The Unity EURO Cup: changing the narrative around refugees
Mittwoch, 15. Oktober 2025
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High-level forum hosted by the Royal Netherlands Football Association shows how annual football tournament is a gamechanger for refugees and their host communities.
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On the eve of the only Europe-wide competition in which teams are made up of refugees and members of their host communities, speakers from the European football community, UNHCR - the UN Refugee Agency, the European Commission, the Dutch government and non-governmental organisations heralded football’s power to support integration.
The fourth edition of the Unity EURO Cup, organised annually by UEFA with support from our partners UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), kicks off at the Royal Netherlands Football Association ‘s (KNVB) Zeist headquarters on Wednesday. Seventeen mixed-gender teams representing European national associations and one European Union side will compete for the title.
“We had 23 competitions already at UEFA. The Unity EURO Cup is the 24th, but for me it's the most important,” said Michele Uva, executive director of Social and Environmental Sustainability at UEFA, addressing ‘The refugee inclusion through sports forum’ at Zeist on Tuesday. “We didn’t want to make it a tournament for refugees. We wanted to make an inclusive competition …. that can help change the narrative around refugees.”
“Football has the power to break down barriers and bring refugees and the communities hosting them, together"
Discussing the beautiful game’s growing role in supporting refugee integration across Europe, the Forum’s more than 160 participants put the floodlights on how refugees’ skills and experiences are enrichening both football and their host communities (read Voices from the Forum below).
“This tournament is a way to show that people in need, when given the possibility, can develop, can give back to the society hosting them,” said Philippe Leclerc, UNHCR Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe.
“We are proud to host this event, and we believe this will be the best Unity EURO Cup ever, because of the people, the purpose and the legacy that begins on and around these pitches,” said Gijs de Jong, General Secretary of the KNVB.
There are encouraging signs across Europe that associations are enhancing refugees’ access to national football structures and increasing the level of support for integration programmes.
“We started in 2022 with eight teams, and we now have 18. I already know from other associations that they want to be there next year, so we might increase in numbers once again,” said Monica Namy from the UEFA Social and Environmental Sustainability team. “This is a very strong testament from the national associations of their commitment to working with refugees.”
Voices from the forum
“We are not here to issue declarations; we are here to connect, to listen and to further build on what already exists. We know that the answers lie in collaboration, not in slogans.”
Gijs de Jong, General Secretary of the Royal Dutch Football Federation (KNVB)
“This tournament can help change the narrative around refugees. Being a refugee is never a choice. It's a result of war, conflict, persecution, climate displacement.”
Michele Uva, UEFA Social and Environmental Sustainability Executive Director
“The Unity EURO Cup captures what football can and should be; a space where everyone belongs, and where everyone has something to give.”
Suse van Kleef, forum host, journalist and the first female football commentator in the Netherlands
“I really hope that this Unity EURO Cup is an example that could be replicated not only in football, but in so many other areas. When you allow people to flourish, they give back to the community.”
Khalida Popal, former captain of Afghanistan women’s national team, founder of Girl Power, author of “my beautiful sisters”
“When I represented the Netherlands in this competition it made me feel proud, like I’d achieved something. But I also felt integrated.”
Noori Khaled Alyami, former Dutch Unity EURO Cup player
“Football become my rebellion. It become my classroom. It taught me to believe, to respect, to trust. It taught me to stand tall, loud, but not just for myself, but for every sister who could not.”
Khalida Popal, former captain of Afghanistan women’s national team, founder of Girl Power, author of “my beautiful sisters”
“I came here as a refugee, knowing no one. And today, I'm here. So I would say: dream big. Things might start very quietly, but at the end of the day, if you keep going, you may be a coach like me.”
Omar Jama, KNVB world coach
“Football is an opportunity to reclaim identity. It boosts well-being, physical and also mental, by introducing routine and bringing back normality in lives that are often marked with upheaval.”
Glenn Micallef, European Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport
“123 million people have been forcibly displaced all around the world. No continent is spared. This tournament is a way to show that people in need, when given the possibility, can develop, can give back to the society hosting them.”
Philippe Leclerc from UNHCR Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe
“Football introduced me into the community. It helped me understand other people. Now I'm proud that I'm giving back to the community.”
Omar Jama, KNVB world coach
“We strongly believe that national associations, clubs and leagues should understand that supporting refugees is not charity. Refugees are not seeking handouts, they're seeking opportunity. They bring fresh perspectives and new talents, while football is always looking for more players, coaches, referees, fans and volunteers, so it's win-win for everybody. It's a smart investment.”
Monica Namy, UEFA Social and Environmental Sustainability team
“I love this country. I appreciate what the Netherlands did for me. I was happy that I could do something for the country, give something back. It's a small step, but it means a lot.”
“If there is investment and support and opportunity and trust, we know how to give back. We become entrepreneurs. We become teachers. We become leaders. We become inspiring stories of hope.”
Khalida Popal, former captain of Afghanistan women’s national team, founder of Girl Power, author of “my beautiful sisters”
“Football is the largest platform in the world. We have 3 billion fans. We need to engage them, not only for the 90 minutes of the match, but also for the other projects that link us to the community and to civil society.”
Michele Uva, UEFA Social and Environmental Sustainability Executive Director
“Football has always held a unique place in our societies. It connects us, it brings us together and it creates cohesion in ways that few other things can.”
Gijs de Jong, General Secretary of the Royal Dutch Football Federation (KNVB)
“Football is not just a game, it's a tool for identity, belonging and hope.”
Glenn Micallef, European Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport
“Football for me is about so much more than what happens on the pitch. It’s about emancipation, community and of course the power of diversity.”
Suse van Kleef, forum host, journalist and the first female football commentator in the Netherlands
“Football is a universal language. It knows no borders, no ethnicity, no color, no background. It's the most popular sport in the world, and this makes it a natural bridge between people and communities, connecting us when language falters or when we are faced with differences.”
Glenn Micallef, European Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport
“The pitch does not ask where you were born, what language you first spoke, or why you had to leave home. It asks if you can join a team, play and share a ball, defend together and celebrate together.”
Gijs de Jong, General Secretary of the Royal Dutch Football Federation (KNVB)
“Through football, I learned to believe again. It became my healing. I found sisterhood. I found community, I started playing a game. I started building a network. I didn't need a language to speak.”
Khalida Popal, former captain of Afghanistan women’s national team, founder of Girl Power, author of “my beautiful sisters
“Many of you have overcome enormous obstacles in life. You have confronted displacement, you have been faced with uncertainty and loss. But the beautiful thing about sport is that it gives you community, built on solidarity and inclusion.”
“I have no doubt that many of you here today have friendships that began through games played on pitches, in streets or in other corners of our cities, in back gardens or in community halls.”
Glenn Micallef, European Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport
“I've met a lot of people through football and made friends. Football is also a place for me to get courage. If I was down or not feeling good, I just would play football, and it would change my thoughts.”
Namina Carew, former Dutch Unity EURO Cup player
“We have special coaches who work on a local level to make sure all kinds of groups that don’t do much sport can participate. That can be refugees, women in certain groups, specific neighborhoods… that's financed by us.”
Marjolijn Sonnema, Director General for Public Health, Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport