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March 6, 2014
To help children from 12 countries across Latin America and Africa create a better future
Tokyo, Japan, 6 March 2014 - As an official FIFA partner*1, Sony Corporation (hereafter "Sony") today announced the launch of "Dream Goal 2014", a special CSR program leading towards the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™, in 12 countries including host country Brazil and across Latin America, Africa and other regions.
Sony has been engaging in various efforts to support children around the world and help shape a better, more sustainable community under its CSR philosophy "For the Next Generation." These have included a range of activities at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ that brought together the power of Sony's products, technologies, innovation and employees*2 to support children facing social issues such as poverty and limited access to education that are being addressed by the UN Millennium Development Goals*3.
As part of "Dream Goal 2014", Sony and streetfootballworld gGmbH (hereafter "streetfootballworld"), the leading network in the field of social change through football, will launch the Street Football Stadium Project. The project will aim to provide safe playing environments and educational workshops for over 14,000 children. Sony will also introduce "Siyakhona Media Skills Program" with FIFA, an evolution of the "Siyakhona Project" that has been carried out since 2009, to support young leaders in 11 countries with media skills training programs using Sony products.
Sony is partnering with streetfootballworld to supply Street Football Stadiums to local NGOs in Latin America that use football to address social issues such as poverty and conflict, and will also support the implementation of educational workshops using these stadiums where children will be able to learn the importance of teamwork, communication and respect, in football and in society. Sony and five Sony Group companies participating in this project will each run campaigns seeking to increase customer engagement and support for the project leading up to and during the 2014 FIFA World Cup™, with the aim of providing the NGOs with 14 sets of Street Football Stadiums purchased using funds provided by the Sony Group and additional support based on customer campaigns. Donations from employees of Sony Group companies will also be added to the funds to potentially increase the number of stadiums provided. Sony will also support the implementation of workshops by streetfootballworld and its affiliated NGOs starting from June, and the support continues for a period of one year after the 2014 FIFA World Cup™, with a total of over 14,000 children expected to participate in these workshops.
Despite the recent rapid economic development in Brazil and other Latin American countries, there is still a lack of safe spaces to play football, and many children in these communities have no choice but to risk their health and safety by playing in the street. The Street Football Stadiums are formed using a chain of partitions meaning that they can be easily stored and transported, and built quickly to instantly create an arena in which children can play football safely.
Also, within Sony's "One Stadium" portal site which introduces its FIFA World Cup™ related activities, Sony will be launching "Paint Stadium", a global illustration contest through which designs will be chosen to be painted on the panels of the Street Football Stadiums. The theme of the competition will be "Send them your power and love", and submissions will be accepted from May onwards.
"We are thrilled to continue our work with Sony in building a strong social legacy around FIFA World Cup™," said Jürgen Griesbeck, CEO of streetfootballworld. "Football is the most powerful tool that we as a global community have to address social issues, and by combining its universal appeal with Sony's unique strengths, we will be able to empower even more young people around the world to change their lives and transform their communities."
Sony and FIFA have been engaged in the Football for Hope Siyakhona (meaning "we can do it") Media Skills Program*5 since 2009, an initiative that aims to cultivate civic journalism using Sony's digital imaging products. Sony will provide equipment including Cyber-shot™, Handycam™ and α™ cameras to community-based organizations operating in 11 countries that are addressing social issues such as poverty, conflict and health promotion, through football. The training programs for talented young people in these communities to equip them with relevant skills for jobs in the media and communications sector will continue even after 2014 FIFA World Cup™ has ended through December 2014.
Including this year's program, Sony and FIFA have provided support to many hundreds of young people through 50 NGOs, and in some cases has successfully assisted trainees obtain professional media work. Through this program, Sony will provide chances for those young people to communicate their media work to the world.
A Siyakhona photo contest taken by trainees will also be held, with the winner to be selected by a public vote hosted on "One Stadium" portal site starting from May, and by visitors to the Football for Hope Festival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (July 3-10, organized by FIFA), where the announcement of the winner will also take place.
"We are delighted to partner with Sony in realizing this media skills training for underprivileged young people and hope that many of them will benefit from this initiative," said Federico Addiechi, Head of FIFA Corporate Social Responsibility.
"We are delighted to have the opportunity, together with FIFA and streetfootballworld, to engage in these projects supporting efforts to resolve global challenges such as poverty and regional conflict as we approach our second FIFA World Cup™ as an official partner," said Shiro Kambe, Corporate Executive and Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications and CSR, Sony Corporation. "We believe that the smiles and energy of children and young leaders - the next generation - are the key to overcoming these challenges. The 'Dream Goal 2014' project draws on many Sony resources, from our products and technologies to the passion and creativity of our employees, and we hope to deliver truly memorable experiences to children, that have the potential to transform their lives."
Sony will continue to help children open the path to their future under its "For the Next Generation" philosophy.
