Following its launch in September 2025, the Players’ Voice Panel has moved quickly to make a concrete impact, bringing together football legends and voice-of-experience advocates to amplify players’ perspectives and combat discrimination across the global game. Established under the Global Stand Against Racism, the 16-member panel, which is led by honorary captain George Weah, has already completed a series of high-profile assignments that demonstrate a commitment to education, dialogue and cultural change within football governance.

During the FIFA Council meeting in Doha, Qatar on Thursday, 18 December 2025, FIFA President Gianni Infantino provided members with an update on the milestones achieved so far before commenting on the panel’s importance. “The voice of the player is essential to drive real change,” he said. “The Players’ Voice Panel’s work, particularly at FIFA tournaments, highlights the importance of dialogue, education and action – not just statements – as we strive for unity and equality on and off the pitch. Together, through the Global Stand Against Racism, we remain fully committed to kicking the scourge of racism out of football, and out of society.” Complementing its strategic dialogue, the Players’ Voice Panel took its message directly to the pitch at four FIFA youth tournaments. The first of these was the FIFA Youth Series™ – contested in Zurich four months before the launch of the panel – with Iván Córdoba speaking to participants about racism. The next event to feature the involvement of a panel member was the FIFA U-20 World Cup™ in Chile, where former Argentinian international Juan Pablo Sorín shared personal insight and encouraged reflection among the competition’s rising stars, as well as speaking to journalists who were participating in the FIFA/Association Internationale de la Presse Sportive (AIPS) Young Reporters Programme.

Various educational sessions were subsequently delivered by panel members at both the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup™ in Morocco and the FIFA U-17 World Cup™ in Qatar, reinforcing the panel’s emphasis on youth engagement. The panel’s biggest in-person event to date was held in Rabat, Morocco, last month. Chaired by Weah and attended by President Infantino and Secretary General Mattias Grafström, the two-day session served as a strategic forum to advance anti-racism action across all six confederations. The discussions included updates on the five pillars of the Global Stand Against Racism and information on opportunities for youth education, with contributions from anti-discrimination practitioners, the confederations and FIFA Member Associations (MAs).

“The fight against discrimination isn’t abstract, it begins in stadiums, in dressing rooms, in everyday interactions,” said Weah. “We must enjoy the beautiful game together, walk side by side in stadiums, sing together and never condone racism anywhere. The work we have started is just the beginning.” The Players’ Voice Panel operates within the broader framework of FIFA’s Global Stand Against Racism, the initiative launched to combat all forms of racism in football through a clear zero-tolerance approach. Unanimously adopted by all MAs at the 74th FIFA Congress in Bangkok, Thailand, in May 2024, the Global Stand Against Racism is built on five action areas designed to translate commitment into enforceable standards, visible action and lasting cultural change across the game.

Throughout 2025, tangible progress has been made across the five pillars. FIFA strengthened its regulatory framework through the revised FIFA Disciplinary Code, with tougher sanctions for racist conduct, supported by increased monitoring of high-risk matches. On the pitch, the No Racism Gesture and three-step anti-discrimination procedure were applied consistently across FIFA tournaments, complemented by efficient fan-reporting tools and the piloting of the SecureStadiumScan app.

Beyond competitions, cooperation with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) continued to advance criminal accountability, while education remained a cornerstone through sessions at youth tournaments, targeted training for match officials and the roll-out of an online No Racism toolkit for MAs.

Alongside the launch of the Players’ Voice Panel, FIFA has reaffirmed its commitment to promoting respect and inclusion by issuing a reminder that hate and discrimination have no place in football. As part of its efforts in this area, FIFA has enhanced its Social Media Protection Service (SMPS), which is available to all players, teams and officials at FIFA tournaments, as well as to MAs, all year round.

SMPS is designed to protect individuals from online abuse, particularly racist, discriminatory or threatening messages that may be sent during major competitions. It stops the account holders’ followers from being exposed to abusive, discriminatory and threatening posts, thereby preventing the normalisation of these kinds of actions. Since the launch of the service in 2022, more than 65,000 abusive posts have been reported to social media platforms for review and removal, including over 30,000 since the start of this year.