Fight to Play exists to find young players nobody is watching, and to put them in front of the world. That carries an obligation. This page sets out how we meet it.
Fight to Play works with young female footballers, many of them under 18, in their homes, their communities and their football environments. We take that responsibility seriously.
We operate on a zero-tolerance principle regarding the abuse, exploitation, neglect or harm of any young person. The safety and wellbeing of every participant takes priority over production schedules, broadcast deadlines, results or commercial objectives. That is not a statement of intent; it is the rule by which decisions are made.
Everyone working under the Fight to Play banner — directors, producers, camera crew, coaches, medical staff, chaperones, drivers, contractors and volunteers — works to the same standard, in every country we film in.
Our framework is built on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UK Children Acts 1989 and 2004, UK vetting legislation, and the safeguarding benchmarks set by the NSPCC Child Protection in Sport Unit and FIFA.
No young participant is filmed without two things in place. First, informed written consent from a parent or legal guardian, setting out plainly how the footage will be used. Second, the young person’s own agreement, explained to her directly and in terms she understands, before any camera runs.
A young participant can decline a question, ask for filming to stop, or withdraw from an interview at any point, without penalty and without having to explain why.
That right belongs to her, not to the adult accompanying her, and it holds whoever else is in the room.
Young participants are filmed within the context of their everyday lives — their families, their communities, their football. A parent, legal guardian or other responsible family adult is ordinarily present during filming at home or in the local community.
Where filming takes place at camps, matches or during travel, that responsibility passes to an authorised chaperone, welfare lead or other designated adult working under our safeguarding protocols. Supervision ratios, accommodation rules and travel standards are set out in our internal framework and are not negotiable.
Families are actively encouraged to take part in the documentary themselves, including through interviews. A player’s story belongs to her family as much as to her, and their involvement means they understand exactly what the production is and why it exists.
— No cameras, phones or recording equipment of any kind in changing rooms, toilets, washing facilities or medical treatment areas. Ever.
— No adult alone with a young participant behind a closed door.
— No member of our team contacting a young player through personal social media or private messaging.
— No adult sharing accommodation with a young participant, other than her own parent.
— No footage of an identifiable minor supplied to any broadcaster, streaming platform or distributor until the appropriate parental release has been completed and verified.
Everyone working with young participants goes through safer recruitment: identity and reference checks, background and criminal record clearance appropriate to the country they are working in, and safeguarding induction before deployment. Breach of our code of conduct is gross misconduct, and is treated as such.
If you have a concern about the welfare of a young person involved with Fight to Play, tell us. You do not need to be certain, and you do not need to have evidence.
Write to safeguarding@fighttoplay.com. Concerns are triaged by our Designated Safeguarding Lead, who has the authority to halt filming, pause a match or remove any member of staff immediately where a young person may be at risk.
Where a concern meets the threshold, it is referred to the statutory authorities — police and children’s social care — within 24 hours. That referral is not ours to withhold, and commercial consequences play no part in the decision.
If a child is in immediate danger, contact the emergency services on 999 in the UK, or the equivalent local number, before contacting us.
This page is a public summary. It sits on top of a full internal safeguarding framework covering governance, broadcast filming with under-16s, international travel and touring, staff conduct, incident escalation and risk assessment, together with a compendium of standalone operational policies.
That framework is an operational document rather than a published one, but its substance is what this page describes. Partners, broadcasters and institutions working with us can request it directly.
How we handle personal information, including enquiries about players, is set out in our privacy notice.