Golf Brings Hope to Thousands of Refugees Across Four Continents
Riyadh, 7 February 2026
UNHCR and LIV Golf celebrated their groundbreaking year-long partnership in Riyadh this week, revealing remarkable reach across refugee communities worldwide. The collaboration has directly supported over 8,300 refugees and host community members through golf-based programmes spanning Asia, Africa, Europe, and South America, with indirect impact reaching nearly 378,000 people. The partnership pioneered the ‘Golf for Protection toolkit’, introducing golf in refugee settings for the first time at scale. Beyond physical activity, participants like Agaicha, a young refugee from Mali, emphasise the transformative power of togetherness and community building through sport.
A Partnership Born from Vision
The UNHCR-LIV Golf alliance formally began in October 2024, marking the first time a golf entity had entered the humanitarian space at such scale [1]. By December 2025, LIV Golf had joined the Sport for Refugee Coalition, which includes over 140 organisations committed to using sport as a tool for refugee empowerment [1]. The partnership’s ambition was clear from the outset: to harness golf’s unique values of precision, patience, and perseverance to create meaningful opportunities for forcibly displaced populations. Jake Jones, SVP of Impact & Sustainability for LIV Golf, reflected on the journey: ‘Over the past year, our partnership with UNHCR has demonstrated that golf and golf values can be a transformative tool for improving the lives of refugees’ [1].
From Toolkit to Transformation
The collaboration’s most significant innovation has been the development of the ‘Golf for Protection toolkit’, a pioneering resource that introduces golf in refugee settings for the first time [1]. This comprehensive framework goes beyond teaching the mechanics of the game, incorporating elements of psychosocial support, community building, and skills development. Dr. Nadjia Hafsa, UNHCR Deputy Representative to the GCC Countries, emphasises the deeper impact: ‘For refugees, sport can provide more than physical activity, it can offer healing, stability, dignity and hope’ [1]. The toolkit has enabled consistent programme delivery across diverse geographical and cultural contexts, ensuring that refugee communities from Bangladesh to Burkina Faso can access the same quality of support.
Voices from the Field
The human impact of these programmes resonates powerfully through participant testimonies. Agaicha, a young refugee woman from Mali now living in Burkina Faso, captures the essence of what makes these initiatives successful: ‘What I loved most was the sense of togetherness. We came together, learned together and supported each other. That’s what made the experience so special’ [3]. Her words reflect a broader truth about the partnership’s approach—it recognises that refugees bring valuable skills, perspectives, and resilience to any sporting programme. The initiative has fostered not just individual development but genuine community building, with positive energy extending far beyond the sporting activities themselves to reach families, classmates, and entire communities [3].
Expanding Horizons and Future Ambitions
The high-level event held at the Hilton Riyadh during the week of 3-6 February 2026, on the sidelines of the ROSHN Group LIV Golf Riyadh tournament, demonstrated the partnership’s growing momentum and ambition [1]. The gathering brought together leaders from the private sector and sporting world to explore how sport can create opportunities for refugees whilst connecting community programmes with global sporting events [1]. Dr. Hafsa highlighted the partnership’s commitment to inclusion: ‘We value LIV Golf’s leadership and vision, especially their commitment to bringing refugee voices and talents into international sporting platforms. Together, we are helping ensure that no one is left on the sidelines’ [1]. This strategic alignment between local community impact and international sporting visibility represents a sustainable model for refugee empowerment through sport, one that other sporting bodies are already beginning to examine and potentially replicate.