In a day marked by the announcement of the SIGA’s Independent Study on the Future of Brazilian Football, the Sport Integrity Week 2023 had a handful of vibrant events.
One of the most significant was the SIGA Youth Forum. During almost 3 hours, Sports future leaders showed why Sport Integrity is critical for the younger generations. Topics such as “Gender, Race, Diversity and Inclusion”, “Joining Forces for Sport Integrity” and a brief presentation of the SIGA Youth Council were used as ground for showcasing some conclusions of the SYC Survey on the perception of Sport Integrity among the youth.
Click below to (re)watch the SIGA Youth Forum
FANS CARE ABOUT SPORT INTEGRITY
SIGA member Sports Innovation Lab hoested a webinar entitled “Fans Care about Sport Integrity”, with the participation of Kevin Forbes, Director and Advisor at Sports Innovation Lab, and Jordan Rutner, Director of the Analytics Department at SIL.
The discussion started with a definition of a Value-based community: with their insights, it was concluded that a “value-based community includes charities, non-profit organisations and other philanthropic organisations that focus on problems such as social justice, health and progressive reform”, commented Jordan Rutner.
The duo presented two case studies to exemplify: one of them was the Chicago Blackhawks’s coach who sexually assaulted a team member back in 2010. In 2021, the player filed a lawsuit against the club for not punishing the coach. Jordan and Kevin’s focus was on the fans’ response. Amongst the explanation for people who were not so familiar with the case, they concluded that Chicago’s values-based fan grew a lot in 2021 and the reason behind it was mainly because of the attention the case brought to the team. This led to the question: “Are hockey fans as a whole becoming more socially conscious?” and “How should an organisation consider this community when it comes to loyalty and retention strategies?”.
After wrapping up their thoughts and perspectives, Jordan and Kevin left with the certainty that how a sports property handles a problem/situation will impact fans’ responses and reactions.
THE FUTURE OF DISABILITY AND INCLUSION IN SPORT
Access Earth brought to the attention of the Sport Integrity Week supporters a key topic for SIGA: “The Future of Disability and Inclusion in Sport”, the are of expertise and action of this SIGA member.
Matt McCann, CEO and co-Founder of Access Earth, started the webinar with a side note on the episode involving Jenni Hermoso and Luis Rubiales, after Spain won the FIFA Women World Cup. He expressed that Access Earth stands “in unequivocal support of Jenni Hermoso and emphatically denounces all forms of abuse, discrimination, and inequality against women in sports and across all sectors of life”.
Guests Jose Soares (Integrated Dreams), Catherine Carty (UNESCO Chair at MTU), Ger McTavish (GAA) and Michael Rice (CAFE) delve into topics such as the importance of sustainable development and human rights in sports, the role of academia and research in driving this agenda, the current landscape of accessibility in football and other sports in Europe, the impact of sports on community and inclusion, the challenges faced in implementing accessibility measures in sports and the role of Ger McTavish within the GAA and their journey to disability inclusion to date.
On the second stage of the webinar, Ger McTavish spoke about redefining stadium inclusion standards and the GAA’s role, while Catherine Carty gave examples of effective solutions for sustainable development through sport. Michael Rice presented case studies on enhancing stadium experiences for disabled fans, and José Soares spoke about the Football for All Leadership Program.
AMATEUR FOOTBALL AND MATCH-FIXING
The agenda of #SIW2023 day 4 included two more inspiring moments: a Training Session on Match-Fixing in Professional Football, delivered by SIGA’s Ethics Committee chair, Fernando Veiga Gomes, to the players, coaches and Board of Directors of the Portugueses clube GDS Cascais, and a vibrant webinar dedicated by Okavango Sports: Amateur Football as a Tool for Innovation and Social Impact.
ABOUT SIGA
SIGA is the world’s leading organisation for Sport Integrity. We are creating a whole new landscape for the sports industry by delivering independent global rating and certification for world Sport to ensure it is governed and operates under the highest integrity standards: The SIGA Universal Standards.
Funded by our Members, SIGA is a non for profit global independent organisation with one aim: To ensure the sport industry is governed under the highest integrity standards so that the values of sport are protected.
SIGA is the only organisation to bring together sport, governments, academia, international organisations, sponsors, business, rights holders, NGOs and professional services companies, from every region in the world, around a common cause of fostering greater integrity throughout sport.
SIGA is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, as a non for-profit association, and comprises of the following continental subsidiaries: SIGA AMERICA, SIGA EUROPE and SIGA LATIN AMERICA.
For more information on SIGA, including its vision, mission and reform agenda, please refer to the website: www.siga-sport.com and FAQs.
To contact SIGA, please email: comms@siga-sport.com.
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