The custom has been part of every FIFA World Cup since 2002.
WASHINGTON — Before Lionel Messi, Lamine Yamal and other global soccer stars take the field at the World Cup final, they will be joined by children walking beside them hand-in-hand — a familiar scene that has become a lasting part of the tournament’s pre-match ceremony.
For more than two decades, young “player escorts,” typically between 6 and 10 years old, have accompanied the world’s top professionals into World Cup stadiums. The tradition has appeared at every tournament since 2002.
The practice gained its World Cup platform through a partnership between UNICEF and FIFA at the 2002 tournament. According to an official UNICEF news release, the effort was designed to “promote and protect the right of all children to healthy recreation and quality primary education.” Through the “Saying Yes For Children” campaign, children were given a visible role on soccer’s biggest stage by walking out with players before matches.
UNICEF said at the time that the children’s presence on the field served as a reminder to football fans that they “have a major role to play in building a world fit for children.”
McDonald’s, a longtime FIFA World Cup corporate sponsor, has promoted the mascot program in past tournaments dating back to 2002. However, the fast-food chain has not been the only sponsor connected to the player escort program and was not its sponsor for the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
For the 2026 World Cup, hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, the player escort program was led by Quaker Oats.
Quaker Oats said it teamed up with Common Goal, a soccer-focused organization, to help bring more than 1,400 children onto World Cup fields across the 11 U.S. host cities. Those children had the opportunity to walk onto the pitch with elite professional players before 66 matches.
“FIFA World Cup is one of the most universal moments in global sport, bringing people together in a way few things can, and that’s the same powerful connection we see around the breakfast table every day,” said Tina Mahal, senior vice president of marketing at Quaker Foods, in a news release. “At a moment when millions of fans are inspired and energized, we wanted to be part of a bigger conversation—providing resources around daily nutrition for families and communities and inspiring the next generation with moments both on and off the field.”
For non-World Cup soccer events, other corporate sponsors have taken on the responsibility of the player escort tradition. In 2019, Visa sponsored the program for the Total Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.
While it’s been a World Cup feature for decades, the tradition dates back even further with club teams. Wayne Rooney, who was a star for England’s national team and Manchester United, participated in the tradition as a child. A photo published in the Liverpool Echo from 1996 revealed an 11-year-old Rooney as one of two “mascot children” accompanying players on the field.
Outside of the World Cup, becoming a child mascot can be as simple as paying the right price. A 2014 investigation by The Guardian found Premiere League clubs were charging as much as 450 pounds (around $550) for children to be mascots.
Other roles given to children during the World Cup include being a flag bearer.
