“Be Active”: contradictions in the partnership between Fédération Internationale de Football Association and World Health Organization

In 2022, the partnership between the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and the World Health Organization (WHO) launched the “Be Active” campaign, which seeks to encourage physical activity, especially among children and adolescents. While large institutions play an important role in disseminating health initiatives, this text reflects on the contradictions regard-ing their commitments to health protection, which are primarily driven by economic factors. The main contradiction lies in the contrast between FIFA’s historical relationship with the unhealthy commodity industries that have sponsored its mega-events for over 50 years, and the WHO’s efforts to recommend more assertive policies to protect children and adolescents from the impacts of food marketing, as well as its support for the debate on the commercial determinants of health. The text also reflects on issues in other domains, such as ethnicity, race, and politics. Finally, based on these points of contradiction regarding the commitments of FIFA and WHO to health protection, which are primarily driven by economic prerogatives, it is worth noting, from the perspective of promoting physical activity and, consequently, health, that this partnership is unsustainable. It is recommended that the WHO distance itself from entities that, in their practices, do not prioritize health and equity.

Keywords:
Health Education; World Health Organization; Conflict of interest; Soccer.