FIFA supports the 211 member associations financially and logistically through various programs. We take a look at the extraordinary work that FIFA's member associations have done in recent weeks to promote, strengthen and make football truly global.

According to the decision of the 74th FIFA Congress, the FIFA Women's World Cup™ will be held in Brazil in 2027 and, for the first time ever, in South America. Another groundbreaking decision was the unanimous resolution to combat racism in football.

The Football Association of Ireland, in partnership with FIFA, has launched an initiative to promote the participation of girls and women in football.

With the help of FIFA's league development program, girls-only football clubs have been successfully established in Newry and Enniskillen. In line with FIFA's priorities, the program aims to sustainably increase the participation of girls and women in football.

It supports the member associations in introducing or strengthening new or existing competitions as well as providing further training for coaches, offering female players a safe and structured environment in which they can develop.

The FIFA Diploma for Technical Managers is set to become the first globally recognised qualification for technical managers.

The 18-month course prepares leaders for the challenges and opportunities of working for an association in the following five areas. Twenty-five participants from associations and confederations around the world gathered in the Netherlands at the Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbal Bond (KNVB) campus for the third block of this unique Level 6 qualification.

The success of the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand™ continues to reverberate, as an eventful Women's Football Week 2024 in Australia impressively demonstrated.

The week, themed #WeRise, which took place from 3-12 May 2024, aimed to harness the momentum of the tournament while celebrating the collective sense of community that women's football fosters - on and off the pitch - to move the game forward together.

There were also notable women’s football festivals in Honduras and Puerto Rico, while Kenya hosted a FIFA’s Women’s Football Development Programme focussing on numerous areas of off-field growth.

FIFA has taken further measures to raise public awareness of the issue of hate speech and the impact it can have. For example, the “No to Discrimination” campaign, which was launched at the 2022 FIFA World Cup™ together with the captains of the national teams and FIFA Legends, was extended to the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup™ and other issues.

FIFA's social media harassment protection service, which was also launched two years ago at the FIFA World Cup™ in Qatar, has also reduced the number of online insults against players, coaches and officials at FIFA tournaments.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has thanked the United Nations (UN) for the “historic” World Football Day resolution initiated by Bahrain, Libya and Tajikistan and unanimously adopted by 170 countries at the General Assembly earlier this month. Such support at a global level is a testament to the unifying power of football, the world's most popular sport, and its ability to bring people and nations together.

FIFA’s strong focus on developing match officials across the globe continued throughout May. Notably, a major event took place in Dubai with various attendees from West Asia at the FIFA Refereeing Lecturers Course. It was a similar scenario in Uganda where the Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) hosted a FIFA MA Referees Course in Njeru. OFC welcomed renowned FIFA instructor Lim Kee Chong to run a FIFA regional instructors’ course for 20 participants with the continent’s match officials heading to 2024 Olympics Football Tournaments among those honing their skills. Finally, it also proved a pivotal month for United Arab Emirates’ two-time FIFA World Cup referee Mohammed Abdulla Hassan who announced his retirement following a stellar career.

FIFA’s investment captures a wide range of groups within the football family including Football Agents. FIFA Football Agent exams have been conducted in May in nations as diverse as The Gambia, India, Andorra and Haiti over recent weeks.

FIFA’s Football for Schools continues to reach further parts of the world. Among the nations to enjoy the programme, which is designed to introduce football in a fun environment, were Honduras, Zimbabwe and Malaysia.