Europe (English)

FedEx delivers excitement of UEFA Europa League Final to local children

FedEx and UEFA Foundation for Children have worked behind the scenes to bring the excitement of the competition to life for children in Stockholm

FedEx Express, the world’s largest express transportation company and a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) has teamed up with the UEFA Foundation for Children to offer children nominated by local charities the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to act as player escorts at the UEFA Europa League Final.

As Main Sponsor of the UEFA Europa League, FedEx will once again donate its player escort benefit - giving 22 children aged 7-9, the chance to walk onto the pitch, hand in hand with footballing heroes at the Friends Arena, Stockholm on 24 May 2017.

“Football has a tremendous power to bring people together and we’re proud that our business connects more people with more opportunities the world over. FedEx sponsorship of the UEFA Europa League, and what we can achieve through our work with the UEFA Foundation for Children, ties in perfectly with our commitment to the communities we live and work in as a global logistics business,” says Patrick Stienlet, VP Operations Nordics, FedEx Express.

FedEx and the UEFA Foundation for Children, worked with global NGO streetfootballworld, Stockholm-based organisation Djurgården Fotboll, and three charitable organisations - Barn Till Ensamma Mammor, Trygga Barnen and Kista Sports Club - to identify children who would benefit most from the experience.

“For these children, the opportunity to be a player escort at a tournament as prestigious as this cannot be underestimated. It helps to build new levels of confidence, fosters pride, and raises their aspirations by giving them real life access to their role models.” Filip Lundberg, Head of Sustainability, Djurgården Fotboll.

FedEx will also use 100 general admission tickets to host additional children, their guardians and charity workers from these organisations as its guests at the game.

“Thanks to organisations like FedEx and its support of the football for good movement, we’re able to connect two worlds: the world of professional football, where the glamour of a tournament unfolds on a global stage, and football on a local level where the beautiful game plays its part in delivering social change.”
Vladimir Borkovic, streetfootballworld

“We’re delighted to deliver this, and other community football projects together with FedEx who, as Main Sponsor of the UEFA Europa League, shares our belief in football as a powerful tool for social change. In donating its player escort opportunities for the second year in a row, FedEx is once again able to provide children who face difficult challenges in their daily lives with an experience that’s really out of the ordinary. We hope the incredible atmosphere at the UEFA Europa League Final and the pride of being chosen to escort the professional players on to the pitch will excite and inspire these children to follow their dreams.”
Pascal Torres, General Secretary of UEFA Foundation for Children

FedEx and the UEFA Foundation for Children will continue to work together throughout the course of the sponsorship to deliver a series of activities using football as a platform for social change. In 2016 the two organisations worked together with streetfootballworld to install a ‘Pitch in a Box’, an enclosed, artificial turf football field, in Cañada Real - an underserved community near Madrid. Planning has begun on a second football pitch to be built in a community in north-east Poland this summer. The pitches are maintained by local charities through the streetfootballworld network, and provide a safe environment for young people to play and develop important life skills such as respect and dialogue.