YourSide, an independent global unit that offers impartial expert guidance and trauma-informed support to victims and survivors in the football ecosystem, has begun providing services as from 8 October 2025. Established under the auspices of the FIFA Foundation as the Safe Football Support Unit, YourSide is a pioneering initiative offering real-time guidance and expert support to victims, survivors and whistleblowers seeking support in cases of interpersonal violence (physical, sexual and psychological harassment and abuse) in football. YourSide is fully independent in its operations, provides a first point of contact, connecting individuals with the correct resources, and helps strengthen football’s global response to violence and abuse. The unit acts as both a safety net and complement to existing institutional mechanisms, giving those affected an additional impartial pathway to be heard and supported by trauma-informed experts – thereby helping to reduce the risks associated with under-reporting. YourSide also offers expert services to the safeguarding departments and judicial bodies of FIFA, the confederations and FIFA Member Associations. These services include trauma-informed training and case management. The unit aims to complement ongoing efforts to build capacity in the field, with a view to developing multistakeholder solutions at national and regional levels for the longer term. The advent of YourSide is the culmination of a thorough process that started in 2022. To help strengthen access to specialist victim support and care services, as well as to trauma-informed case management, FIFA undertook an extensive international, multistakeholder consultation process which featured the involvement of leading experts from around the world and and led to the creation of an interim steering group, expert groups and a survivors advisory group. The interim steering group’s final report, published in June 2023, highlighted an urgent need to provide impartial expert support to the survivors of violence in football that would enable them to come forward with confidence. Last May, the World Football Remission Fund Board approved the funding application for the creation of the Safe Football Support Unit, an independent, specialised and trauma-informed support service that was established last December. The unit has now opened its operations under the name of YourSide. Since 2018, the FIFA Ethics Committee has investigated and adjudicated numerous cases of sexual abuse and harassment, reflecting FIFA’s zero-tolerance stance and its commitment to safeguarding the integrity and dignity of all individuals in football. In many cases, disciplinary proceedings under FIFA’s Code of Ethics and FIFA’s Disciplinary Code have provided the only form of justice achieved. The launch of YourSide provides a complementary and impartial avenue to FIFA’s ongoing safeguarding and integrity objectives in football, and further strengthens the global fight against physical, sexual, and psychological abuse. Background information YourSide operates under strict internal organisational regulations, with an independent panel serving as the unit’s leadership and governing authority. The independent panel members, appointed for their experience and expertise, serve on a voluntary basis and independently of any organisation or entity. The panel is supported by special advisers and the Survivors Advisory Group. The YourSide secretariat is responsible for the operational delivery and administrative actions of YourSide, in line with the policies and procedures approved by the independent panel. The staff of the secretariat consists of a core team of senior expert personnel, namely a unit lead, two survivor advocacy services managers and a case management services manager. The secretariat is further supported by local and regional external experts hired on an ad hoc basis to provide culturally sensitive trauma-informed operational support services. YourSide’s confidential support services and case management are completely independent of FIFA, the FIFA Foundation and any other organisation or entity. YourSide does not conduct investigations or issue sanctions. The unit offers independent trauma-informed support to victims and survivors in football from the outset. Further information is available on YourSide’s official website.