June 4 – Coinciding with UN World Football Day, Special Olympics has kicked-off a new five-year football development strategy to bring the game to more players with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) than ever before.
Currently boasting more than 640,000 players worldwide, football is already the most popular team sport within Special Olympics. The new strategy aims to increase the opportunities available to Special Olympics athletes to train and play the game.
“A multi-year global development plan for Special Olympics football enables us to strategically expand opportunities, foster inclusion, and elevate the game for footballers with intellectual and developmental disabilities,” said Special Olympics International’s Vice President of Sport Development, Jon-Paul St. Germain.
The new strategy is focussed on increasing the numbers of partnerships between Special Olympics national organisations and their national football federations. Currently, more than 110 such partnerships exist offering coach education and training, sport officials training, and direct competition support. They also provide access to funding and equipment.
“By aligning resources, partnerships, and competitions, we hope to attract investment partners to help us break down barriers, promote social change, and create a unified global community through the transformative power of the world’s most popular sport,” said St. Germain.
Football is the most popular sport in the Special Olympics movement with 449,000 registered male players, and 191,000 female players. They are supported by 27,000 certified football coaches in 2023 competed in more than 16,000 football competitions worldwide.
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