Protecting Major Sporting Events Delivery and Legacy in an Era of Complex Threats (Counter-Terrorism Week Side Event)

Dear colleagues, please take your seat and we will start in a minute. Thank you. Dear colleagues, please be seated. We will start our session very soon. Thank you. Dear colleagues. Can you hear me well? Dear colleagues, please be seated. We'll start our side event. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, dear colleagues, Very well, welcome to you. Thank you for being here with us today for this very important and timely discussion. The topic of our session is today, Protecting Major Sporting Events: Delivery and Legacy in an Era of Complex Threats. Sport is more than just a game. It brings people together. But for fans to enjoy it safely, whether celebrating or handling loss, we need strong security. Today, protecting major sporting events goes far beyond the gates and the guards. It requires a complex teamwork between organizers, authorities to face everything from cyber threats to major logistical challenges. In today's panel, we will explore how we can successfully deliver these massive events and how we can ensure safe, sustainable, and lasting legacy for the future generations. My name is Dalma Hegedüs. I'm a counter-terrorism coordinator at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hungary. I'm honored to moderate this panel with my dear colleague from UNOCT, Valerio De Dividitis, the program coordinator for UNOCT Global Sports Program. In the first panel, I have the honor to greet Mr. Alexander Zouev, the Acting Under-Secretary-General of United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism. His Excellency Mr. Mohammed Khalifa H. Al Nassar, the Deputy Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations. Mr. Steven Fernheim, the Head of UEFA Safety and Security Operations. And Police Major General Janos Kuczyk, the General Director of Law Enforcement of Hungary. Welcome the panelists. Unfortunately, the FIFA representative is unable to join us today due to unforeseen and unfortunate circumstances. Nevertheless, we wish the best of luck for FIFA in the future. So let's start our first panel. Mr. Zev, Your Excellency, I give you the floor. Thank you.

Thank you very much, dear moderator, and glad to see you again after our meetings in Budapest. Dear Deputy Permanent Representative Mohammed Khalifa Al-Nasser, Major General of Police János Kuczyk, General Director for Law Enforcement of Hungary; and Mr. Steffen Farnham, Head of UEFA Safety and Security Operations. Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to welcome you to this discussion on securing major sporting events amid an increasingly complex threat environment. I wish to express sincere appreciation to the governments of Hungary and the State of Qatar for co-organizing this side event together with our Office of Counterterrorism. I also warmly acknowledge the presence of our partners from UEFA. Well, unfortunately, we miss FIFA, but you can see that probably there are some developments around the World Cup. I mean, I hope Curaçao is not beating Brazil this minute. I mean, you know, like when we are sitting here. But in any case, we work very closely with FIFA, and I met Gianni Infantino many times on different occasions, and we have a very good memorandum of understanding, and our Program Manager Valerio, who is here— I mean, you know, is working very closely together with my front office with them. Well, your engagement is critical in ensuring the security, integrity, and the safe delivery of global football tournaments. Indeed, as we gather, the World Cup '26 is underway around us here in the United States, but also in Canada and in Mexico, underscoring that the security of such events is an immediate and shared responsibility. Major sporting events occupy a unique place in our global landscape. They unite billions across borders and cultures, embodying unity, dignity, and peaceful competition—values that stand in direct contrast with the divisive terrorist narratives. Yet the very features that make these events so powerful—their visibility, their symbolic value, and their ability to gather very large audiences, you know, also makes them very attractive targets for terrorist actors who seek to disrupt, divide, or instill fear. And not long time ago, in some European countries, we witnessed terrorist attacks exactly on the stadiums and not in restaurants or hotels or, you know, but it was around sports events. This is very important. So threats are becoming more complex and now extend beyond physical attacks. Cyber intrusions can disrupt critical infrastructure and event operations. Disinformation can create confusion or incite panic among the public. Emerging technologies can be misused for malicious purposes. Security considerations today extend across the entire event ecosystem, from digital platforms and ticketing systems to transport networks, public spaces, and stadiums. The United Nations Global Counterterrorism Strategy, our shared roadmap, calls on us to combine effective security measures with sustained efforts to address the conditions conducive to terrorism. Sport speaks directly to both, as a platform that demands our protection, but also as a powerful tool to build resilient societies. This dual approach lies at the heart of the UNCT Global Programme on the Security of Major Sporting Events and the Promotion of Sport and Its Values to Prevent Violent Extremism. Since 2020, the Programme has, thanks to the support of the State of Qatar, provided capacity building, knowledge sharing, expert briefing, and specialized e-learning to member states. Our cooperation with host nations, international sports federations, civil society, and law enforcement reflects shared understanding that the security of major sporting events is a global public good, and it is also a shared responsibility for all of us. Most recently, we were very pleased to collaborate with Hungary through an observation program around the UEFA Champions League final in Budapest last month. And I have a witness here that I visited this stadium in Budapest before you organized Champions League final there, and this is a beautiful stadium, I can attest. Dear colleagues, this side event is an opportunity to exchange lessons and good practices on securing major sporting events grounded in human rights, supported by innovation, and enhanced through partnership. Ultimately, when we protect these sporting events, we safeguard not only athletes and spectators, but also the ideals of solidarity, respect, and peaceful coexistence that sport embodies. I wish you a very rich and productive discussion. I have apologized to those of you who attended the morning plenary, you can see that I have to speak every 15 minutes, I mean, and now I have a ministerial delegation waiting in my office, I mean, you know that, and I have to switch to bilaterals with one very important partner of our office. But I am sure with such a panel, I mean, you know, you will manage, and all my colleagues also from UNCT, we have a big group, they stay here, they don't I would leave and Guadeloupe will represent me here. I mean, you know, you will see it. Okay, thank you very much once again and all the best. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thanks a lot. Thank you. See you and all the best next time.

Thank you so much for Mr. Zev for his closing remarks despite his very busy schedule. So I would like to hand over the floor to Mr. Mohammed Khalifa H. Al Nasser, the Deputy Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations. Sir, you have the floor.

Thank you. Thank you. It's an honor to join Hungary as well as UNOCT, FIFA, and UEFA in convening this event. We appreciate the participation of All the delegations, especially the speakers who will enrich our discussions with their expertise and national experience. Major sporting events are more than competitions, as we are witnessing in the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2026 and in previous editions, the most recent of which was held in Qatar 2022. These events are moments of global encounter, cultural exchange, and shared humanity. Sport can also be an important enabler of sustainable development, as emphasized in General Assembly Resolution 79/8, which was co-sponsored by the State of Qatar. Yet precisely because these mega-events bring people together at such scale, they require the highest levels of preparedness, coordination, and vigilance across the entire fan journey, from transport networks to stadiums, public spaces, and host city services. In this context, an important priority is to ensure protection of both the delivery of these events and their legacy, especially in an era of terrorist threats. The State of Qatar attaches great importance to this agenda. Our exemplary hosting of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 demonstrated that security hospitality, accessibility, and legacy must be planned together. It also reaffirmed the value of international cooperation, the exchange of expertise, and whole-of-government coordination in ensuring the safety and dignity of all participants and spectators. Following that tournament, the State of Qatar continued this practice of international cooperation through technical exchange and sharing experience and best practices with the other host countries of major sport events. My colleague from Qatar will share more detailed insights in this regard later in today's event. In addition to this, the State of Qatar's interest in the agenda of protection of major sport events and this conviction that sport can serve both security and peace is reflected through support for UNOCT's Global Sports Program. Which is part of our partnership with the UNOCT to support its strategic initiatives. Further, today's discussion will allow us to benefit from the experience of other host countries, including Hungary's Road to Budapest initiative and lessons emerging from the UEFA Champions League Final 2026 and from preparations for the FIFA World Cup 2026. It also provides an opportunity to look ahead, including to future major events including the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Doha. Once again, I thank all our partners and speakers, and I look forward to a practical and constructive exchange. Thank you.

Thank you so much, sir, for quickly highlighting your engagement in the protecting of major sports events. Right now, I would like to give the floor to Mr. Stephen Fairham, the Head of UFL Safety and Security. Operations. Sir, you have the floor. Thank you.

Thank you very much, and good afternoon, everybody. Uh, it's a— it's an honor and a pleasure to be here this afternoon on behalf of UEFA. This afternoon, I only have 6 or 7 minutes, unfortunately, to give you a brief overview of how we approach safety, security, and service within UEFA, within our organization. I can tell you I could probably speak for many, many more hours than that. A little bit about myself. I come from Cardiff in Wales in the United Kingdom. I was a police officer for 30 years before retiring, and now I'm the head of UEFA Safety Security. The background of UEFA: we are the European Confederation for Football. We have 55 countries in our national— in our confederation, including countries outside of Europe such as Israel, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan. And we deal with between 3,000 to 3,500 matches a year. My unit is only 14 in total, so we're always very, very busy. We are obviously operating in a very challenging geopolitical landscape at the moment. In Europe, we have conflicts going on across our continent, and these are countries that are part of our national associations. So we're very acutely aware of the geopolitical landscape when it comes to football matches, and particularly European football matches. CT, counter-terrorism, and terrorism is always our number one consideration, our number one threat. Um, unfortunately, we continue to be that, uh, and in our preparations for all our finals, for all our tournaments, that is always our first discussions that we have with our colleagues and stakeholders in the countries that we attend that host our club finals and our tournaments. Our events are clearly beamed to billions of people across the world, particularly the Champions League final, which we consider to be the biggest single-day sporting event in the world. Our colleagues here in the US may say it's the Champions League— the Super Bowl, but for viewing figures, the Champions League final is the biggest single-day sporting event, and we are acutely aware that that can be a platform for people, as we've seen in our finals, to air their grievances, their protests, and even try to disrupt them. And again, when we work with our stakeholders and our colleagues in the cities that we go to, this is always a consideration for us. Unfortunately, we have been, as mentioned earlier, we have been, we have had subject to a terrorist attack at our events in 2023 in Brussels, in Belgium. Unfortunately, 2 Swedish supporters were shot and killed as they were attending one of our Euro 2024 qualifying matches, and we took a lot of learning from that as well with key stakeholders in the city, in the stadium, and the police. So we are, as I said, acutely aware of those challenges. From a European perspective, we have had to fundamentally change in UEFA safety security how we go about our business in the last few years as well. We had two significant events ourselves in 2021 at the men's European finals in Wembley in London. There was significant disruption to our event where effectively the stadium was compromised, and as a result of that, Baroness Casey was commissioned by the UK government to do a review, and fundamental changes have taken place. And then a year later, at our Champions League final in Paris, again, we had a very near miss as a result of some challenges around— organisational challenges at the stadium and outside of the stadium. And for me, as head of the unit, they were two watershed moments, which effectively meant we had to change how we go about our business and how we've changed our engagement and preparation for our finals now. And I'm sure you'll hear from our colleagues in— from Hungary, from Budapest, hopefully, how those changes were affected to deliver what was an extremely successful Champions League final this year in Budapest. We worked the principles of the Saint-Denis Convention with the Council of Europe, and the principles are interoperability, working together with stakeholders across the platforms, across the domains. I'm a great believer that no one individual stakeholder can make a difference. It has to be in collaboration. It has to be working together, be it with the local authorities, the police, the city, the stadium, the country. Unless we all work together in the preparation, the planning, and the delivery of these major sporting events around considerations for safety, security, service, and counter-terrorism prevention, they will not work. And it was complacency, unfortunately, in the two events that I mentioned earlier that probably led of the challenges that we had there. We have developed an extensive training program within UEFA in the last 2 years. I can confidently sit here this afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and probably say that within UEFA, within my department, we now have the most comprehensive training and education program of any footballing organization in the world. We've delivered this over the last couple of years. We deliver regularly to countries, to national associations, about best practice and the learning we see from all our national associations, our countries across Europe. In fact, only this afternoon I probably had another request for training to be delivered in one of our countries in Europe. We are developing as we speak a bespoke course actually around counter-terrorism and the awareness of counter-terrorism at football events. We recently developed a program for my safety and security officers from across Europe for a Level 5 formal recognition, formal program of training, and we're going to take that one step further where we will now introduce a bespoke counter-terrorism training program. It's in development. We're hoping to have the first course run in early 2027, and I'll keep Valerio and the UNOCT aware of that program as we develop it. One of the things that we've learned is that when we take our, our events to, to these countries, even developed countries, we take it to a whole new level. And we are already starting our planning and preparation for the Euro finals in 2028 in the UK and Ireland. And again, I can sit here confidently this afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, to say even in the UK, my home country, that probably has some of the most comprehensive legislation and regulations around football and football events. In our initial discussions with some of the Premier League stadiums we are going to for our event, it is new and learning for them. They are aware that we're taking it to another level. And of course, at the heart of everything that we do will be safety, security and service, ensuring that we get the hundreds of thousands of fans that will attend our matches safely into the country, into the cities, the transfer from public space into private space, the stadium, and back out into the public space. And as I mentioned earlier, that can only be done in collaboration with key stakeholders. So I think that is a very, very quick, uh, review of how we have changed in the last couple of years. And again, I'm happy to meet and discuss after the meeting if anybody else would like to have an insight in regards to what we're doing within UEFA. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Mr. Furrer, for sharing your lessons learned through the past years and also emphasize the importance of cooperation. I'm glad to hear that you're cooperating with FIFA, helping each other out, and also the future collaboration with UNOCT as well. Thank you so much. For right now, from Hungary, I would like to give the floor to Police Major General János Kruczik, the General Director of Law Enforcement of Hungary. Sir, you have the floor.

Thank you. Thank you, Dama, for the floor. Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to be here in the UN Headquarters. I'm going to highlight the key elements of the security measures we took during the Champions League final between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal. My name is General Janos Kuczyk, the Deputy Chief of the Hungarian National Police, and I was the main commander of this event. Football and all the sport and football play an extremely important role in the lives of Hungarians. Proof of this is that although the population doesn't exceed 10 million, Hungary ranks 8th in the overall summer Olympic Games medal count, ahead of countries with much larger populations. Furthermore, we have qualified for the football World Cup final twice, but unfortunately we have never won. Because of their passion of sport, the local residents welcomed the event well despite the restrictions, and it was an honor for the buddies whose task was organization, preparation, and who contributed security, whether from law enforcement or the civilian side, that UEFA held the Champions League final at the Puskás Stadium in Budapest in 2026. In addition to experience gained from football matches and other sporting events organized in Hungary, UEFA was a great assistance by providing ongoing assessments regarding the behavior of the fan bases of the teams in contention for the final, as well as the violations committed during the season. And UEFA also made it possible for the commanders at different levels and the NFIP staff to gain experience and build relationships with the security personnel of the finalist teams during last year's final and this year's semi-final. We had to guarantee the safety of more than 100,000 fans in the stadium, in the fan zones, in downtown Budapest, and at the Champions Festival in Heroes Square to make this weekend a true celebration of sport and soccer. We had 4 most important objectives. The first was prevention of a terrorist attack. A key element of preparing the police security operation was assessing the level of terrorist threat in connection with the match, as well as any other threats affecting the fans. We expanded intelligence gathering abroad as well. The Hungarian Counterterrorism Center carried out intelligence operations and covered information gathering across all of these operational areas and also contacted international police and intelligence partners regarding the event's vulnerability. We conducted background checks on individuals who had submitted accreditation requests to enter the stadium, both in domestic databases and through international cooperation in foreign databases as well. Our goal was to refuse the accreditation requests of those whose criminal history or other information indicated that their entry into the stadium would pose a risk, thereby preventing them from entering. We carried out risk analysis and assessment based on the incoming data. We received no information regarding a terrorist threat in connection with the final. However, in order to prevent ramming attacks, we installed physical barriers at every venue visited by fans where we expected large crowd movements or fan walks to stop vehicles from driving into the crowd. The intelligence gathering work was very thorough. Neither organized terrorist acts nor lone wolf offenders posed a threat to the security of the event. Additional risk factors were that: first, Hungary's neighboring country Ukraine, where a war is currently taking place; second, there are regular bomb threats against public institutions, all of which have proven to be false so far. In order to guarantee the safety of the fans and to prevent evacuating parts or all of the stadium in the event of a threat, we installed metal detectors and X-ray scanners at the entry points. EOD teams had carried out a preliminary bomb check in the stadium, which ensured that no one could take in any objects capable of causing injury, and in the case of bomb threat, no evacuation would be needed. The second objective was preventing fan disorder in Budapest public places. Reports from previous years' finals, as well as our own observations during the Europa League final, indicated that fan groups drinking alcohol in the city might lead to conflicts which could easily escalate into fights. At a press conference, I informed the public about fans' expected behavior in downtown bars and about traffic closures, and every 5 minutes we provided updates on social media. Police units from the countryside were developed and deployed. To Budapest in order to work together with the riot police and Budapest police. There were 4,000 police officers working on the day of the match. With this increased and visible police presence, our goal was not only to prevent disturbances but also to make sure that residents could go their daily lives despite the Champions League final. Of course, in addition to the large Hungarian police presence, communication and cooperation with the fans were crucial. That's why we began negotiations with them right after the semi-finals through the club's security managers and UEFA. We communicated our expectations and the strict Hungarian legislation, but—this is very important—we also fulfilled fulfilled the requests made by the 2,000 high-risk supporters. For example, not just allowing them to take fan photos in the city centre, but recommending them the perfect location and then supporting and securing the fan walk all the way to the stadium. As a result, the city centre remained calm and safe, one or two fights between fans were reported, and the majority of the offenders were apprehended. The third objective was stadium security. Hungarian legislation requires that at high-risk sporting events, measures have to be taken to physically separate the two teams' fans. Therefore, we used barriers inside and outside the stadium in order to separate them and to ensure that they could enter at different gates, thereby preventing conflict. In order to keep out fans without tickets, we set up an additional security perimeter in the streets around the stadium, which made it possible that only people with valid tickets were able to get to the entry points. Benjamin from the Hungarian Football Association is going to tell you more about it. Police officers were deployed inside the stadium, but positioned in a way that the fans could not see them, while maintaining the ability to react quickly if needed. We had to give order to intervene on two occasions. With the police cordon, we prevented the fans from running onto the pitch. No other police action was taken inside the stadium apart from the use of a few pyrotechnic devices. No violations occurred. And no one without a ticket was able to enter the stadium grounds. The fourth and the last: sporting fan transportation. During the 3 days of the match weekend, fans with valid tickets could use public transport free of charge on routes connecting the airport to the city centre or the stadium, and on the match day to the fan zones as well. Also, we asked the local residents to avoid the stadium area by car because of the road closures. Thanks to their cooperation, there were no traffic jams and public transport remained a viable alternative for everyone. Overall, feedback from the local residents was positive, and over the 3 days, domestic newspapers reported only a single fight between the fans. The key to our success was thorough and detailed preparation, excellent ongoing cooperation and communication with UEFA, the clubs, and the fans, and last but not least, keeping the local residents constantly informed at all times. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your attention. The Hungarian police look forward to the opportunity to to host the next event.

Thank you so much, Mr. General, for your very detailed and insightful remarks. Now we are moving to the second panel: Lessons Learned from the UEFA Champions League Final in 2026. As you may know that this year on May 30th, Hungary had the honor to host the UEFA Champions League The final in Budapest and Hungary previously has a great experience in organizing major sporting events and we have significantly developed and built up our capabilities in the past years. Therefore, we wanted to share our lessons learned and the best practices with other member states and countries who are having major sports events in the future. In cooperation with UNOCT, we have created the Road to Budapest program In order to provide you more details, I'm giving the floor to Mr. Krisztián Baranyai, the Deputy Head of the Department of Sports Diplomacy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hungary. Krisztián, you have the floor. Thank you.

Distinguished delegates and guests, given the fact that Hungary is not the strongest, not the richest, not the biggest country, but the Hungarian heritage in the field of sports which Mr. Director General has already mentioned, makes Hungary committed to sharing its expertise in organizing and securing international sporting events. Therefore, Hungary has been honored to have a partnership with UNOCT regarding this year's UEFA Champions League final in Budapest, which was definitely a milestone event. Of Hungarian sports. I would like to shortly introduce the collaboration called Road to Budapest. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hungary was responsible to build the elements of the joint program. The program series had three main pillars. The first was a high-level hybrid, hybrid format conference about previous experiences, both of the sides of the organizers— I mean the international federations, international sports federations, and law enforcement side— for a wider audience. And the second element was a 2-day on-site observer program with a workshop of the preparing phase of the UCL final from the Hungarian Football Federation and the Hungarian law enforcement groups, different levels of the police. And also there were an occasion to observe from the front line the most security-sensitive sporting event in Hungary, in the domestic football league, the match between Ferencvaros and Ujpest. And the third occasion was a 3-day on-site observer program. It's obviously the UCL final, the preparation of match day minus 2, match day minus 1, from the side of UEFA, from the side of Hungarian Football Federation, and the Hungarian police. And also we organized a workshop with the Hungarian experts of the field of counter-terrorism, cybersecurity, travel scanning, and also consular affairs regarding the Budapest Final. And of course, the whole match day itself, in and out of the security perimeter— security perimeters— from very early in the morning until the Pushkas Arena got empty again. The participants in the last two programs were those experts who will be hosting major international football tournaments in their countries in the future, like AFCON, World Cups, and so on. Building on these new experiences, uh, Hungary recommends to organize small group workshops on-site, then big conferences, because we noticed that the conversation between the experts was more intensive and effective. I hope Mr. Baki can confirm it. He was involved in all three programs. So the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' main role was not just to secure the program itself in an operative and financial way, but to present the best main stakeholders from the front line of the field of security. Therefore, my last duty in this project, to present one of the best sport security managers of Hungary, our dear friend Benjamin Berki. Yeah. Hungary remains a committed partner to further strengthening international collaboration to safeguard the major sporting events. Thank you for your valuable attention.

Thank you so much, Christian, for explaining the details of the delivery of the program. I can also confirm that I also participated with the team It was a very insightful discussion between the participants. They didn't even have coffee break because they were still discussing. And for example, we had delegates from Qatar who were very active, also from Spain. So it was a very good discussion, also from Saudi Arabia. So it was very nice to see that from different regions they are coming together and sharing their insights and experiences. So it was a very great pleasure and we are also very honored to have had to let us inside and also meet with us. So right now I would like to give the floor to Mr. Benjamin Berki, the Security Manager of the Hungarian Football Federation, and to share his insights. Sir, you have the floor. Thank you.

Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Benjamin Berki. I was one of the two security officers, security managers to take care of the Champions League final in Budapest from the Hungarian Football Federation side. I prepared a short presentation just to visualize the things what I will be talking about for you. It will be not a long presentation, but I hope that we can discuss the details afterwards. I will stick here for a while after our side event, so all the questions or open points I'm really, really open to answer your questions. As my colleagues, General Kuczyk and Mr. Furnam, mentioned, this event was a really thoroughly planned, a really high-level cooperation between different organizations. And on my first slide, you can see that when we talk about different organizations, there are a few which went into this cooperation. Since the Puskás Arena is not owned by a club or the Hungarian Football Federation, it was a, a single entity in this cooperation, as well as the local authorities, the airport and transit authorities, of course the host city Budapest itself, the Hungarian Football Federation, and last but not least, the UEFA. These preparations started back in 25 August, and when I say preparation and a long time of cooperation, I mean 5 single different working visits, 3 different match observations which was carried out by UEFA together with the stakeholders seen on the screen. We made a security concept concerning the all of the venues and all of the places of the Champions League final. One operation plan which focused solely on the Puskás Arena itself. UEFA carried out a crowd simulation based on the security concept what we delivered. Countless, countless meetings. And last but not least, again, the one thing which contributed to our resilience is the standard operating procedures which we which we made, I think, 25 or 6 or 30 different documents. These are all contributed to a safe and secure environment. And based on these documents and based on this preparation, I can say that we were proactive, not reactive, towards this event, which is, I think, a really crucial point of an organi— of organizing an event like Champions League final. During our discussions, from my esteemed colleagues at UFI, they already said that organizing a Champions League final, it's like a relay race. You are passing the baton for the next organizer, and we felt it from the previous year in Munich. My colleagues were there to observe the Champions League final 25 in Munich, and The lessons learned, all the lessons what was learned was shared with us through UEFA, what we need to take care of, what we need to, what we can expect for an event like the Champions League final. In my presentation, I will focus on 3 different topics. General Kuczyk already mentioned the terrorist threats and the bomb threats. Regarding the Pushkash Arena, so I will not cover that part. But the other two key parts were to keep out unauthorized person from the Pushkash Arena, either ticketless or without accreditation people, and of course to plan the supporters' journey, either they coming by flight, on road, or by railway. So I think our Security preparation went hand in hand with the mobility concept, which was a robust document. Our colleagues from the mobility departments focused on all the different transport means and planned every single, every single journey for the supporters. And on my next slide, you will see that when we are talking about mobility in Budapest, we are in a very lucky situation because Budapest is a walking city. There were no distances. You can see that there were two fan meeting points which are marked with red and blue. These were the two different team supporters. We had the Champions Festival on the Heroes' Square, and you can see on the left-hand of the picture that the city center is just 30 or 50 minutes walk from the stadium itself. All the connecting events like the Champions Ultimate Tournament or the celebration party was held nearby the Puskás Stadium, which again contributed greatly to that. We could focus our operation on one part of Budapest. And as we mentioned, the— as I mentioned, the importance to keep out supporters without tickets or people without accreditations. On my next slide, I will show you, and you, you can see that we had 3 different security perimeters, and which is unique in during our organization organizing matches in Pushkash Arena compared to the national team matches, that we set up an additional security perimeter which only, uh, which was focused only on screening out supporters or staff without accreditation or supporters without tickets. These 5 points which you can see with orange meant 83 different channels split by these 5 points, and all the supporters had to go through it. Or after, after 6 in the morning on match day, all the staff who were working on the event has to go through it to show their accreditation or their ticket to and access the point at the OSP with the black line where the body and bag search and the with the metal detectors and the X-ray machines, the body and bag search were carried out. Afterwards, we had the inner security perimeter, which is marked with green. It was the turnstiles itself. As you can see around inside the OSP, the Pushkas Arena and the park itself, it's a really huge area. We had a lot of place to, to maintain the supporters. And on this picture, if you can imagine Two lines from the Gate G and the Roman number VI, which are marked with pink, that's where we split the two supporter groups. As General Kuczyk mentioned, that we separated the two supporter groups, and Paris Saint-Germain supporters were located on the south side and Arsenal supporters were located on the north side. At the OSP, we had 171 channels with the same number of metal detectors and 43 X-ray machines to screen the, the bags what supporters might bring in. On the next slide, you can see, uh, when I mentioned that mobility was a crucial part in this operation, that how much supporters we estimated from different, different directions of the Pushkas Arena. From the north side, you can see the red markings. That was where the Arsenal supporters met in their respective fan meeting point. We expected 14,000 people to arrive from that direction. It was slightly higher. I guess it was at least 17,000 or maybe 20,000 supporters supporters, and which was a unique thing during this Champions League final, that usually English supporters are not going for fan walks, but during this Champions League final, Arsenal supporters made a fan walk. And thanks to the cooperation and the integrated approach by the Hungarian police, UEFA, the private security company, and the Hungarian Football Federation, and of course the Arsenal club itself and the responsible safety and security officer This new thing for the Arsenal supporters felt like they did it for many, many years because the cooperation led to a success. Everybody was in the stadium even before the pre-match ceremony started. The flow was smooth. No supporter was left out after the match, and the additional security perimeter proved its worth. Because the Hungarian police and the private security screened out almost 200 supporters who tried to get inside the stadium without tickets. So it proved that it is a necessary feature around such events. And you can say the same from the Paris Saint-Germain side. From the south side, you can see with blue markings and the blue number 2, where we expected 19,000-21,000 supporters to enter.. And it was the case as well. And just to highlight when I talk about integrated approach, on my next slide I will show you a video about the same position. This is the Paris Saint-Germain supporters' fan walk which arrived to the stadium. On this video you can see that in front of the white t-shirt supporters there are pink bib-wearing travelling stewards. These were the French travelling stewards. Behind them you can see in black the police officers. If you have keen eyes, you can try to find General Kuczyk as well because he was there. And with the yellow and orange vests, you can see the private security and the ASP channels. Yes, ASP channels, what we set up at this southeast part of the stadium. The traveling stewards from Paris Saint-Germain did an excellent job. They were partners from the beginning to deliver a successful event and to make sure that their supporters are enjoying themselves and they will not pose any threat to, to each other or to the other supporter groups. So if you can start the video, please, then you will see how it went out. The first line of contact was the traveling stewards for their supporters. The next point of contact were the police officers, and then the private security who checked that only ticket holders enter this area around Pushkas Arena. On the next video, you will see the same. Of course, we used some volunteers to guide the supporters to all the channels which we set up, and it went quite well, I think. All the channels were used by the supporters. And as you can see, it was a staggered entry for for the supporters, and it might raise a question: how long does it take the supporters to get inside the stadium? On the next slide, there will be two pictures. On the left, you can see that picture was taken at 3:45— 3:33, sorry. We opened the gates at 3 o'clock, so 33 minutes after gates opening time. And the videos what I showed you previously were recorded at almost the same time. But on the right-hand side of the pictures, the picture was taken at 4:24, so 40 minutes. That would— that is the time what it took to get the majority of the Paris Saint-Germain supporters into the ASP line and to reach the OSP lines and get inside to the stadium. In conclusion, it was, I think, a really, really good event. A lot of preparation went into this event, a lot of long days, long nights, but it was one of the most successful events in Hungary, in the— I think in the sport's history. Not just in football history. And I'd like to thank Steve Furnham and their team's contribution for this event, because without them it, uh, it, it won't happen like it would have— wouldn't happen like this one. And thank you for the Hungarian police as well for their cooperation, because it was, as I mentioned a few times, a really joint operation. Thank you for attention. And as I mentioned, I will stick around for a little bit after our side event, so feel free to approach me if you have any questions. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Mr. Berkey, for your very detailed presentation. By the end of our event, we'll have a very short Q&A session, so you will have the chance to ask him, and also after the event, he will be available for questions. So right now I'm handing over the moderation to my very dear colleague from UNOCT, Valerio De Dividitis, the program coordinator for UNOCT Global Sport Program. Valerio, you have the floor. Thank you.

Dear colleagues, it's my honor to take over and to moderate the second part of this side event. But of course, first of all, let me thank warmly Hungary Dalma from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Permanent Mission of Hungary to the UN, the Sport Diplomacy Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, the Hungarian Football Federation, and of course the Ministry of Interior Law Enforcement for the great, great, great partnership across the past 9 months. It has been a very intense journey and extremely important from the substantive viewpoint and a very, very good learning experience for a number of countries who attended not only the observation program in the context of the Champions League final, but the other milestones and commitments we took earlier. It has been an extremely important project. And of course, let me warmly thank Steve for UEFA's friendship with our Global Sports Programme, allow me to say so, Steve, and which has been a collaboration ongoing for a number of years. Now let's turn the floor, and but also gives me opportunity to thank the State of Qatar. The State of Qatar has been a continued partner with the Sport Programme for a number of years, and even if she's not here today, we would like to warmly thank Sheikha Al Thani for her leadership, and of course, the Permanent Mission of the State of Qatar, represented by Mohammed Al Nasr today. Thank you very much for your continued partnership with the Global Sports Programme of UNOCT. And also, from Doha, Lieutenant Nasr Khalifa, Nasr, thank you so much for being here with us today. In the context of the FIFA World Cup in 2022, we also organized a very, very insightful international observation program, and this set a very, very high benchmark in this particular domain that also looking ahead of the challenges for example, of the Basketball World Cup mentioned by Mohamed earlier. So, it is a commitment which is ongoing. Over to you, sir. Thanks for being here.

Thank you, Valerio. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. My name is First Lieutenant Nasser Al-Nasser. I am a planning officer for the Safety and Security Operations Committee for the State of Qatar. Today, I'll be proudly presenting about the honoring experience that we had to host the FIFA World Cup 2022. The World Cup has always brought long-lasting memories for us when we were young, and still does. It is the most loved sport in the world, without a doubt. Not only that, but it leaves a remarkable stepping stone for any future endeavors for the country and also the region as a whole. So to quickly go over a few things, Qatar was awarded the honor of hosting the World Cup on the 2nd of December, 2010, following a very much anticipated and a very difficult voting process with competitive hosting bids. The FIFA World Cup was so much more than a sporting event. It built a lasting legacy not only from a security perspective but for the country as a whole. It contributed towards the national sustainable sustainable development for the state and also to achieve the national vision of the year 2030. So quick figures: Qatar welcomed more than 1 million visitors during the tournament and billions of viewers worldwide. It was the first World Cup in the Middle East and in the Arab countries. It was also the first mega tournament of such kind to host to be hosted in the same region. It was the most compact tournament ever, meaning you could attend up to 4 matches in one day, and I'm sure you have seen some social influencers complete that challenge or quest. It was the first out-of-season timing to accommodate the tournament in a perfect condition and also to protect the welfare of the players and to deliver an amazing, amazing experience. It was also the debut of the Qatar National Football Team as a host city. It was the debut of the VAR technology and female referees as well. As I said earlier, it showcased our culture, our heritage, our hospitality on a global stage. In terms of security, we managed unprecedented simultaneous operations with intense stakeholder coordination. To quickly go through other figures, there was 8 stadiums specifically built for this FIFA World Cup, 32 teams, 34 team base camp hotels, 36 training sites, 64 matches played before the tournament was expanded this year, 20,000 volunteers from 150 countries over the world, over 1.8 million fans visited the FIFA Fan Festival which started a week before the tournament end, start, and it was ended on the day of the final. Total over 3.5 million visitors in total. So the FIFA World Cup Safety and Security Operations Committee was established in 2020 as a part of the National Security Committee. It is a dedicated organization, host for— formed jointly by multiple security agencies within the country. SSOC, what we call Safety and Security Operations Committee, was responsible for all the strategic and operational security-related planning for all aspects of the World Cup, in addition to overseeing the delivery of security-related infrastructure and security operations during the tournament, not only inside the venue but also outside the venue. We were also responsible for ensuring that all related projects were designed to leave a long-lasting legacy beyond the tournament. We also administrated and developed the World Cup security strategy, the stepping stone, if you would say, the concept of operations and other associated plans. We were also responsible for on-ground security operations, which involved a wide range of activities, including the 10 areas that you see on the screen. A few more security figures: more than 40,000 security personnel, including private security, 478 security checkpoints from PSAs to VSAs, around 17,000 flags and banners inspection according to the national regulations of the State of Qatar and to the regulations of FIFA, more than 180 bomb sweeps for multiple venues, close to 3,600 escorted movements, and almost 160,000 vehicles inspected during the tournament period. Our key areas to be— the key areas that were focused on during the successful delivery of a major event is the strategic security planning in accordance to our stakeholders, which we'll talk about after, assessing and managing the risks and threats, security command, control, and communications, what we call C3 concept, and workforce planning, recruiting, assigning them, and obviously training them, planning and purchasing the required materials, and last but not least, planning and implementing the security infrastructures in terms of IT and cybersecurity. So because high-profile international tournaments attract global media coverage, they present an ideal platform for external threat groups to— looking to project threats and spread fear among the people. To safeguard this against these risks, we implemented the highly coordinated, scaled-up, and multi-agency security strategy. We focused heavily on preventing outside attacks from materializing before happening. We established robust national mitigation contingencies and seamless integration with the local security forces in Qatar. The Safety and Security Operations Committee also established a tournament-dedicated International Police Cooperation Center, what we call an IPCC, that we will discuss later. The purpose of creating this center is to identify and mitigate such risks within the participating fan groups from the participating nations. What is presented is a visual of how the stakeholder collaboration went from all the agencies and— agencies including FIFA, including the local agencies, security agencies in Qatar, military agencies, service providers, international policing stakeholders as well. So our security program consisted of 3 levels. The first level is the tournament operations level, which is the main focus. The second level is the business as usual, or what we call the BAU. It is the extended level of security throughout the city, meaning everything that is hosted by the country but it's not under the supervision or scope of FIFA. And the national level, with multiple agencies forming a massive support force as part of several contingency plans put in place. While the business engagement in this case is the local agencies and services provided for the funds that are consistently engaged on a national level. At the national level, the security framework was hinging on infusing risk assessment into a single truth, building a business resilience, and aligning protective postures with the global best practices. In terms of operation, the strategy executed across 4 critical domains: the national geopolitical, cyber defense, specialized maritime safeguards, enhanced aviation measures, and reinforced border controls at all ports of entry. Together, these pillars formed a comprehensive nationwide shield tailored specifically for this— for the huge demand of such tournaments. Haya Card was announced and created as a fan identification card with seamless integration between FIFA fan information and the local authorities' databases. It served as a form of entry or a short-term visa, meaning if you obtain a Haya Card, you're allowed to enter the country. It required a comprehensive background check for all local and international applicants. It was requiring a two-step electronic verification at the venue level to make sure that there is no duplication or someone using a false identity, and collecting accommodation and residency details for all the fans to monitor and control the crowd density across the city. The business as usual level are the public security areas that are outside the sporting venues, such as tourist sites, parks, beaches, Corniche. It was across the entire territory of the State of Qatar, supported and supplemented tournament security operations to create a safe and secure environment for the fans to enjoy not only the games but also to enjoy the country as a whole. The total number of venues secured for the World Cup, around 750. The official venues, as I said, supervised by FIFA. It's around 120 including stadiums, hotels, training sites, and fan festival. The non-official venues such as cruise ships, floating hotels, fan villages, malls, hospitals, public parks, and so forth. So to achieve Qatar's vision of delivering the safest and the most secure FIFA World Cup ever, the scope for the major sporting event was broken down into 7 distinct operational streams. These include core stadium and venue security at the first level, specialized services for specific client groups, transportation networks and logistics, and also delivery and monitoring. So what you see here is a schematic presentation of a stadium. It's not very different from the colleagues in— what the colleagues in Hungary presented. The green circle at the outside is the transport perimeter, or what we call the last mile, meaning no vehicles can pass this perimeter. It starts a— it's the start of the fan area leading to the stadium. The inner perimeter in the color red is where validation and screening happens for the fans. And lastly, the ticketing perimeter, or the inner perimeter, leading directly to the fan seats. One concept that has been developed is the clean venue concept. This means that it is consisting of several stages. The first stage is the completing of the security sweep inspection of the venue organized by Special EOD prior to going to that venue using state-of-the-art security infrastructure and technical equipment, including barriers in order to create security parameter, specially trained venue security team available on site around the hour like venue commander and his assistants, define security measures for each venue since each venue has a different kind of security. Some of the services that we were providing is the team security liaison officer, close protection officer, strict bubble-to-bubble protocols, escorted movements, and dedicated 24/7 accommodation protection. A remote search park, what we call an RSP, is a station where all deliveries going to the stadium go through a screening layer before reaching the stadium. To funnel logistics through these checkpoints to ensure total oversight and safety for all event-related deliveries and to avoid delays as well. The security command and control approach for the World Cup consisted of 4 main levels. The highest level was political at the ministerial council and the FIFA president level. Second level was the Gold Commander or the tournament commander along with the host country chairman and the tournament CEO. Tactical level where most of the decisions are being made at the tournament command central level, along with medical, transportation, and the MOC, or the main operation center, owned by FIFA. And lastly, the on-ground level, which is the operational level. The tournament command center served as a central hub for our tactical command during operational phase, transitioning from planning to execution. Our approach was completely integrated. We brought together all the security functional command leads for efficient decision-making and incident management using state-of-the-art communication channels, using protected networks, incident management systems, and integrated meetings. Lastly, the International Police Cooperation Center, It was a temporary entity to establish— was established to coordinate the activities of sharing information between national law enforcement and foreign police officers deployed at the major event host country. The purpose was to identify high-threat individuals and fan groups and the cultural and behavioral aspects for each crowd. This was conducted through foreign officers who share information to the security commanders of the venues about the habits of the participating nations. Those countries brought also liaison officers who worked with our officers to provide support by responding to requests submitted from the fan groups for those countries. And lastly, deploying those foreign officers on ground to have efficient communication with their fans inside the stance. That was all. Thank you very much.

Thank you for your presentation, First Lieutenant Al-Nassr. Thank you so much. And of course, we're privileged for this longstanding partnership with the State of Qatar in the domain of sport. Now, I have the pleasure to give the floor to Miss Eva Nogales Sánchez. Actually, no, apologies, apologies. I have the honor to give the floor to His Excellency Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Wazil, the Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United United Nations, and also this gives me the opportunity to thank for the very substantial collaboration that we enjoyed so far with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Over to you, sir, for your intervention. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Moderator. At the outset, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to Hungary, the State of Qatar, the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, FIFA, and the UEFA for organizing this timely discussion. As the future host of the FIFA World Cup 2034, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia greatly values opportunities to learn from the experiences and the best practices of previous and upcoming hosts of major sporting events. Saudi Arabia views the successful delivery of a major sporting event not only as a logistical and security challenge, but also as an opportunity to build lasting national and international partnerships, strengthening institutional capacity, and create a sustainable legacy that extends well beyond the final Wessel. Over the past several years, the Kingdom has hosted a growing number of major international sporting events, providing valuable experience in areas such as venue security, crowd management, emergency preparedness, interagency coordination, and the protection of critical infrastructure. As preparations for the FIFA World Cup 2034 advance, Saudi Arabia is investing in a comprehensive approach that integrates security, technology, capacity building, international cooperation. Particular attention is being given to emerging challenges, including the misuse of new technologies, cyber threats, unmanned aerial systems, and the protection of the digital infrastructure supporting major events. We believe that effective security for major sporting events require close coordination among government institutions, international organizations, sporting bodies, law enforcement agencies, and the private sector. Equally important is the exchange of expertise and lessons learned among host countries. In this regard, Saudi Arabia looks forward to working closely with the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, FIFA member states, and relevant stakeholders to strengthen international cooperation and contribute to global efforts aimed at ensuring that major sporting events remain safe, secure, inclusive, and resilient. We are committed to making the FIFA World Cup 2034 a platform that promotes international understanding, showcases effective security cooperation, and leaves a positive legacy for future generations. I thank you.

Thank you, Excellency, for your remarks. We also look forward to expanding our collaboration. Let me also press a couple of years ago, had the opportunity to observe the security operation in the context of the Club World Cup of FIFA that took place in December 2023, which was already an outstanding delivery, allow me to say. So I'm very much looking forward to the next several years in view of the 2034 FIFA World Cup. Now, with apologies for, for the previous Mistake. Tengo el placer. I have the big pleasure to give the floor to Miss Eva María Nogales Sánchez, who represents the CITCO. The CITCO, she's the head of the foreign relations at CITCO, which is the Center for Intelligence and Against Terrorism and Organized Crime of the Kingdom of Spain. So from a kingdom to the— Saudi Arabia to the Kingdom of Spain. Pero también quiero agradecer a España, el Reino de España, por ser un tan buen anfitrión de nuestro programa. So Spain houses the sports program since already 5 years. For the past 5 years, it has been such a safe house for us. Muchísimas gracias por estar con nosotros. The floor is yours.

Thank you so much, Mr. Dibittis, for giving me the floor. For this brief introduction. Well, as you said, I have the honor of being here today representing the Intelligence Center Against Terrorism and Organized Crime in Spain, whose acronym is CICTO, that is part of the Ministry of Interior. And I want to spend the next few minutes trying to give you— to share with you how our approach can contribute to a broader international effort to protect major sports events and giving you, like, an overview of our work. Next slide, please. Well, as you know, Spain is currently preparing for two major sports events of global significance. In June 2027, we will host the UEFA Champions League final at the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid with a capacity of more than 70,000 spectators, and this will be the 9th time that Spain hosts this prestigious final. Um, also, uh, 3 years later in 2030, Spain will co-organize the FIFA World Cup together with Portugal and Morocco. And this edition is particularly relevant as it marks the 100th anniversary of the very first World Cup, you know. So these two events have different scales and timelines, of course, but serve one single integrated security framework. Next slide, please. Well, as you can see here in this slide, Spain, my country, has a solid track record of hosting complex, high-risk international events. In recent years, we have managed the Copa Libertadores final in 2018, the NATO Summit in 2022, the informal EU Summit in 2023 in Granada, the United Nations Conference on Finance in World Development held in Sevilla in 2025, and recently the papal visit, uh, this month in Madrid and Barcelona. Each of these events presented different challenges, from large-scale crowd management to the protection of heads of states, you know. So this diversity of experience is the foundation of our current planning for 2027. 2027 and 2030. Next, please. Well, I want to remark that our work is based on the Spanish National Counterterrorism Strategy, known by its Spanish acronym, NCOT. The, uh, and the last version, as you can see in this slide, is from the year 2023. The NCOT is built on 4 key pillars. Prevent, to identify it, and mitigate violent extremism; protect, to guarantee the security of society and the institutions; also pursue, to detect, investigate, and neutralize terrorist networks; and prepare, to minimize consequences of and support victims if an incident occurs. And these 4 pillars, or this architecture or structure provides a common framework which we adapt to any kind of specific needs of different events. Next slide, please. Well, looking ahead to 2027 and 2030, uh, Spain brings 4 strategic priorities to the international table. First, human-centered security, because the safety of of every person, you know, athletes, spectators, and staff, is always our priority. Second, cooperation between states, agencies, and institutions. Also, shared risk management, because no country can address, um, today's complex threats in isolation, of course. And operational coordination so that all security actors work together as an integrated team. And this is translated directly into our practical security model, as I'm going to explain now in the next slide, please. Well, in practical terms, our security operation follows 4-phase plan aligned with the event life cycle. The preliminary phase, several months before event, with interinstitutional planning. The preventive phase, where we conduct detailed risk analysis and implement preventive measures while interagency coordination becomes more intensive. The third, that is the alert phase, in the final days before the event, when we activate a specific measure, sale of secure perimeters and deploy our forces. And finally, the critical phase during the event itself, you know, when we— when our command and control center that is known as T-CORE operates at full capacity with real-time control of all venues. Um, well, allow me now to mention other two essential elements that support our model Next slide, please. Uh, nope, sorry, the, the other one. Excuse me. Well, uh, on one hand, we have the activation of an extraordinary security, uh, of extraordinary security measures adopted through a formal instruction issued by our, by the Secretary of State for security matters based on an agreed proposal from all responsible actors, including the Threat Assessment Board, that in Spanish is called Mesa de Valoración de la Amenaza, a key mechanism regulated under our Plan for Prevention, Protection, and Response Against Terrorism. And on the other hand, we have the permanent intelligence plan coordinated by FICO. You know that the center I belong to, that integrates intelligence from the state security forces, the armed forces, the National Center for Critical Infrastructure Protection, and the Cybersecurity Coordination Office. Um, with all this information, uh, we prepare reports, or reports are produced directly during the most critical phases, and we deliver this report to the Secretary of State for Security Matters to support her in real-time decision-making. You know, this authority is the second in command in our Ministry of Interior. So you can imagine more or less the proceeding. Finally, and to conclude— this is the last slide— I want to say that, as a conclusion, that my country, Spain, brings to the table a unique combination of proven experience, a clear strategic framework, and an operational model designed for complex scenarios, as I have explained in 6 minutes, I think. And that's all from my side. Thank you very much for your kind attention.

Thanks so much, Ms. Sánchez, for your contribution, for representing the Center for Intelligence Against Terrorism and Organized Crime of the Kingdom of Spain. Because of time constraints, we don't have, unfortunately, time for debate, for Q&A. However, I would encourage whoever is interested in knowing more or to have exchange with our colleagues to contact us directly, of course, of course, also to continue conversating after this head event. I have now the pleasure to leave the floor to Guadalupe Maigret. Miss Maigret is the Director of the Special Projects and Innovation Branch of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism that was established in 2019, exactly when the sport program of UNOCT was launched. Thank you, and over to you, Guadalupe.

Thank you, Valerio. Ladies and gentlemen, Your Excellencies, I know I'm the only one standing in your way to take a coffee, so I'll try to be very brief. I have the honour, and Valerio asked me to close today's rich discussion. Let me express my sincere appreciation to all the speakers for their thoughtful insights and to every one of our participants. We designed this event to reflect what we advocate— what we advocate for in securing major sporting events, an interagency public-private endeavor that brings together member states, law enforcement, sports federations, clubs, and security professionals to enhance the security of sporting events together. By the way, I think that Brazil and Japan are one-one. Our past and present experiences strengthen our shared knowledge and our preparedness to keep pace with the challenges of an evolving terrorist threat. UNOCT will remain steadfast in its commitment to securing sporting events as spaces of joy and peace, spaces where our shared humanity is underpinned by the values of tolerance, respect and solidarity, and where there is no place for violence or discrimination. I would like to warmly thank the State of Qatar for its vision and its continued support to UNOCT Global Sports Programme. We stand ready to accompany Qatar's leadership in the sporting domain as it prepares to host the FIFA Under-17 World Cup and the Basketball World Cup in Doha. Likewise, I wish to thank our Hungarian colleagues for their partnership. It enabled rich exposure and knowledge sharing for delegates who travelled on two occasions and from 11 countries to Budapest, where they witnessed at first-hand the outstanding event delivery capacity of the Hungarian authorities. This was made possible through the close collaboration of the UEFA Safety and Security Operations Team, who have been proud— who we have been proud to work alongside for several years. Thank you. During today's discussions, we moved from Budapest's impressive UEFA Champions League final to the present, as host countries of the ongoing FIFA World Cup share their preparedness in a truly multilateral effort. I wish the entire FIFP team every success. They have been with us since the very launch of the Global Sports Programme in 2020. We were greatly honoured by the participation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and I understand that they had to leave, and gained valuable insights with a view to the 2035 FIFA World Cup. Today's objective was not simply to showcase success. It was to advance a holistic approach to the security of major sporting events. Multilateral because sports is universal and its symbols transcend borders. Whole of society because security cannot rest on organizers alone. And cannot stop at the stadium gates. And the long term, because security will never be fully attained for as long as inclusion, accessibility, and cohesion remains incomplete. Our work, UNOCT, and our global sports work must be rooted in the lessons of the past events while adapting in real time to protect against unpredictable challenges, assessing new and emerging forms of threats, from physical attacks and cyber intrusions to disinformation, drone incidents, and hybrid risks. In this regard, the expertise of UNOCT gives the Global Sports Programme a unique vantage point, one that allows us to understand not only how violence is evolving, but also its deeper origins and how to address them. So let us carry forward today's message that by making sporting events secure, we do not simply protect an event. We build platforms for resilience, cohesion, and healthy competition in more peaceful societies. Thank you very much. Thank you.