Arthur Theate, Kassandra Missipo and Thierry Witsel present awards ​ 

The first edition of the Come Together Awards was a great success. After an exciting battle, KAA Gent won in the professional club category and K. Lyra-Lierse as an amateur club. VZW ÊKHÔ Sport was not only honoured with an award for supportive organisation, but with the support of the RBFA also won the UEFA Foundation For Children Award 2024. Reason enough for clubs and NPOs to register for the second edition, on 15 November 2024! ​ ​ 

With the Come Together Awards - named after the Come Together action plan of the same name - the RBFA, Voetbal Vlaanderen, ACFF and the Pro League want to highlight clubs that tackle discrimination and racism and promote inclusion and honour a number of initiators. Anyone involved with a football club can nominate an initiative – before 15 September 2024 – using this form. Both individual and group initiatives are eligible for an award. ​ ​ ​ 

Come Together jury ​ ​ 

Father of Red Devil Axel, and jury president Thierry Witsel plays an important role in the fight against discrimination and racism in football. His non-profit organisation Stop Racism In Sport has been working on this issue for years and sets up concrete actions. ​ ​ 

Red Flame Kassandra Missipo has been overcoming prejudice for years, managing to build a great career in football. She is an example for many young girls who dream of becoming football stars. ​ ​ ​ 

Red Devil Arthur Theate is following in Amadou Onana's football footsteps and has the same commitment. He makes the fight against racism and discrimination a matter of honour, which is why he was keen to serve on the jury of the Come Together Awards. ​ ​ 

Sana Sellami is a member of the RBFAs Diversity Board, made up of experts who are regularly consulted on diversity and inclusion. ​ She has been involved in the Come Together action plan from the beginning. She sits on the board of the University of Antwerp - where she puts inclusion high on the agenda - and works as an inclusion strategist. ​ 

The fourth jury member is Nicolas Theodoroudis. He coordinates projects working on inclusion and diversity for the National Lottery. He wants to use the Come Together Awards to highlight the positive work of the many football clubs and organisations. ​ 

"Racism is one of the greatest evils sports has ever known. Along with discrimination, it undermines sporting values and jeopardises the sporting dreams of some athletes, as was the case with me. To ensure an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive and perform without fear of negative judgement, it is important that together we contribute to a sport free from prejudice and discrimination of any kind" 

– Jury president Thierry Witsel

Winners first Come Together awards ​ 

The first Come Together awards were presented on 16 November 2023. KAA Gent won the award in the professional club category and K. Lyra-Lierse in the amateur club category. The jury also decided to present the award for supportive organisation to VZW ÊKHÔ Sport. ​ ​ 

K. Lyra-Lierse is one of the few amateur clubs in Belgium with a Younited team. With that team, the initiators try to bring together vulnerable (young) adults, connect them and make them stronger through football. They also organise summer camps for children aged between six and twelve, with the aim of making the sport as accessible as possible. Because for K. Lyra-Lierse, everyone should be able to play football, and everyone should be able to belong. ​ ​ 

The KAA Gent Foundation pursues an active and integral diversity policy with various initiatives. For example, they pay attention to diversity and interculturalism in the education of administrators, volunteers and trainers, they call on all Ghent football clubs to report discrimination and they have an accessibility policy for disabled supporters in their stadium. Furthermore, they have developed bystander training, teaching supporters and volunteers how to actively intervene when confronted with racism or discrimination. Finally, the KAA Gent Foundation actively works on diversity and inclusion in numerous socio-sports initiatives and in three Ghent football networks coordinated by the KAA Gent Foundation. ​ ​ 

VZW ÊKHÔ Sport is not linked to a football club, but organises football training sessions for deaf and hard-of-hearing children, adapted to their motor skills, during after-school and out-of-school care. To promote communication between players, ÊKHÔ Sport has developed an innovative teaching approach, using various teaching tools such as a connected watch and visual maps.

Come Together action plan ​ ​ ​ 

The Come Together action plan was launched in 2021 to strengthen the fight against discrimination and racism in football and promote inclusion. The establishment of a hotline for facts of discrimination and racism, the appointment of an inclusion manager, the creation of a Diversity Board and a National Chamber on Discrimination and Racism are a few initiatives from the action plan. But organising training courses on diversity and tackling discrimination in football clubs also contributes to the objectives. The ambition is to ban discrimination, racism, homophobia and other forms of inequality from football pitches and stadiums. ​ ​ 

For more information visit www.cometogether.be.