Common Goal’s story began more than three decades ago on the streets of Medellín, Colombia. In 1994, following the tragic killing of Colombian footballer Andrés Escobar after the FIFA World Cup™, Jürgen Griesbeck witnessed both the harm football could reflect and the powerful role it could play in healing divided communities. Working in contexts shaped by violence, he saw how football could bring people together, create dialogue, and resolve conflict through play rather than force. That experience sparked a long-term commitment to using football as a tool for social change. In the years that followed, this work grew from grassroots initiatives into a global effort to connect and support organisations using football to create opportunity for young people. In 2002, this became streetfootballworld — the world’s first global network dedicated to football for good.As the network expanded, it helped shape what is now recognised as a global football-for-good sector. Today, this global community includes more than 200 organisations, reaching 3.6 million young people directly and engaging over 9 million more each year across 110 countries. In 2017, recognising financial sustainability as one of the sector’s greatest challenges, streetfootballworld launched Common Goal. Co-led by Juan Mata, Jürgen Griesbeck, and Thomas Preiss, the 1% pledge created a simple, scalable way for athletes, brands, and other stakeholders to invest in strengthening football’s role as a force for good. In 2021, streetfootballworld and Common Goal merged under one name — Common Goal — opening a new chapter of shared purpose and uniting a global community of organisations, athletes, brands, and partners around a common vision. In 2025, the founding associates who helped build streetfootballworld and Common Goal — Jürgen Griesbeck, Vladimir Borkovic, and Johannes Axster — opened the door to a new chapter of leadership, ensuring continuity of purpose while creating space for the movement to evolve.