Yesterday’s blog was so disappointing. Mansfield Town have offered to host a Reform event. Today’s is the exact opposite and so uplifting. It will hopefully remind us all of the power of football to unite.

Common Goal

We are excited to announce that Juan Mata and Sharon Thorne have been appointed Co-Chairs of Common Goal’s Board of Directors, bringing together leadership from football and business to help shape the next chapter of our organisation.

Two leaders. Different backgrounds. One shared belief in the power of football to drive positive change.

For Juan, who pioneered the 1% pledge in 2017, this marks a new chapter in a commitment that has continued to grow for more than a decade.

“By becoming Co-Chair, I want to send a strong message to everyone: the mission is more urgent than ever, and there is no time to wait to take action.”
— Juan Mata, Co-Chair, Common Goal

Sharon, former Global Chair of Deloitte and current Senior Independent Director of Rio Tinto, brings decades of global leadership experience across business, governance, sustainability and purpose-driven transformation.

“Football has an extraordinary ability to bring people together, and its potential becomes even greater when we view it not only as an industry, but as a global vehicle for delivering equality, opportunity, and positive change. I want to help Common Goal build those bridges and create the conditions for a thriving football for good sector.”
— Sharon Thorne, Co-Chair, Common Goal

Together, they will help strengthen Common Goal as the Home of Football for Good, connecting people, organisations and sectors around a shared ambition to unlock more of football’s potential for positive change.

Their appointment marks another important milestone in Common Goal’s evolution, as we strengthen our global leadership, put our community at the centre and build for the future.

“After more than 20 years with Common Goal, I’ve seen how much we have evolved — and how important it is that we keep evolving. This is one of those moments. As we build the organisation we need for the future, our community has to remain our foundation: bringing us closer to the people doing this work every day, allowing their experience to shape us, and making us stronger in what we can achieve together.” — George Springborg, Chief Community Officer, Common Goal   

Common Goal’s legal entities in the United States and Germany have also restructured under a single global governing Board. The Board held its first in-person meeting following the merger in Boston, USA on 11 September, which included a community roundtable with Common Goal member organizations Boston SCORES, Project GOAL, Reclaim Childhood, Soccer Unity Project, and Soccer Without Borders (SWB) and a site visit to a football for good session in East Boston with SWB.   

Together, these changes are about making Common Goal stronger for the work ahead — closer to its community, more global in how it thinks and works, and better positioned to mobilise more of football around social change.   

Following a FIFA World Cup 2026 that created new opportunities to connect football’s biggest stage with community impact, Common Goal is already looking towards the FIFA Women’s World Cup Brazil 2027 and the opportunity to go further. 

Full details at Common-Goal.org

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