International Missing Children’s Day – Football Cares

Every year, 25 May is commemorated as International Missing Children’s Day.

If you need to report a child missing or recognize a missing child, please contact your local police department.
Within Europe, call 116 000 and within the United States of America call 1 - 800 - THE LOST.

Football Cares 2020

The football community will unite to mark International Missing Children’s Day on May 25, 2020. Clubs, national teams, leagues, federations, players and governing bodies all over the world will be able to share a video on Twitter featuring photos of missing children in the hopes they are recognized and united with their families.

ICMEC has partnered with European Club Association (ECA) and Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to highlight the vulnerability of missing children around the world and engage clubs and fans to help bring missing children home.  ICMEC hopes to make this joint initiative an annual event in order to leverage the power of social media and the world’s favorite sport to build awareness and help reunite missing children with their loved ones.

For media enquiries email media@icmec.org or call +1 703 837 6313

Football Cares - Missing Children

Tweets for Football Cares

See our various missing children videos for Football Cares

Over 30 countries are searching for children missing in their country. With the help of football clubs around the world, we are displaying videos of these children in the hopes someone recognizes them and they can be united with their families.

History

In 1983, U.S. President Ronald Reagan proclaimed May 25th “National Missing Children’s Day.”

In 1983, U.S. President Ronald Reagan proclaimed May 25th “National Missing Children’s Day.”

The proclamation followed the 1979 disappearance of a six-year-old boy, Etan Patz, on his way to school in New York City. The case generated widespread indignation, and concern for missing children rose across the nation. Since the United States began remembering missing children in this way, other countries around the world have adopted similar commemorations.

25 May is now widely known as Missing Children’s Day, with the forget-me-not flower as its emblem. In 2001, 25 May was first formally recognized as International Missing Children’s Day (IMCD). Since 2009, we have been promoting IMCD by disseminating a unified global message. The movement continues to grow. Every year, more countries commemorate IMCD, acknowledging the need for a harmonized response to protect vulnerable children.

International Missing Children’s Day Video

Statistics

How many missing children go missing?

Over 1 million children are reported missing every year in just 9 countries alone!

Unfortunately, we do not know how many children go missing in each country every year. Yet we know that every child that is missing is vulnerable to all kinds of child protection violations.

 

  1. Football Cares 2020
  2. Football Cares - Missing Children
  3. Tweets for Football Cares
  4. History
  5. Statistics
  6. Awareness & Prevention
  7. Sections