Youth Leadership Council Applications Open

Inviting nominations of youth ages 15-17 in FIFA World Cup 2026 (FWC26) cities to join the 2026 Youth Leadership Council (YLC), led by the Centre for Sport and Human Rights with support from UNICEF USA. YLC is open to young people ages 15-17 who live in a FIFA World Cup 2026 Host City*.

Are you passionate about your city, youth voice, human rights, and sport? YLC is connected to a project around the FIFA Men's World Cup 2026, where you can:

• Advocate for systemic change in sports
• Build connections with other youth leaders in Canada, Mexico, and the United States
• Make recommendations in your city

YLC IS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE WHO HAVE…

• Demonstrated leadership experience and ambitions
• Interest in the intersection of sport and human rights
• Experience on a youth council or leadership group (preferred but not required)

WHAT YLC MEMBERS DO

• Attend a ½ day online training workshop in the Fall 2025
• Meet quarterly (virtually) through summer 2026
• Fall: Meet with city leaders to learn about planning efforts for FWC26, share youth perspectives, and explore youth engagement opportunities
• Winter/Spring 2026: Hold at least one community outreach event in their city to gather perspectives from young people on how the World Cup is impacting their community
• Spring/ Summer 2026: Share experience about organizing the event and how it made a difference for the youth involved - presented to the YLC and host city leaders
  Provide feedback on a summary report with recommendations to host cities and event hosts

WHY JOIN?

• $500 USD Stipend for participating
• Networking opportunities, including meeting Generation 2026 Athlete Ambassadors
• Access to attend CSHR’s quarterly Advisory Council meetings with global sport and human rights experts
• Opportunity to be interviewed by or have the outreach event reported on by Generation 2026 Youth Media Forward reporter
• Make new friends and connect with other youth in Canada, Mexico, and the U.S
• Get leadership development training opportunities

HOW TO APPLY

NOMINATIONS FROM CITY LEADERS SUBMIT HERE (english) AQUI (Español)
DEADLINE: June 15, 2025