00:00This is an extraordinary event. For the first ever FIFA World Cup halftime show,
00:04it really is poised to be the single largest lineup for a cause since Live Aid. You know,
00:11you're talking about Chris Martin from Coldplay curated the whole thing, and he brought together
00:15BTS, Justin Bieber, Madonna, Shakira with Burner Boy, the PS22 Choir with Coldplay, Gustavo Dudamel
00:24with the New York Philharmonic and the Simone Boulevard Orchestra. This lineup represents every
00:30continent on the planet except for Antarctica and is truly this amazing moment of unity for the
00:35whole planet. What is sort of, is there a theme that ties all of this together that all of the
00:40artists obviously are performing different songs, but I assume there has to be some thread. There
00:44is a really powerful theme, and this is the vision of Chris Martin. You know, the theme is unity and
00:49love. And then the impact we want to have is we set ourselves this ambitious goal of raising
00:55over a hundred million dollars for the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund. This is a fund we set up
01:01to focus on grassroots literacy all around the world, because we knew that this was a once in a
01:07generation opportunity when you had 1.5 billion people around the whole planet tuning in at this
01:13moment. If we could use this as a moment to raise a hundred million dollars, we could give out grants
01:18to community organizations all over the world. So is the idea people will be exposed to this and
01:23they'll be able to donate in the moment, or is this coming after the event's over? Well, a dollar
01:28from every ticket to the entire World Cup goes to the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund. Shakira,
01:34The Weekend, Usher all gave a dollar from their tour in support of the education fund. The private
01:39sector stepped up, so Bank of America, Cisco, MetLife all stepped up, Live Nation. They all contributed,
01:44and it's just been growing from there. We got a commitment today from Canada of $5 million to
01:50support the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, and then other governments are starting to step up.
01:54And I'm proud to be able to tell you today that as of today, literally a few hours ago, we
01:59hit over
01:59$60 million raised for the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund. Just from this event? Yes. Wow.
02:06That's a lot of money. Yes. Give me a sense here. I mean, obviously, people will look at this and
02:10they'll say, okay, where exactly does that money get deployed? Overall, I understand what you're
02:16doing. What is the specifics? The specifics are really important. So we set up a board of the
02:21FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund. I'm on the board, Gianni Infantino, together with Hugh Jackman,
02:26together with Serena Williams, together with Kakar, Ivanka Trump, a range of board members who are all
02:33contributing to this effort. Shakira's on the board. And we meet all the time and we sift through
02:38thousands of applications that have come in from grassroots organizations over the world. And then
02:43we work with an independent auditor to make sure that we can track every single dollar. Our team
02:48personally goes to visit every education project. For example, when I was in Pretoria recently, we met
02:54a school for children who were deaf. And this program they do is so deeply inspiring, giving them the
03:00opportunity to learn and to flourish. And we make sure that the due diligence on every single project
03:06is robust and is thorough so that when someone gives a dollar to the FIFA Global Citizen Education
03:12Fund, they know it's going directly to the grassroots. And the cool thing about it is it's not just
03:17supporting programs all over the world. It's supporting programs right here in the United States.
03:22So in Staten Island, we're supporting projects. In the Bronx, we're supporting projects because
03:27grassroots NGOs from all around the world are invited to apply. And we've had thousands of
03:33applications. And if they meet the criteria, if they're focused on grassroots literacy or football
03:38in schools programs, because we know that football is a great driver of quality education,
03:43it keeps kids in school, then they're eligible. And then we conduct our due diligence. And from there,
03:49we award grants of between $50,000 to $250,000.
03:52And when you say football, are we talking European football or American football? Because,
03:58you know, here in the U.S., you have to make that distinction. In Brazil, we're even supporting a
04:02martial arts program that's keeping kids in school through martial arts. So it's all kinds of sport.
04:07Is this a one-off in terms of your partnership with FIFA and the World Cup? Is this a one
04:11-off? Or do
04:12you think this is a start of a more longer-term relationship and being involved in these types
04:16of events? I mean, we've got the Women's World Cup next year. When Gianni Infantino stood on stage at
04:20the Global Citizen Festival in Central Park, we announced it as a four-year partnership. So it's
04:25absolutely going to continue. And we're committed to growing this over time. In fact, we know,
04:30ultimately, that we'd like to raise more than $100 million if we can in the future, because
04:34education needs it. You're seeing foreign aid being cut all around the world. It's not just the U.S.
04:39programs are being cut. Britain, Australia, so many other foreign aid programs are decreasing.
04:43So it's at this moment we need people to step up. That's why when Canada was the first to lead,
04:49and I'm proud that we got news this morning that the UAE is also joining with a $5 million
04:54contribution. So many governments that are also stepping up. Portugal made an announcement. So I
05:00think it creates this momentum at a time when the world can feel so divided. I think what the World
05:05Cup has shown us is that we have far much more in common than that which divides us. And so
05:11if we
05:11can put our best foot forward as global citizens, we can change the world. Well, we have these big
05:16sporting and global sporting events, whether it's the Olympics or the World Cup, that does sort of
05:20unify the world to a certain extent every four years or so, depending on how you stagger it with
05:25the different Olympics, etc. Look forward, though. I mean, you know the world right now is going through
05:30a lot of challenges. There's a lot of mistrust amongst nations, amongst people. The vibes,
05:36certainly that we've had in New York City over the last five, six weeks, have been insane,
05:41incredible. Do you see that vibe continuing even once the World Cup is over and everyone's moved on to
05:48whatever else in their life? Well, it's funny you say that because I do think that the vibes in New
05:52York have never been better. When you're talking about the New York Knicks winning, now you've got
05:57the World Cup. I mean, it's all happening in New York right now. And I think it does feel pretty
06:01extraordinary. And I think it is an important reminder that when people come together with a
06:07common goal, it can be transformative. You know, at a time when we're seeing the rise of AI and modern
06:13mercantilism, I think the world can sometimes feel a bit despondent. But I think that what New York
06:19has shown is that that spirit is still alive. And well, that spirit of humanity, which I love,
06:25and it's been so great to be part of it here in New York. And I think you're right. We
06:29need to
06:29continue that far beyond the World Cup. And that's why, you know, when we announced this year's Global
06:35Citizen Festival lineup, I want every New Yorker to join us on the Great Lawn on September 26th.
06:40All right. On September 26th. And before you get to September 26th, aren't you having a watch party
06:43in Central Park? We are. This weekend, 50,000 New Yorkers will join Global Citizen alongside
06:51Governor Hochul and alongside Mayor Mondami. We've announced this together alongside FIFA. We're
06:56going to be hosting the largest watch party that's taking place on the Great Lawn of Central Park this
07:01weekend. So 50,000 New Yorkers and people from all over the world are going to join us for what
07:06will be
07:06New York's biggest watch party. And we want them to tune in and also catch the magic of the halftime.
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