Football's social turn against discrimination
Edited by Federica Di Tora
World football takes the field against discrimination of all kinds. Last summer's European Championships, which took place a year late due to the pandemic, became the stage for some major social battles, from racism to homolesbobitransfobia.
Just Uefa has long been campaigning for inclusion, although perhaps this time something went wrong. Much, if not everything, revolves around that knee to the ground that has become the anti-racist gesture of the moment; a gesture, that representative of the Black Lives Matterwhich was interpreted by Uefa itself as 'political' behaviour. The assessment of whether or not each symbol was politicised was the subject of numerous investigations and their finding liable to sanction; but between the opening of one investigation and another, the controversy seems to have ended with the investigations being closed. The same UefaOn the other hand, he emphasised that the demand for equality between human beings should never incur disciplinary sanctions, arguing that the fight against racism should not be seen as the result of a political ideology, but as the safeguard of human rights. Finally, it chose the colours of the rainbow to colour its logo on social media, calling this not a political symbol, but a sign of its firm commitment to an inclusive society.
But what has Uefa's comeback in the last six months actually meant? A few days before the European Championship final, the football officials - in cooperation with the European Commission and the European Commissioner for Equality Helen Dalli - relaunched the campaign #EqualGamewhich aims to make football a sport for everyone, regardless of ability, background, gender, sexual orientation or religion. The only common denominator should be the love of sport.
To raise awareness even further, the campaign was joined by theformer captain of the Afghan women's national team Khalida Popalthe Spanish trequartista Juan Mata and the Football Federation German. During the Uefa Nations League draw, prizes were awarded for their brilliant work in promoting inclusion and diversity in football: Popal for fighting against gender stereotypes and for the emancipation of women and minority communities through sport, Mata as co-founder of the charity Common Goal, which, by exploiting the popularity of football, works to provide more opportunities for disadvantaged children, and finally the German Football Association, which through its programme "Football for all is creating a safe and inclusive environment in which everyone can enjoy the game of football.
Furthermore, the Uefa executive committee endorsed its commitment to human rights based on internationally recognised principles, in the hope that one day football could become a vehicle for promoting these rights outside the pitch as well, involving the whole of society and its governments, educating them and raising their awareness.
Uefa will focus on '7 policies' that will allow everyone to play in a safe and secure environment: anti-racism, child and youth protection, theequality and inclusionfootball for all abilities, health and wellness, support for refugees and finally solidarity and protection of rights. Precisely in pursuit of these goals, EUR 12 million will be invested in social responsibility activities in 2022. In September 2021, the Bundesliga for players who have undergone an amputation was launched in Germany, an event that was a great success. Last October, on the other hand, Uefa pledged to support both women's football and women in football throughout Europe, offering a development programme for 2022 through the awarding of scholarships for female coaches, Uefa diploma courses, training programmes for female coach educators and technical support for women's coaching courses and workshops, all in the hope that by 2024 there will be female employees working in football in every European national federation.
As if to say that Uefa, after taking the post, saves itself in the corner and eventually wins the first half.
English 
Italian 