World Cup Winner Joins Common Goal

Germany and Gladbach’s Matthias Ginter Pledges 1% Ahead of Euro 2020

World-Cup winner Matthias Ginter has called for a paradigm shift in professional football after the Borussia Mönchengladbach defender joined the Common Goal movement.

Ginter, who was part of the German squad that lifted the World Cup in 2014 and is currently gearing up for Eruo 2020, has pledged 1% of his earnings to driving social change through the beautiful game.

By making the pledge the 27-year-old also becomes one of a growing German contingent within the Common Goal movement which includes Timo Wener, Serge Gnabry, Babbet Peter, and Jurgen Klopp among others.

And Ginter stressed his commitment to being able to make a difference to the lives of young people in Germany and beyond.

“Football has always been an important part of our society. It brings us together and unites us - in times of increasing social inequality, we must not risk losing this special quality by continuously driving the commercialisation and marketing of the game - for example, when it comes to the design of competitions,” he said.

“I think we need a paradigm shift in professional football, in which future decisions are based around how football can serve as a model for a society with equal opportunities.

“Common Goal links the economic development of football with a deeper purpose: a collective contribution to a more just society.

“The approach of the 1% pledge to charitable projects aims at building a bridge between professional football and its contribution to more equal opportunities. This aim convinced me to become part of it.

“When I look back at the end of my career, I want to be able to do so knowing that I have used my influence as a public figure in sport and my financial resources to help as many people as possible who are living in less privileged circumstances.

“By joining Common Goal, we [Matthias Ginter and his wife] would now like to combine our local charitable work in Freiburg with a global impact approach.”

Through the Matthias Ginter Foundation – established in 2018 – the Gladbach man and his wife Christina have been campaigning for the needs of socially disadvantaged children and young people in Freiburg for several years and the pair are keen to continue on this trajectory.

“The Matthias Ginter Foundation and more than 140 non-profit organisations around the world with which Common Goal already collaborates today, pursue the same goal of giving young people who experience social exclusion and discrimination better opportunities for social participation and a self-determined life.

“So it makes sense to exchange experiences and combine our strengths to achieve even more together. That is why my wife and I are very happy to now be part of this team with the Matthias Ginter Foundation.”

The growing German contingent within Common Goal also includes Ginter’s fellow defender Mats Hummels who joined the movement in 2017. And the Borussia Dortmund centre-back took time to welcome Ginter to the family.

“It is, of course, great that with Matthias another Bundesliga professional and the fourth national team player is joining Common Goal. The larger the group of people who get involved, the more we can achieve."