The Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA) and SIGA Latin America have announced an official partnership with the Pelé Pequeno Príncipe Legends Match, part of Sport Integrity Week 2024. This collaboration strengthens SIGA’s and Complexo Pequeno Príncipe’s commitment to promoting sports integrity, health, well-being, and holistic development for young people.

Complexo Pequeno Príncipe, the event’s organizer, includes the renowned Hospital Pequeno Príncipe, the Pelé Pequeno Príncipe Research Institute, and Pequeno Príncipe College. As a philanthropic institution, it plays a critical role in Brazilian society, focusing on diagnosing, treating, and researching complex childhood diseases. This partnership with SIGA further honors the institution’s longstanding connection with Pelé, a football legend who championed initiatives to fund research and provide hope for countless children.

Need for integrity across the board

Together, SIGA and Pequeno Príncipe aim to advance SIGA’s Universal Standards on youth development and protection in sports, a central theme of Sport Integrity Week. This event highlights the need for integrity in sports and healthcare, underscoring the mutual commitment to safeguarding children’s and teenagers’ welfare.

In celebration of this mission, the Pelé Pequeno Príncipe Legends Match will unite football legends from Brazil and FC Barcelona to honor Pelé's legacy and support the vital work of Complexo Pequeno Príncipe. The presence of sports leaders and global institutions at the 2024 Sport Integrity Week underscores a shared vision for a more inclusive and sustainable sports environment.

Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros, SIGA’s Global CEO, Chairman, and CEO of SIGA LATIN AMERICA, highlights the importance of this partnership:

“We are thrilled to announce our cooperation with the Pequeno Príncipe Complex, a partnership that embodies the spirit of solidarity and shared purpose that drives us. Together, we are committed to promoting the health and well-being of the most fragile and vulnerable—children and teenagers. Football—true, clean football with social consciousness—will live up to its responsibilities and the trust placed in it by those who, in health or illness, hold it as their passion. We call on everyone who can to support the work carried out by Pequeno Príncipe on behalf of children and teenagers. Be it through donations of financial resources, technical means, volunteering, or simply compassion, each contribution is essential and very welcome. We all look forward to seeing this Pelé Pequeno Príncipe Legends Match played during the 2024 Sport Integrity Week. This is a special event that not only celebrates sports integrity but also reinforces our commitment to children and teenagers. We count on everyone’s solidarity. Together, we can make a difference.”

José Alvaro Carneiro, Corporate Director of the Pequeno Príncipe Complex, adds:

“This match demonstrates football’s capacity to go beyond entertainment. The connection with sports surpasses the field’s four lines. This initiative unites health, education, and social mobilization, creates genuine emotional connections, and engages audiences in relevant social causes. Just as Pelé dedicated his thousandth goal to children, every sports action associated with Pequeno Príncipe echoes this purpose, reaffirming our mission to transform lives and underscoring the importance of solidarity and collective engagement by society. We continue to innovate with strategic partnerships aligned with our values and commitments, like SIGA. Curitiba will be the stage for this fusion of entertainment and purpose, connecting brands, sports legends, and thousands of fans around a noble cause. The Pelé Pequeno Príncipe Match will cement this union in a historic celebration, showcasing football’s transformative power and its potential to build lasting legacies, proving that sports and health go hand-in-hand in building a better future for Brazil’s children and teenagers.”

This newspaper is a proud media partner of SIGA and supports its mission to bring integrity to all parts of the sports world.