The Hope League was officially launched by FC Barcelona on Monday, as announced by the Barça Foundation. This international initiative uses football as a tool to promote peace and social cohesion in the war-torn regions of northeast Syria and Iraqi Kurdistan. A collaboration between the Barça Foundation, La Caserna, the NOVACT Institute for Nonviolence, UPP, Doz International, IDare and Casa Nostra Casa Vostra, the project aims to rebuild the social fabric and foster coexistence in areas heavily impacted by conflict, particularly those inhabited by Kurdish communities.
Hope League’s primary goal is to “promote social cohesion and prevent future violent conflicts and radicalisation processes among new generations”, with a particular focus on the children of victims of the Islamic State. Through community football schools, the project seeks to “promote a culture of peace, dialogue, and coexistence”, providing an alternative to destructive narratives of violence and hatred. The initiative places special emphasis on empowering children, particularly girls, as well as marginalised communities, including refugees, displaced populations, and ethnic minorities.
In April 2025, former FC Barcelona player Oleguer Presas led a series of training sessions for local coaches in Syria and Iraq. These sessions aimed to share pedagogical methodologies and reinforce the educational role of sport. Presas commented:
“Football transcends language, ethnicity, and background. Our mission is to create an environment that promotes teamwork, respect, and peace, not just on the pitch, but in everyday life.”
The Hope League is founded on three key pillars: the development of a peacebuilding model through sport, based on the methodologies of La Caserna and the Barça Foundation’s SportNet programme; the training of local grassroots organisations in a gender-sensitive approach to peacebuilding; and the establishment of self-managed football schools to ensure sustainability and resilience, independent of future international funding.
The project will engage over 600 children and young people directly, ensuring gender balance, ethnic diversity, and the inclusion of refugees and marginalised groups. The registration process combines open enrolment with targeted outreach to ensure the inclusion of the most vulnerable communities.
As the project gets underway, it is set to become a transformative model for using sport to promote peace and strengthen community life in regions recovering from conflict.
