Play for Peace – How Football Brings Fair Play to Life with Peace Circle®

CLIP - Oporto International School . Porto, Portugal

Fair Play means respect. Peace Circle® makes it visible – bringing Heart, Head and Hands together in balance with people and nature. On the football field, passion becomes peace. Football is more than a game – it is the world’s language of passion, unity and respect. For decades, the spirit of Fair Play has reminded us that true sport is about more than winning.

Peace Circle® takes this idea one step further. On the football field, Fair Play becomes visible through values: Heart ❤️ (compassion, hope, justice), Head 💡 (knowledge, wisdom, learning) and Hands ✋ (life, balance, diversity). Together, they form a living circle – completed by nature itself when a young tree 🌱, carried by the Peace-bearer, is raised high in the centre.

In just one minute, the field turns into a Peace Circle®. Players, students and fans all become part of the same story: passion and peace growing side by side. Why Football?

• Global reach – football is the most played and watched sport in the world.

• The field is ready-made – every pitch has a central circle and halfway line, the perfect stage for Peace Circle®.

• Shared values – just as football unites people across nations, Peace Circle® unites people with nature.
  

How to Create a Peace Circle® Fair Play Moment

This short, symbolic ceremony can be done before a match, at halftime, or during a school event.

Dress Code

• Guardian Circle: white shirts → peace and purity.

• Heart line ❤️: red shirts or caps → compassion, hope, justice.

• Head line 💡: blue shirts or caps → knowledge, wisdom, learning.

• Hands line ✋: green shirts or caps → protection of life, balance, diversity.

• Balance line : in white, reinforcing harmony.

• Tree bearer 🌱: in white or green, standing out as the Peace-bearer at the heart of the Circle.
  

Step 1 – The Guardians’ Circle

• First, participants form the outer circle on the central circle line.

• They stand calmly with hands lowered, waiting.
  

Step 2 – The Head Line (💡) and Balance Line (⚖️)

• A line of participants enters along the halfway line:

  • First, three Head representatives take their place at the centre.

  • Behind them stands the Tree bearer 🌱 (Peace) in the exact middle.

  • Behind the Tree bearer, three Balance representatives continue on the halfway line.

Finally, the rest of the participants fill the halfway line until the circle’s edge.

Step 3 – The Heart ❤️ and Hands ✋ Lines

• At the same time, three Heart representatives and three Hands representatives enter from opposite sides and form their own short lines toward the centre.

• Now all four lines are complete: Heart, Head, Hands and Balance, with Peace at the centre.
  

Step 4 – Raising the Symbols

1. Heart line ❤️

   • Raise symbols high.

   • Slowly turn 360° in place with arms lifted.

   • Then lower symbols back down.
     

2. Head line 💡

   • When the Heart line lowers, the Head line raises their symbols.

   • Slowly turn 360° in place with arms lifted.

   • Then lower symbols back down.
     

3. Hands line ✋

   • When the Head line lowers, the Hands line raises their symbols.

   • Slowly turn 360° in place with arms lifted.

   • Then lower symbols back down.
     

4. All lines together

   • After each line has had its moment, all three lines raise their symbols together.

   • At this point, the Guardians’ Circle prepares for the finale.
     

Step 5 – Finale: The Tree of Peace 🌱

• The tree bearer, representing Peace itself, lifts the sapling as high as possible in the centre.

• At the same time, the Guardians’ Circle raises their hands in the peace sign ✌️, slowly waving around the circle.

• In this moment, Peace rises at the heart of the Circle, embraced by people and nature.
  

Step 6 – Ending

• All symbols are raised, the tree is highest, and the Guardians’ Circle shines with the peace gesture.

• The Peace Circle® is complete: values in the centre, the protecting circle around, and nature at the heart.
  

⏱️ Total duration: about one minute.

Participation Size

Best effect is achieved with ~48–53 participants in total:

• about 35–40 in the Guardians’ Circle (forming the protective outer ring)

• plus 13 inside the circle:

  • 3 Heart (❤️)

  • 3 Head (🧠)

  • 3 Hands (✋)

  • 3 Balance (⚖️) → placed on the halfway line, behind the Tree bearer

  • Tree bearer (🌱 Peace) in the exact centre
    

This complete formation ensures that the Peace Circle® symbol is perfectly visible and balanced.

Why It Works

• Short and powerful – perfect for stadiums and schools.

• Universal language – no words are needed, only symbols and movement.

• Visually striking – from above, the circle and four lines are unmistakable.

• Smooth and compact – works best with about 50 participants for a one-minute ceremony.
  

Call to Action

Every school and sports club can try this. Start small – practice at a school match or a community game. Share it on social media with #PlayForPeace #PeaceCircle.

When football shows Fair Play in balance with people and nature, it becomes more than a game – it becomes a legacy.