The first all-women World Cup is touring the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
Press Release September 14, 2021
Copenhagen, Denmark
On September 17 to 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 25 all-women sports teams will be competing in the Global Goals World Cup (GGWCUP). They are part of the MENA GGWCUP tour where 70 all-women teams will be playing, reaching 1.1 million people with their visions for the future. They will be playing football and transforming their communities. The GGWCUP is a global movement fuelled by girls and women that merges the game of football with global citizenship advancing the United Nations 17 Global Goals amidst the fun and sports. Hosted by the The Saudi Sports for All Federation, the event in Riyadh will showcase the powerful role sport can play in advancing social and environmental sustainability.
Leading up to match day each team champions one of the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and is ranked by the action taken for their Global Goal on and off the field. The teams are scored in four categories: Action, Crowd, Style and Football.
The teams awarded not only win a tournament. They create an impact locally and globally. The 25 all-female teams who will participate in the upcoming GGWCUP Saudi Arabia 2021 come from five different regions in the kingdom and will unite in Riyadh for the tournament.
SFA achieves this through sustainable programs that target all segments of society with all different abilities, ages and nationalities residing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The SFA is a changemaker in its recognition of the value of sports to the SDGs and by providing access to sports for everyone, especially women.
Saudi Arabia is the second stop in the MENA region. The first tournament was held in Amman, Jordan in May 2021.
Team Zain playing for Climate Action. GGWCUP Jordan 2021.
Rise for Good hosted the first GGWCUP in the MENA region, safely, in the midst of the global pandemic. 19 teams participated. 2021 and 2021 provided more local, regional and global challenges than could ever be imagined. When the world closed down, when neighbours went to war, the women found ways to continue their efforts to champion their ideas and their visions. The Jordanian teams represent a variety of entities including local and regional businesses, local foundations, Universities, NGOs and teams of women from refugee camps hosting Syrian and Palestinian refugees and refugee’s living in the Jordanian host community.
The final stop in the MENA region later this year will be in Morocco in partnership with the local organization World Merit. So far 20 teams have chosen a Global Goal to play for and qualified to play. World Merit Morocco is a charity that offers rewards and opportunities in exchange for the members taking action toward social issues. Unofficially, they are part of a global team of creative, academic, and friendly activists that are trying to make the world a better place.
Keeping the score has been reimagined in the GGWCUP. The ultimate goal is to close the global ‘Play Gap’ and create positive role models in communities including shifting the perception of women in sport and leadership roles.
The GGWCUP tour in the MENA region is made possible by strong partnership with the local hosts and the visionary roster of partners and sponsors such as Novo Nordisk Foundation, Novo Nordisk, HIKMA and Adidas MENA.
Denmark’s EIR Org is the sports organisation behind the GGWCUP and four other sports programs. Each program activates the groundbreaking potential of sports and play with purpose.
More information: www.ggwcup.com & www.sportsforall.com.sa
Interviews: GGWCUP Founder Majken Gilmartin, mmg@eirsoccer.com
Press kit, logo and pictures: https://photos.app.goo.gl/F67ygUmTdyrP2aMy9