FIFA President Gianni Infantino said the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ Legacy Fund takes the concept “to a completely new and different level” after the wide-ranging impact of the initiative was announced during a video call that included a signature ceremony between FIFA, the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC), the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Trade Organization (WTO), UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency and the International Trade Centre (ITC). With the agreement of the SC and the Qatar Football Association, FIFA announced in November 2022 that – for the first time – the Legacy Fund of a FIFA World Cup™ would have an impact beyond the borders of the host country.

Now, the USD 50 million fund will focus on refugees, education, and public and occupational health as FIFA collaborates with the SC, UNHCR, WHO, WTO, and the ITC.

“Today is a very important day – I would actually say a historic day – a day on which we announce the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Legacy Fund,” said the FIFA President. “It brings the concept of a legacy fund to a completely new and different level. In 2022, we organised, here in Qatar, the best FIFA World Cup ever and, at that time, we promised that the legacy and the impact of this World Cup would be felt over many, many years. “And today, we make this promise a reality: a reality by making sure that an amount of USD 50 million is invested in key projects…involving refugees, involving occupational health, involving women, involving education and, of course, as well, a part on football development. A new era in terms of legacy funds, an important project and a great impact which will be long-standing of the best FIFA World Cup ever in Qatar in 2022.”

Presented and signed during an online meeting attended by the FIFA President, SC Secretary General H.E. Hassan Al Thawadi, WTO Director-General, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, and ITC Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton, the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Legacy Fund will have a multi-faceted impact across a number of regions as a result of the joint-collaboration of all parties.

While working with the UNHCR, the fund will support refugee programmes to help some of the world’s most vulnerable people, and it will provide support to the WHO on a range of occupational health projects, such as Beat the Heat, an initiative focussed on the numerous consequences of climate change. Women are at the heart of the education pillar of the Legacy Fund as it supports the WTO and ITC’s Women Exporters in the Digital Economy Fund initiative, which aims to economically empower women entrepreneurs by harnessing the potential of digitalisation. “These three partners will enable us to make sure that the money that this fund is composed of will be invested in fostering the projects that will help millions of people around the world,” explained Mr Infantino. “Three incredible partners, three great partners for FIFA, for the Supreme Committee, for Qatar, to make sure that the FIFA World Cup 2022 legacy will have a positive impact on millions of people, not just in one country or in one region but, actually, all over the world.”