Sofie Junge Pedersen Backs World Football Giving Day as Denmark Star Calls on Football to Do More for Climate and Social Change

Sofie Junge Pedersen has added her voice to the launch of World Football Giving Day, a new initiative set for May 26 that aims to mobilise the global football community to donate to non-profit organisations affected by cuts in international aid funding.

The Denmark international, who currently plays for Badalona and previously represented both Inter and Juventus, is among a group of prominent football figures backing the campaign. Others lending their support include Jurgen Klopp, Juan Mata, Dani Olmo, and Vivianne Miedema. The initiative is run under the umbrella of Common Goal, the organisation through which football figures pledge one per cent of their salaries to charitable causes.

“Football has a unique power to unify people,” Pedersen told Sky Sports. “It is the world’s most popular sport so football has that power. But it also has a responsibility, with so many followers, to do something more to make the world a better place.”

Pedersen, now 34, has a well-documented history of activism. On the eve of the 2023 Women’s World Cup, she led what was described as the largest player-led climate action campaign in football history, coordinating a group of players who offset the environmental impact of their own tournament travel. “It was better than nothing,” she said of that effort. “It took some money and transferred it into investments in green technology.”

She has also travelled to Zambia and Ghana to observe the impact of her fundraising work firsthand. In Ghana, she was involved in a project that combined football with education sessions on sexual and reproductive health and rights. “Someone comes and talks to the girls,” she explained. “It is a way of making it a space where they can talk and learn about these important health matters.”

During her time at Juventus, Pedersen organised presentations for the entire squad on climate issues and potential responses. She replicated that approach with the Danish national team. “Whenever I have the opportunity, I try to tell people about this crisis,” she said.

Her broader argument is that football, given its extraordinary financial scale, is not doing enough. “We hear about the salaries in football and the huge transfer sums. Why should those sums just increase and increase?” she said. “Why not spend part of that on helping grassroots organisations to grow, on climate action, on helping children and young people? Football should definitely do more. We do not have any excuses.”

On World Football Giving Day specifically, she was direct about the value of turning words into action. “Words can be a little bit empty,” she said. “It is easy to just say words, come up with messages that you want less poverty in the world, that you want every kid to have an education. But this can be something that you actually do to reach those goals. There is action behind this message.”

Juan Mata, a co-founder of Common Goal, echoed that sentiment. “Through my work with Common Goal, I’ve seen how collective action can empower communities and channel the passion of the game toward real social impact,” he said. “World Football Giving Day builds on that same spirit, creating a moment where the whole football community can unite, not for wins on the pitch, but for the wellbeing of people off it. I am proud to support it.”

Pedersen acknowledged the difficulty of maintaining optimism given the current trajectory of global events. She pointed to rising CO2 emissions as a particular source of concern. “I am hearing that the curve of CO2 emissions is still increasing, even if that curve is flattening a little bit,” she said. “The green transition will definitely happen, but the issue with it is the time that this is taking. People are suffering right now because climate change is already here. We are not helping those affected by droughts and floods, people losing the ability to cultivate land. People forget that.”

Despite her frustration, she said she was conscious of how to communicate these issues effectively. “I am also aware that some people shut down if they see someone wagging their finger too much,” she said. “Even though I feel like I want to scream and say this is not okay, I am trying to be pragmatic and figure out the best way to make people change a little bit.”

World Football Giving Day takes place on May 26, 2026, with donations directed toward non-profit organisations worldwide. The campaign arrives ahead of the men’s FIFA World Cup, giving it a significant global platform at one of football’s most-watched moments.