"Football is more than a sport" said FIFA president Gianni Infantino
Gianni Infantino, recognized the importance of football in society current
FIFA President Gianni Infantino once again participated in the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he met several heads of state, leaders of companies and global organizations. Among them the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the International Labor Organization (ILO) Gilbert Ungbo and the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
"It is important for football and for FIFA to be present at the World Economic Forum. Football is, as we know, more than just a sport. Football is certainly a very important economic player in the world," said the FIFA president.
"And football also has a social function, which is also extremely important. So to be able to come to the World Economic Forum, meet leaders of countries and also leaders of the business community and see how football can integrate the economy around the world, I think is very, very important."
Football is a major economic player in society
Elaborating on the importance of football, he added: “Let's not forget that the global GDP of football is almost $270 billion. It moves a lot as a financial area, in terms of sponsorships, ticketing but also everything around it, in terms of operations, catering and so on, security. So it is really an important economic sector and there is a lot of potential for the development of this economic sector around the world, to follow the great example that Europe has set, and in particular some European countries. There's a lot to do around the world."
FIFA and WHO have been close partners since signing a Memorandum of Understanding in Geneva in 2019. Since then, they have launched a series of campaigns, such as #ReachOut for better mental health and #ACTtogether to promote the need for equitable access to vaccines for Covid-19. At the 2022 World Cup, FIFA and WHO ran the Healthy World Cup campaign, which included several initiatives such as #BeActive, aimed at encouraging young people to do the recommended 60 minutes of exercise per day.
“I had a good conversation with FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the World Economic Forum 2023 about the way forward for promoting the health initiative for sport at national and local level through football. I also thanked him for strongly promoting and promoting "health for all" at the recent FIFA World Cup.
"I look forward to continuing to work with FIFA to help people everywhere enjoy the highest standards of physical and mental health," said WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Andanom Gebregesus.
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