the world will come together again for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles. I hope this growing coalition of sports organizations, governments, United Nations, and civil society continues working together. they can save the date to be here again in 2028 during the Olympic Games in the United States. Sharing experiences, inspiring new partnerships, and demonstrating how sport can help address global challenges through cooperation and shared purpose. The greatest legacy of sport is not measured by medals, trophies, or championships. It is measured by the lives it improves. In a world where too many feel divided, unheard, or afraid, when sport brings people together, it must also bring solutions together. The FIFA Marshall Alumni is proud to stand alongside the United Nations and all our partners, helping transform the power of sport into lasting impact for communities around the world. And as I hand over to Germaine Haddad and our Football for Mental Health Activation Panel, I would like to leave you with a thought: when sport serves society, everyone wins. Thank you very much. Thank you, José.

Good afternoon, everyone. It is a true privilege to be here today to share Egypt's journey in advancing youth mental health through the power of football and to moderate this important conversation alongside distinguished colleagues and partners from Pakistan and Indonesia. Let me just say at the beginning that this session is really special because it shows us how the approach of football for mental health unfolded, went into the football pitch, how it was rolled out in 3 different countries with 3 different contexts. And we'll also get to hear the voices of the young football players that went through the experience and how it changed them. Let me start first by taking you through the journey that happened in Egypt. Under the UN Youth Office Global Football for Mental Health Initiative, UNFPA Egypt partnered with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, football clubs, academia, the private sector, and other national partners to integrate mental health into youth football and more importantly into the system that shapes young people's lives. Egypt has 40 leading football clubs that nurture the country's future talent. Rather than launching a broad awareness campaign, we chose to pilot the initiative with 8 of these clubs, reaching more than 500 young players. During a critical stage of their development from the ages of 13 to 16. Not all of these young athletes will become professional footballers, but every one of them will experience pressure, competition, setbacks, and expectations. That is why our goal was never simply to develop better players. It was to develop more resilient, confident, and mentally healthy young people. Because mental health is not separate from performance, it is part of performance, part of development, and ultimately part of the game. To make this vision sustainable, we built the initiative around 4 interconnected building blocks. First, knowledge. We developed the first Arabic football for mental health toolkit Adapting international evidence from the IOC and the English Football Association into practical, culturally relevant guidance for Egypt. Second, people. We trained coaches, sports psychologists, and young players because they are the individuals who influence athletes every day. Third, practice. We brought mental health onto the football pitch through practical exercises that build resilience, teamwork, emotional regulation, and confidence while playing the sport young people love. And finally, community. Through digital storytelling and the podcast, we extended these conversations beyond the pitch, engaging families, communities, and young people to help normalize mental health and reduce stigma. Looking back and assessing why this model has worked and was a hit in a relatively short time, the answer is simple. First, we built on what already worked. UNFPA has long used sports as a platform to engage young people, particularly men and boys. As champions for health and well-being while also investing in youth mental health through established partnerships and technical expertise. Football for Mental Health brought these 2 streams together, creating a stronger, more integrated approach with greater potential for scale and impact. Second, it is nationally owned. We aligned the initiative with Egypt's national youth and sports strategy and co-designed it with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, ensuring it became part of a national— of the national system rather than a standalone project. Third, it strengthens the entire ecosystem. We did not focus only on young people. We equipped the coaches and professionals who support them every day. And fourth, it was designed to scale by combining global evidence, AI-enabled localization, and national expertise. We produced the first Arabic football for mental health toolkit, practical resources that can now be adapted across youth centers, football academies, and coach education programs. Egypt's experience also offers 3 broader lessons. Football is far more than a sport. It is one of the most effective platforms for reaching young people with mental health support, while strong mental well-being also enhances athletic performance. Coaches can become trusted champions for young mental well-being when they are equipped with the right knowledge and tools. Sustainable impact comes naturally when mental health is embedded within existing national sports systems rather than delivered alone. Looking ahead, our priority is to scale this model across youth centers, football academies, and girls' football programs while integrating football for mental health into national coach education and so that future generations of coaches are equipped not only to develop athletic talent, but also resilient, confident, and mentally healthy young people. In Egypt, we summarize this journey in one simple message: we build knowledge, we build the people, we build the movement, and together we are building a sustainable national model. I would now like to invite you to watch a short video that brings this journey to life through the voices of the young people. And I'm happy that their voices are reaching you today in this amazing room. The coaches, partners who are making football for mental health a reality across Egypt. Thank you.

I'm very proud of myself.

I'm very proud of my teammates.

And Egypt's experience is only one part of a much bigger story. The challenges facing young people are shared across countries, even throughout different contexts. That is exactly why we've brought together voices from Pakistan and Indonesia today to explore how one global initiative is being shaped by different realities, different systems, and different young people. Let me start with Pakistan. I have the pleasure to introduce Mr. Syed Mohsin Gilani. He is the President of the Pakistan Football Federation. Under his leadership, the Federation partnered with the United Nations in Pakistan and the UN Youth Office to pioneer the Football for Mental Health Initiative, demonstrating how football can advance youth mental health, inclusion, and community resilience. Mr. Mohsin, let me begin with you. Can you please take us through your journey in Pakistan?

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. Assalamu alaikum. First of all, I would like to say that before I would like to show a little video about the campaign that we ran, I would like to thank a few people because that's really important because mental health, using football as a tool for mental health is a journey that did not just inspire us, It transformed us. We were very fortunate to have a lot of partners who helped us in this journey, especially our leadership, our Prime Minister, our CDF, who are teaching us how to make bridges where there are barriers. And I think it's not possible to run a campaign without getting the right partners. We had our sponsors who are here today and very fortunate because we do believe that without partnership, you can never ever create real impact. Our Prime Minister's Youth Office, our chairman is here today. I'm very happy to have you here because they were also a strong partner. I will show you a little video and then I will tell you a little bit about the campaign that we ran and how it created impact in Pakistan.

You're not good enough.

Everyone else is better than you. Why even try?

Give up.

I'm young, but I feel so old. There's nothing good in life.

I'm unable to achieve what I really want.

I don't even have any followers on social media.

Hey, are you feeling down? Come, let's kick the ball around.

The hardest battles are often the ones no one can see. But sometimes all it takes is one ball, one game, one moment to discover the strength that was there all along.

With every pass, confidence returns.

With every challenge, resilience grows.

And with every step forward, doubt loses its grip.

Because football isn't just changing the way you play, it's changing the way you see yourself.

And this is where every real victory begins.

No matter what happens in life, just keep the ball rolling.

So that was our campaign, and we ran it under the, the line, no matter what happens, keep the ball rolling. We were able to create more than 300 youth ambassadors for mental health. We were able to also reach thousands of children across Pakistan, creating awareness of mental health. We were able to use our national team players, 80 of our current and former national team players were involved in that campaign. We truly believe as a football federation it is our responsibility not only to create good players but to create responsible, healthy citizens. So we focused on working with the schools and we were able to create impact all across the country. But what excites me is not what we have done but what we can do together. I would really like to to thank Felipe for his approach and for his, for his support that he gave us. And within our country, we were able to show that football can create real social impact because it provides you a platform that can help you feel safer, feel happier in the times that you're not feeling good. I would say that mental health is something which is not a campaign. It's an issue that we need to continue to address and it is our responsibility not just to run a campaign but to keep focusing on what we can do together continuously. And I hope that our government, the UN Youth Office, and our sponsors will definitely continue with us. I would like to end this by using a quote which is one of my favorite quotes by the great Nelson Mandela and I think that that says a lot about this campaign, more than anything that I can say. It sums it all up. He said that vision without action is just a mere dream and action without vision is just a passage of time. It's only with action and vision can you ever create impact.

Thank you, Mohsin, for sharing Pakistan's inspiring experience. Let's now turn to Indonesia. I have the pleasure to introduce Ratu Tisha Destria, who's the Deputy Chair of Indonesian Football Federation and founder of the GGN Foundation. She leads the Unileague Play for Peace initiative implemented with the UN Resident Coordinator's Office and the UN Youth Office, which uses football as a platform to promote youth mental health, peace, and social inclusion. I have the pleasure to also introduce Hero Hartandu Subalu, who is the Director General for the Information and Public Diplomacy at Indonesia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He brings the Government of Indonesia's perspective on advancing innovative partnerships that leverage sports and public diplomacy to promote youth well-being and the Football for Mental Health initiative. The floor is yours.

Thank you.

Good afternoon.

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh. My dear friends, especially my football family, FMA, distinguished guests, Your Excellencies, thank you for having us here from Indonesia. In Indonesia, when we began this initiative, we start by asking question, where do people already feel safe in expressing themselves? And we found the answer was in a football field. So Indonesia's model for raising awareness of mental health and well-being is 3 things: focusing on higher educations, academic research, and also engage with the student community into one long-term movement. So from there, we take our 3-year program of University League that focuses on students and academics. It means that every match is an opportunity not only to do football science-based research on mental health, but also is an opportunity to help seeking in mental health. We integrate initiatives like Mind Corners, Play for Peace campaign, and also a football physical and psychological intervention into the real game, into the real match. Therefore, our taglines and our visions is beyond the game, into the community. And this vision that we would like to proudly present to you today, as this is a result of a collaboration between 3 parties, the government of the Republic of Indonesia, United Nations of Indonesia, and also private partnership. So I present to you with pride and love, UNILIG.

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. Assalamualaikum, Excellency, young leaders, participants, ladies and gentlemen. I'd like to join my colleague from the Garuda Kuma Nusantara, the private sector who conduct the Unileak, to join you all in bringing football for mental health. So it is a pleasure for me to join you today, and first of all, I should like to congratulate UN Youth Office to bring the powerful message for today's discussion: One World, One Game, One Goal— football for mental health and well-being. Over the past Last week, millions around the world have celebrated football. The spectacular goals, dramatic saves, joy of victories, the lesson of defeats, all bringing us all together. But football is much more than a game. It transcends borders and generations, brings people together, creates a sense of belonging, and also Open doors for conversation and also to create a young generation that care for each other. As a government of Indonesia, we believe that resilient society begin with resilient young people. That's why we place youth mental health at the heart of building of human capitals. As a government official, We continue to strengthen policies that strengthen and promote the prevention, early support, psychological care, and community-based services for every young people, and especially how to tackle the challenges including the generation for youth and mental health. So sport is a powerful part of this journey. Through unique play for peace, this is just a presented Indonesian way to demonstrate how football can create and build resilience, empathy, teamwork, and safe stigma-free in discussing our well-being. As we look forward to the FIFA World Cup final, let us remember that the greatest victory is not only about lifting the trophy, but building a generation that is healthy, resilient, and able to thrive.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ratu and Hero. Thank you for sharing the experience of Indonesia. I now turn to the young people on the panel to hear from them their perspective, how they see this initiative. So the first question is for you, Sibal. Sibal Fawad Tariq is a young person from Pakistan. So was the harder barrier getting access to the game or getting permission to talk about it?

Both.

how you were feeling. What was it like? I mean, is it easy to talk about how you feel? Was it naturally coming naturally, or there was a barrier to that?

Assalamu alaikum, everyone. So for me, getting access to the game was not very hard since I have been playing from a very young age. But talking about how I was feeling while playing, was very hard because as athletes, especially female athletes, we need to be strong. We need to appear strong as well, and we have to compete more. So it was very hard. So I'm very grateful to the Pakistan Football Federation and our president for taking this initiative, Football for Mental Health. And in that, in all the campaigns across Pakistan, I saw many female athletes who were very strong, and I felt that they need to talk about how they're feeling as well. they need to talk about their mental health as well. It's very important. The mental health is as important as the physical health of a player. So it's a very great initiative, and I'm very grateful to the Federation.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Okay.

Thank you, Sibal. So I direct my next question to Elias Aryu Saputoro from Indonesia. So Elias, Does age change what mental health support should look like on and off the pitch? What works for you at university level that might not work for a 14-year-old?

Okay, first of all, thank you for the question. So before coming here, I played in UniLeague and actually I lost 12-nil. It went viral in my country and this is not the first time. Because my campus team lost 8 out of 9 matches. So during those difficult moments, support from my teammates helped me stay confident and keep trying back. This experience made me understand that mental health support is very important at every age, but the kind of support we need may be different. At university, peer support works well. We can talk openly with teammates, encourage each other, and take leadership roles. But for a 14-year-old, support often starts with a caring, caring coach, supportive parent, and teacher who notice when something is wrong. They need a safe team environment where making mistakes is part of learning. Not something to be scared of. I saw this in my village where I founded a grassroots football academy.

These children—

the children not only learn about football, but they also develop confidence, discipline, and friendship. My fellow delegates also create football for unity, giving young people, including girls, A safe place to play and connect. So I think age may change how support is provided, but the goals remain the same. That is exactly the philosophy of Indonesian Unilever Play for Peace. Football is just the entry point, but our real goal is to create space where every young people feel safe, support, and value both on and off the pitch.

Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you, Elias. Before we close, I'd like us to finish with one final reflection from each of us, one word from each of you. What does football give to young people that talking alone sometimes cannot? So we start with Mohsen.

Peace.

Yeah, please, one word.

Comfort.

Okay.

Maybe I can give you 2 words, confidence and resilience.

For me, it's bravery.

Happiness.

Okay.

For me, it's belonging. So today's conversation has shown that while our journeys may differ, our destination is the same. One world, because youth mental health knows no borders. One game, because football speaks a universal language. of belonging, resilience, and hope. One goal: to ensure that every young person has the opportunity not only to play but to thrive. Thank you to all of you, all the panelists, our young participants, and our partners. Thank you all.

Thank you. Thank you to our panelists for sharing those powerful experiences and lessons from implementing #FootballForMentalHealth across different countries and communities.

It's been inspiring to hear how football can make such a positive difference in young people's mental health You know, Enzo, speaking of football, with the World Cup happening this Sunday—

Yes.

I've had a question on my mind. Does anyone know where the official World Cup match ball was made?

I think I know someone who knows that. It is my pleasure to invite Mr. Rana Masood Ahmad Khan, Chairman of the Prime Minister's Youth Program of Pakistan, stand to tell us more.

Thank you.

So I will—

Yes, of course. You can get there.

A'udhu billahi min ash-shaytanir-rajim. Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. Excellencies, distinguished guests, and young friends, it is an honor to present Trionda, the official match ball being used at the FIFA World Cup 2026, proudly manufactured in Pakistan. This continues a remarkable national tradition as Pakistan has manufactured official match balls for the several FIFA World Cups. Created by Pakistani hands, it represents craftsmanship, possibility, and the power of Sport to bring people together across borders and cultures. Through the Prime Minister's Youth Program, under the able leadership of Prime Minister of Pakistan Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif, Pakistan is using support sport to strengthen confidence, resilience, belonging, and mental well-being so that no young person is left.

behind.

On behalf of the leadership and young people of Pakistan, I wish to convey one enduring message to the world: when young people play together, they learn to stand together, and a generation that stands together can build a more peaceful and inclusive world. I thank you all.

Thank you, Mr. Khan. Please join us in welcoming Robert Skinner, Deputy Director and Chief of Partnerships and Global Engagement at the United Nations Department of Global Communications, for the next segment. Please, Robert.

All right, good afternoon. We're in the home stretch here. One more panel and one more segment, so let's bring some energy for this group, the next group coming up. It's an amazing group. All right, first, a big thank you for the UN Youth Office for facilitating this. Felipe and the team have done an amazing job. Great conversations all afternoon, all morning, through the lunch hour with program there. As I was introduced, I'm Robert Skinner. I'm the Chief of Partnerships and Global Engagement in the United Nations Department of Global Communications, but for today I'm representing our Football for the Goals initiative. Football for the Goals was created to harness football's unique global reach and unite the football community around the Sustainable Development Goals. As the world's most beloved game, and as we've heard throughout the day, football has an extraordinary ability to bring people together across cultures, generations, and borders. And when a game has the power to build community, inspire hope, and create a sense of belonging, it also has the ability to create environments where young people feel supported, connected, and empowered to prioritize their mental health, which we have heard some from so many great speakers here today. Across our Football for the Goals community, which has more than 470 members in 140 121 countries and territories, we see inspiring examples of this every day. And today we're fortunate to hear from individuals who have experienced football's impact firsthand, not only as a sport but as a source of community identity and resilience. Our conversation here today will bring together legends and leaders who can speak to both the challenges athletes face and the role that football can play in bringing healthier, more supportive environments for young people everywhere. So as I introduce this group, let's give them a big round of applause. They're amazing. So I'm pleased to introduce first our moderator, Mike Pfister, who is the head of the European Football Clubs Foundation, who will guide today's conversation. And Mike is going to be joined by— Annie Aluko, one of our Football for the Goals champions, former Chelsea and England's women's national team player, and an all-around amazing person. Daniel Amokachi, the Nigerian football legend, who I'm sure many of you know, who we are happy to have as another of our Football for the Goals champions. And finally, Samantha Richards, a young leader with Street Child United, a fantastic organization who you saw around today. But also, also, also, at age 25, the head of women's football operations at Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, my team in the Premier League. Thank you.

Rob, thank you so much, and good evening everybody. A big good evening also to this fabulous panel. We'll try to bring some dynamism into this house. We've got real players here, which is a rare thing for, I would say, you know, big events. So a big thank you to them. A big thank you also to the UN Office for Youth for having invited the European Football Clubs Foundation to talk and to moderate this session on an extremely important topic. Just a quick word, European Football Clubs represents over 800 European clubs, and the foundation that I have the privilege to be running works with each of these clubs to help them promote their work in their community but also to advocate things collectively, like mental health. Now, at EFC, European Football Clubs, we look at mental health through 3 angles: professional football, youth football, and beyond the pitch. On the professional side of things, mental health has really come to the fore more than ever before. One of the studies that we're finalizing now shows that actually Fatigue. Player fatigue is one of the main burdens. Strikingly enough, players are reluctant to get help, something that we see outside the pitch as well. On the youth football side of things, prevention is lacking. With Daniel, we were talking about prevention earlier. It's about creating an environment that reduces the pressure on the youth so that they can actually— I just got started. What is a key factor is stability. That's a key factor of protection. Now, beyond the pitch side of things, European clubs are born in societies or born in communities where actually the population is disadvantaged. A lot of clubs use the power, their influence, and really the power of football to address issues like mental health. We have clubs like Feyenoord, like Valerenga in Oslo, Paris Saint-Germain for Communities, the foundation of PSG that actually tackles these issues head-on. I want to go to our panelists now. I'll start with Daniel, Daniel Amokachi. Now, you've had your career at a club, at international level. How important has mental health been for you already back then in the '90s and what you're doing now? in your current work with your foundation?

Hey, what's up? Thank you very much, Mike. Football has given me everything. Football took everything away from me, and football has brought me into the General Assembly of the United Nations. Holla if you hear me. You know, let me hit you up. In 1998— well, that's a long time. I know a few of you Gen Zs don't know 1998. At the 1998 World Cup in France, before the World Cup, me and my very good friend who— we all soccer players, we play in a club in Beşiktaş in Istanbul. He plays for Fenerbahçe, I played for Beşiktaş, and we said, okay, we're going to use this World Cup to end up in the Serie A or in the Premiership, back to the Premiership. We had our calculations, but the good Lord has his. We went to the World Cup, I got injured. I got injured. I went under the knives and then 6 months later, the doctor told me I can't play football anymore. That's when the mental health really hit me. For somebody who is making 7 figures like every month, gone blazing on PJs around the world, jumping into all, you know, all the designer shops and the One day he goes bankrupt. That's the story. You get bankrupt and now you're looking into the eyes of your kids crying, you know, because you know you could do better. I have to like go back home. I stopped my professional play at the age of 27, and you know, that's a damn young age. I went back to Nigeria with the support of family and friends. They saw that, you know, I'm passionate about football when I train with kids, and they said, you look good doing this. Why don't you go and get your badges as a coach?

Wow.

And then they raffle all the scruffle, got $5,000 for me, jumped on the flight, went to Holland, did my batches as a wafer license coach, you know, and then came back. And that is when I knew that mental health is real. And then the foundation started like 100% kickstart. Daniel Amokachi EndoPlus Foundation It's a foundation that focuses on the 4 key goals of the SDG goals. The number 2, zero hunger; number 3, quality well-being; number 4, quality education; and number 16, you know, peace and justice. The Daniel Mukwege Foundation, we have a center that, you know, is open to every young Because believe me, when it comes to mental health, the way you go about solving it in Africa is different from the way you go about solving it in Europe or in America, because we are surrounded by kids who are struggling to put food into their bellies. We see parents go to hospital and their child die in their arms. because of less than $5. That's mental health. That demoralizes you. We see kids who are vulnerable to being recruited by insurgency, so we have to give them a platform where they can come and have a change of mentality, have a change of mind frame to know that they're going to come back. So in our center, it's open. They come in, they have their breakfast, lunch, and dinner for free. We have coaches who train. There's a soccer field, there's a basketball court that they come in and spend the whole day. And we are partnering with the Minister of Education and then we enroll them into schools. And now, for that child that knows that if he comes back tomorrow, He has 3 square meals. If he comes back tomorrow, he will be loved. Believe me, they keep coming and we take them off the street and that's the key. The most important thing for us today, we want to go beyond that. So, you know, what we are pleading, the corporate and social organizations— Infantino was here and, you know, he dashed out. I wanted to, you know, grab him by the bull. And let them know that, you know, yeah, we know FIFA Foundation are doing a lot, but, you know, FIFA Foundation have to do more, you know, in making the awareness. And believe me, we are in the General Assembly. We cannot defeat this inside the General Assembly. We have to be on the field to defeat it.

Daniel, thank you so much. I think the fact that he was able to list the 4 SDGs That his foundation clearly tackles means that UN Football for the Goals is actually working. So really fantastic and it's a great movement that you started, Daniel. We're looking forward to hearing more about this. Samantha, I mean, sorry, Rob and the rest of the panelists looking at us, you represent the youth. Now, tell us, how important is mental youth for you in your work that you do today also with Street Child United?

Yeah, mental health is so important. I don't think any of us would be here today if we didn't believe that. And I guess my journey with mental health started when I was in secondary school and I learned that my cousin took his own life. A couple years later, my granddad attempted to take his own life, and I saw it all unfold through a Ring doorbell. I struggled to deal with these emotions and and it led me down the wrong paths, and it led me into the wrong groups. When I was 17, I was selected to represent Team England at the Street Child World Cup in 2018. My participation was encouraged to deter me from engaging in that antisocial behaviour and to use sport as a positive outlet rather than hanging around on the streets. For context, if you don't know what Street Child United is, or what Street Child World Cup is, it's essentially a tournament for young people that gives them the opportunity to represent their country. It's formed of 3 main sections: football, the arts, and congress sessions. In these congress sessions, teams are paired up with another country. For England, we were paired up with Team India. We spoke about many barriers that we faced back in our home countries and our communities. For England, we spoke heavily around mental health and knife crime in the UK, whereas India spoke about homelessness. Despite the fact that we faced different issues, we were taught tools and we discovered that we weren't alone. We were taught these tools to help us manage our emotions and to speak up and find the words to explain our emotions. But I discovered through these sessions that although I found it hard voice my emotions, that I could find the words through poetry and through the friendships that I made. At Street Child United, we advocate for children and their rights, focusing on 4 main pillars. Mental health plays a big part in all of them and is often the connector for us. I've been a young leader now for Street Child United for the last 8 years. A part of this program was a 10-week course that teaches you tools on how to be a leader. and it's one that I'm very grateful for. Street Child United gave me a platform and gives children all across the world a platform for change. They use sport as a catalyst for good. Street Child United unlocked the confidence within me to see my own potential, and since, I've obtained a scholarship to study at university where I got a first-class degree.

Thank you.

I spoke— I've spoken at the Houses of Parliament. I've met members of the royal family, and I became a published author who compiled a book full of the voices of street-connected children from all around the world through poetry and artwork. And I now work in professional football, as mentioned. I'm literally living a dream that I never thought I'd reach, and a lot of that is thanks to Street Child United.

Yeah. Give it up for her. Thank you so much for opening up and sharing this beautiful story of yours. We're not royal, but we're family. So, no, thank you so much, Samantha. Now, Annie, you've also had an illustrious career on the pitch, off the pitch as well. What lessons do you have for us in terms of mental health, but also the bridge between on and off the pitch?

Good evening, everyone. It's an honor to be here talking about such an important topic around mental health and mental health for young people. For me, I think, you know, there's so many transferable skills and so many transferable tools from football and professional football and life. And one of the ones I think that speaks strongest for me with mental health is resilience. And, you know, I think when you're on the pitch, there is almost a guarantee that you're going to have opposition. And actually, the more successful you are, the more opposition there is. And in that opposition, in that adversity, you build resilience. You build the ability to say, this is tough, this is really hard. You know, all this doubt comes into your mind, and I suffered with a fear of failure a lot in my career. And how you overcome it is that you face it head-on and you build that resilience, right? And so, you know, post-career, I think whenever I've had real challenges in life, and I've doubted myself and I've felt alone, it's that resilience that I think is really key. It's a tool that I think, you know, everybody has within them, and I think it's something that, you know, just needs to continue being built within young people as well, that resilience, that self-talk that I can get through this. I can, you know, I'm bigger than this problem. I'm bigger than this, you know, adversity. I'm bigger than this mountain. And that, that, that's the resilience I think that has certainly stayed with me from on the pitch to off the pitch. I think the challenge with resilience is that it's built in difficult moments, and so you kind of have to go through difficulties to come out the other end of it. with resilience, but it's the most powerful thing, I think, with regards to mental health. And it's a tool that I think everybody has to just— and it's a muscle, you know, in your brain that can you just kind of keep, you know, keep believing that you've got it inside you.

So we lose to win, actually, because we learn through defeats. These are the challenges. And I think resilience is a theme that has really I think, been a transferable theme here. Now, I think we've also seen that clubs, players, former players are actually powerful vectors in societies to pass key messages. Thank you so much for those. Maybe just a couple of last thoughts, having heard from each other. Daniel, do you have a last thought that you wanted to share with us?

Yes, well, real people, real talk. That's our tag hash. Believe me, mental health is real. You know, everybody in here has experienced it one way or the other. You know, opening up heals. People looking around and seeing what you're going through helps. 10 days ago, we lost one of our own, a football player who played in this year's World Cup from South Africa, which— Before he came to the World Cup, he lost the only person that he knows, his grandma. He lost his best friend that they play in the same club. He end up coming to the World Cup. After the first game, second game, they showed them in the locker room where he was, where the team was excited. They were jubilating that they won the game, but the camera caught him sitting sidelined.

He was crying.

just quiet on his own and nobody noticed what was going on. The team lost. They were eliminated from the World Cup. They went home. 2 days later, he was found dead. That's mental hurt. One of the star players from England, Bale, I need to read his quote. I saw it and I screenshot it and I said, damn, I need to talk about this. You guys have to hear it. You know, he said, I felt vulnerable, doubted myself, and I needed someone to talk to. But instead, I've tried to maintain that macho athlete image. I don't need anyone. I trust it. I need someone just like everybody else. If we are able to show our vulnerability, it opens up a broader dialogue for people. who are struggling in the dark. It is our duty of people like me and those of us in this position to be role models when it comes to mental health. This is a player who is a superstar. This is a player who got beaten in the last distance, but then he's telling us that we all need help. We all need help, and we need— we all need help. So we all have to come together Get on the wagon and see what is going around and literally we help, it takes us a long way. And let's keep loving each other because love succeeds hate.

Very powerful messages, Daniel. Thank you so much. 2 last words, Samantha, any to wrap it up for us?

For sure.

I think for me, just investing in our youth, investing in organizations such as Street Child United, make us visible, you know, show our young people that they are somebody and that they can speak up because there are people around them who will listen. I think visibility creates access and access sparks conversation. Conversations lead to commitments and commitments drive that systemic reform that young people are demanding. I'm going to give a little quote from one of the poems that I've written. So, we have a voice, and we demand it to be heard. You have the choice to be a sheep or lead the herd. I am somebody. You are somebody. We are all somebody. And I just want to take the cheeky opportunity here to just thank Street Child United for giving me another amazing opportunity, to thank the UN for, yeah, a life-changing experience for me to speak at a venue of— that's incredible. And, yeah, I'm speechless. And to speak with such amazing panelists as as well. So thank you.

Thank you, Samantha. Annie, please, last word from you.

Well, I think, you know, the former panels and other speakers have talked about the importance of football and the importance of movement in being an anecdote and an antidote for mental health, right? So I really believe in that, the power of football to bring people The power of football to, you know, make people feel better, the power of football to cure issues with people's confidence and give confidence. And so I think the message is keep using football, keep using football as a tool for young people to come together, be unified, to solve social issues, and obviously to improve mental health as Rob, I hand it back to you to basically wrap up this beautiful movement that our panelists have just created.

Now let's give it up for Mike, Annie, Daniel, and Sam. Come on. Thanks to all of you for, you know, opening up and giving it that— I mean, it was super inspiring, and, you know, we're all sitting over there talking about it and listening listening, and just, just great words of encouragement. But now I'd like to encourage everyone— I'm making sure the QR code is actually up there— to scan the QR code on the screen and join the Football for the Goals Cup and take action along football fans around the world. We've heard today how football can be so much more than just a game. It's a place where young people find community, build confidence, develop resilience, and feel supported. But creating these environments requires all of us to do something, not just be in the room, not just talk, but let's all do something. And by becoming part of the Football for the Goals Cup, you can actually do something. Now, we're not telling people to spend more time on their screens. That's not what it's about. But it's actually logging what you're actually doing in the real world. So we all know what this football community looks like in terms of taking action on mental health, but more broadly on the Sustainable Development Goals at large. We've logged over 100,000 actions, which was our goal since the World Cup began. We encourage everyone to come together and continue to log the actions for good. Again, we thank you all for being here. I thank the Youth Office. I thank everyone who's been part of this today. So important, so special. What an amazing room. Thank you.

malo de la realidad, como cualquiera en cualquier laburo. Pero todo eso afecta y muchísimo. A mí me afectó, tuve que recurrir a un psicólogo, pero bueno, al final me di cuenta de muchas cosas, me vino muy bien, me ayudó. Y es una de las cosas que quizás también me arrepiento mucho de no haber empezado antes. Creo que me hubiese ayudado muchísimo a todo lo que fue mi carrera antes de conocer a la psicología. porque me pudo haber ayudado en muchas situaciones también extrafutbolísticas. Quizás a uno lo llevan a pensar en lo que pasa afuera y no tanto en lo que pasa adentro, y creo que en la ayuda esa del psicólogo encontré muchas soluciones que en otro momento no las encontraba. Creo que es un tema importante, sobre todo cuando uno se siente por ahí bloqueado o que siente demasiada demasiadas presiones familiares, de la gente, de las redes sociales, que hoy está tan, bueno, que es mucho en la vida de las nuevas generaciones. Creo que siempre puede venir bien una ayuda de un profesional que te pueda encaminar y que te pueda hacer ver que a lo mejor no es todo tan extremo como uno piensa en ese momento.

Eso es bastante importante, porque también el fútbol tiene Tem muito dessa barreira ainda, né?

Porque, pô, você fala, pô, vou fazer uma terapia, vou passar por um psicólogo, os cara, pô, esse cara é louco, sabe? Ainda tem esse preconceito, né? Mas eu acho muito importante, porque às vezes eu me queixo de não ter começado antes, porque é muito importante pra nós a gente poder ter esse equilíbrio dos momentos bons, a gente ter esse mesmo equilíbrio nos momentos ruins também.

As pessoas acham que ser jogador é muito fácil.

Aí você tem que ter o psicológico muito bem para poder estar jogando e fazendo o seu melhor.

O trabalho mental, ele é uma coisa que te ajuda muito, né? Não só como profissional ali, mas como um ser humano também.

Te faz apagar mágoas do passado, te faz você reviver coisas talvez que você não revivia porque tem algo que te prende.

Então isso te ajuda muito dentro de campo.

Acho que as pessoas deveriam dar valor a isso porque te ajuda muito como profissional e como ser humano.

Yeah, I think it's always, it's always been important, you know, mental health.

I think especially in sports and in day-to-day life, really, you know, a lot of people go through a lot of things, you know, but they don't like to talk about it and speak out, which, you know, is their way of obviously dealing with it. But, you know, in my case, it was more, you know, I felt like I had to speak to someone and really get it off my chest.

And, you know, for me, it helped.

And You know, it's— if I can give, you know, advice to people, it's always good to talk to someone, you know, whether you're going through, you know, certain things. It's important to speak to someone.

Thank you.

Can we feel our feet on the floor with our hearts so full, feeling so secure?

Do, do, do.

I know what I want, I know what I need. Breathe out all All the stories in between. I know what I want, I know what I need. Breathe out all the stories. Now. In.

Now.

Find space to be me. When there is a bump in the road, can I look past knowing it won't last? Yes, I've been here before.

4.

It's got a similar ring. I hear my soul singing. I know what I want. I know what I need. Breathe out all the stories in between. I know what I want.

I know what I need.

Breathe out all the stories. Wow, it's beautiful. Okay, did you feel the energy? Yeah, this is an energy healing martial arts. Shall we try together? We sat for a long time, right? So I would like to invite you all stand up, please. Okay, shake your hands and feet, loosen up your joints. All right, shake your feet and hands. All right, everyone, feet together. Raise your arms. Gather the energy down to your lower body. Breathe in and smile out.

Beautiful.

Bring the healing energy to the world. And like a hugging tree, push the energy to the side. Gather the energy. And deliver this healing energy to the other side of the corner of the earth. Beautiful. Now embrace all humanity. Beautiful. You can think— if you want a challenge, you can bend your knees lower. And touch and down. One leg up, stand tall. Raise your spirit. It needs a lot of coordination, right? Left and right. And bring the energy to the pull and push. Beautiful. When there is— Bring the energy to the other side of the world. Are you smiling? Push. Yeah, feel your vibration. Squeeze. And you might need to sit all the way down. Feel your thighs. And switch.

Beautiful.

And already return to the center. One world, one game, one goal. Feel the energy. Beautiful.

Thank you.

Thank you. Peace on Earth. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you.

Wonderful.

Woo!

You felt that?

Round of applause.

Another round of applause, please.

Okay, that wonderful performance you just witnessed was from the Ibrahima Foundation, and we'd like to thank them so much. So we are approaching the end of our event, and throughout today's program, one message has emerged consistently: mental health and well-being are shaped by our relationships, our communities, and the environment around As we move into our next segment, we turn our attention to the power of storytelling and collective awareness.

Because changing the conversation around mental health, it has— it is not only about sharing information. It is about creating understanding, reducing stigma, encouraging empathy, and reminding young people everywhere that they are not alone and that they can speak their truth. To kickstart the launch of the global campaign #RealPeopleRealTalk, we're honored to welcome Hafsyh, a multi-award-winning performance poet, youth advocate, and creative storyteller from Nigeria. Through her powerful voice and global platform, she has inspired conversations on issues affecting young people, women, and girls. underserved communities, reaching millions around the world. Please join us in welcoming Javi, who will be performing a spoken word poem written for the launch of this global campaign.

It is safe to say there are no losers in the game of Peace.

It is fair to say there are no casualties in the war of bliss, because how do you explain the sight of a million heart rates in one pace chanting names that do not sound like their own? How do you explain foreign blood and bones collapsing into each other's arms like this world and its wars did not break them enough to forget embrace? How do you explain this grace, this grit, this light of peace that outshines the shade of apathy? How do you deny this humanity where enemies become friends between goalposts, where rivals become echoes of each other's laughter, where jerseys are swapped in post-match tunnels and hatred forgets its script? Because somehow the stadium becomes a safe space where a woman can scream and a man can cry without fear of judgment. And in this moment, between the whistle and the final score, a child who never spoke finally found his voice in a pass. A teen who hides behind her inhibition learns that her passion is not a burden but a feeling worth celebrating. See, football is more than just a game. It is a revolution against division. It is therapy for the silent battles we do not name. Real people, real talk. It is where real pain finds relief in a passing ball, where the weight of the world pauses even for just a moment. It is proof that even world peace can be achieved in just 90 minutes, where we can assemble with painted bodies like living flags Standing beside people we might never meet again, but in this game, the goal remains the same: to win. Hence, it is safe to say there are no losers in a game of peace. It is fair to say there are no casualties in the war of bliss. And if we can share a pitch, we definitely can share a planet. So let's feel and heal with football, one world, one game, one goal at a time.

Thank you.

Thank you, Hafiz, for those powerful words. At the heart of the work of the UN Youth Office is a commitment to advancing the issues that matter most to young people. A few issues are more urgent, more personal, or more universal than mental health and well-being. This agenda is not about statistics alone. It is about the real lives of young people. It's about the hopes they carry, the challenges they face, and too often the pain that many young people people experience in silence.

To address that pain, we need honesty, we need empathy, we need connection, and once again, we need real people and real talk. Mental health is personal, but it is also collective. Every story shared has the power to break stigma, build understanding, and create a culture of care. Today, We invite you to listen to the voices that are courageous, authentic, and deeply human. Please turn your attention to the screens for a video introducing the UN Youth Office's new campaign.

Let's take a deep breath together.

Breathe in.

Breathe out. Do you feel safe, heard, that you belong?

Mental health is deeply personal, but it affects all of us.

More than half of all young people lack hope for the future.

Behind every number, there is a real person trying to navigate life.

Everyday pressure.

Conflict and insecurity.

Uncertainty about the future.

And sometimes silence.

No one should have to struggle alone.

Mental health is shaped by the world around us.

Our schools, workplaces, digital space, homes, and communities.

Because support Hope and belonging do not come from one place alone. It takes you and me. It takes all of us. What if we build a culture of care where every young person feels safe, supported, and able to thrive? Every voice matters. Every person matters. Youth mental health matters. We invite you all to join this campaign now, live on the UN Youth Office's website. Scan the QR code on the screen where you will find everything you need to start mental health conversations where you are. Now we will hear from a leader who has been a steadfast champion of young people, sustainable development, and the collective action needed to build a world where every young person can thrive. Throughout her leadership, she has consistently emphasized that development must place people at its center, and that the voices, well-being, and aspirations of young people are essential to achieving the SDGs. It is now my distinct honor to welcome Ms. Dian Keita, Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund.

Thank you.

Assalamu alaikum. Excellencies, my dear colleague Felipe, Excellencies, Ambassadors of Bahrain, Libya, Tajikistan from the Group of Friends of Football, Young Leaders for the SDGs, and all the young changemakers with us today, FIFA representatives, distinguished guests, esteemed colleagues. Whoa, what an afternoon! I loved 2 parts mainly. When Daniel mentioned love, I loved the fact as well when Felipe's heartwarming speech, you know, moved all of us, and FIFA President engaging on such an important issue. The World Cup Grand Finale is almost here. In alphabetical order, viva Argentina, viva España, well done England, bravo à la France. This weekend, all eyes will be on the pitch, but everyone in this room is playing for a bigger goal on and off the pitch of life: the mental health and well-being of young people everywhere. Here is Recall right now, 1 in 7 adolescents lives with a mental health condition. Millions more navigate anxiety and loneliness, and stigma forces many to suffer in silence. Physical and digital drivers deepen these realities. That's why we've come together today, shoulder to shoulder, as the norm before every game, young people, UN leaders, member states, athletes, and advocates, because some of the best mental health support happens outside the clinic. It happens on a field, with a ball, with teammates, and match officials who regulate the game for fairness. Sport, and football in particular, can be a powerful force for connection, inclusion, resilience, and hope. In Brazil, together with partners, we are using football to teach boys and young men a new kind of strength, one built on respect, not violence. You heard Germaine earlier. In Egypt, a youth ball initiative has turned the pitch into a safe space where teamwork and peer support are breaking down the stigma around mental health. In South Sudan, a national girls' football tournament gave thousands of girls a safe, joyful arena to build solidarity, access health resources, and gain self-esteem. Same thing in Zaatari Camp for Girls in Jordan. And in the Western Balkans, through the Secretary-General Peacebuilding Fund, we partner with the Special Olympics to turn regional swimming and basketball tournaments into places of healing and inclusion. In Central Asia, male and female football initiatives are dismantling negative gender narratives and norms and promoting positive masculinity. Around the world, young people are telling us the same thing. They want to be heard as equal partners. They want to be understood. They want to know they are not alone. So today, with the convening power of the United Nations, we are launching Real People, Real Talk, a campaign to create space for the honest conversation. You young people tell us, you need— what you need. Mental health depends on whether young people feel safe and whether they are— they have the chance to learn, to work, to belong, and to imagine a better future, not just for themselves but for their communities. That makes it a shared responsibility, not just a health concern.

Thank you.

It belongs to families, educators, employers, community and multi-faith leaders, and policymakers— every person who chooses to listen with empathy and act with purpose. That's the spirit of this campaign. It brings together young people, artists, athletes to amplify your voices and remind us that every story matters. Every life counts, and it will only succeed if it travels far beyond this room. The United Nations Youth Office, under the incredible leadership of Felipe, has created conversation cards. You heard earlier, they are online. They are magic. Use it. Use them to start a conversation with a friend, with a colleague, with family, or a community member. Listen to a younger person than yourself. Share your own story if you feel safe to do so. Create spaces where honesty is met with understanding rather than judgment. Excellencies, dear friends, dear young leaders, small conversations can change lives. They challenge stigma, build trust, and help create the culture of care young person deserves. Policies and programs matter, but the real change begins with people choosing to care for one another, with communities choosing to make well-being a shared priority. So let's make mental health and well-being part of everyday conversation. This is about the real Copa de la Vida. Remember? Ale, ale, ale. go, go, go. Let's advocate for investment systems, support, and services that meet young people's choices and avail them opportunity where they are. And let's make sure every young person knows you matter, your story matters, and you do not have to face life challenges alone because we are all real people and we should all have real talk. It is about our world. It is about our game for life. It is about our goal for a better life. I thank you. Go, go, go. Arriba más.

Thank you so much.

Okay, so thank you so much, Mrs. Keita, for your remarks.

And actually, I already got my conversation starters deck, so— okay, Enzo, pick a card.

Let's do this.

Um, if your emotions today were the weather, Interesting question. Let's say a sunny day, or as the great composer Justo Barreto, and then Benito rephrased it, si te quieres divertir.

If you want to have fun with charm and delight, you only have to spend a summer in New York.

And for that response, I give you a green card. Yeah, do it, do it. I can't believe I can't believe that this event is over already, but the conversation has only just begun.

We want to thank everyone who made this event possible today. We had more than 3,000 registered people, 100 speakers, 30 partners, 20 young volunteers, and the whole team of the UN Youth Office who worked to make today possible.

See you there. Thank you.