🌍 EARTH CUP 2026

⚽ Fair Play for People & Planet.🌍 Earth Cup 2026 is a youth-led initiative where young people take the field first — performing a shared ritual of fair play and demonstrating a living balance of Heart, Head, and Hands.

From the field outward, they invite all generations to join them. As others step in, Fair Play Trees are planted together, allowing shared values to take root in communities and grow into a visible practice across places and cultures.

A New Ritual for a New Era of Responsibility

Before every match or event, teams, schools, and community groups are invited to begin with a simple four-minute ritual: the Fair Play Peace Circle®, the opening act of Earth Cup 2026.

A circle is formed — a living peace symbol. In the centre, a young person lifts a tree sapling like a trophy for the planet. A clear message: Fair Play starts with us.

Heart • Head • Hands — Values in Balance

The heart of our movement lies in the perfect balance of these three pillars. When they work together in harmony, we create lasting change:

🔴 Heart — Compassion and fairness. It is the will to care for others and our Earth.

🔵 Head — Understanding and wisdom. It is the knowledge of why and how we must act.

🟢 Hands — Action and responsibility. It is the concrete work of planting a better future.

True Fair Play is born when Heart, Head, and Hands are in balance.

Fair Play Trees — Your Action for Earth Cup 2026

As part of your Earth Cup activity — before the match, after the match, or whenever it fits your team — you are invited to plant a Fair Play Tree.

One tree or many. Small or large. What matters is the action.

Planters appear on the Earth Cup 2026 Global Map, showing how youth worldwide turn Fair Play into something real and visible.

How to Join

It’s simple. Any team, school or youth group can take part:

1. Watch the model video

2. Perform the Fair Play Peace Circle®

3. Plant a Fair Play Tree

4. Share with #FairPlayForEarth #FairPlayPeaceCircle #EarthCup2026

Register your participation through this link and appear on the global map.

See the Ritual

Model video by IB students in Joensuu, Finland

Explore the 3D Living Sculpture (Gaussian Splatting) version:

https://360panorama.fi/GaussianPeaceCircle/

Timeline

December 2025— Model video released and registration opens

January–March 2026— Pilot groups adopt and present the Fair Play Peace Circle® in schools, trainings and events

6 April 2026— Official launch of Earth Cup 2026 on the UN International Day of Sport for Development and Peace

April–May 2026— Campaign activities: Fair Play Peace Circle® rituals, Fair Play Tree plantings and shared actions worldwide

5 June 2026— Earth Cup 2026 culminates on World Environment Day

Who Can Participate

• Youth and junior teams

• Schools and universities

• Clubs, academies and training groups

• NGOs, community organisations

• Cities promoting sustainability and peace

• individuals (Fair Play Trees)

Origins

The Fair Play Peace Circle® was created in Finland by the Peace Circle® Network, following 25 years of global environmental and peace education:

10,000 schools • 157 countries • 30 million trees

Why Earth Cup 2026 Matters

Football is the world’s largest youth community. If even a fraction participates, Earth Cup 2026 becomes a global force for responsibility, unity and peace.

Contact & Media

Mika Vanhanen

Founder & Director, Peace Circle® Network

Plant And Care For Peace Association

mika.vanhanen@peacecircle.world 11 December 2025 Comment from Tunisia – UNESCO Greening Education Partnership

“We are honored to join the Earth Cup 2026 initiative. Our school is strongly committed to peace education, sustainable development and the Greening Education Partnership (UNESCO). Our students will implement the Fair Play Peace Circle® and plant a Fair Play Tree in our community.

Thank you for this inspiring global movement.”

— Wafa Hamdi School Director, École Primaire Privée El Maarifa UNESCO GEP Advocate & Positive Peace Ambassador (IEP)