The 2026 – 2027 cycle of the Girls Positive and Safe Coaching Pathway is officially underway, bringing together a new global cohort of organisations committed to creating safer, more positive, and inclusive sporting experiences for girls.
This week, the Pathway welcomed 12 implementing partners to the programme through its first onboarding sessions, bringing together organisations from Africa, the Americas, and Asia, alongside International Federations and the programme’s Regional Trainers. The sessions marked the official launch of a new implementation cycle that will see partners deliver coach education activities in their respective countries over the coming year.
The diversity of this year’s cohort reflects the growing reach of the Pathway. From Uganda to Colombia, India to Japan, St. Vincent and the Grenadines to Botswana, each organisation brings valuable local expertise and a shared commitment to strengthening coaching practices that enable girls to participate, develop, and thrive through sport.
During the onboarding sessions, participants were introduced to the overall programme framework, implementation timeline, monitoring and evaluation requirements, communication expectations, and key milestones for the year ahead. The sessions also provided an overview of the Pathway’s capacity-building model, outlining how Regional Trainers, Partners, Local Trainers, and coaches will work together to maximise impact at the community level.
Over the coming weeks, the programme will enter its next phase with the delivery of the Training of Trainers (ToT). Implementing partners will nominate Local Trainers, who will be trained by the programme’s Regional Trainers before leading coach workshops in their respective countries. This cascading approach enables the Pathway to strengthen local capacity and create sustainable impact within communities.
More than a training programme, the Girls Positive and Safe Coaching Pathway is designed to support long-term, system-level change. By investing in the people who influence girls’ sporting experiences every day, the programme helps organisations embed positive coaching practices, safeguarding principles, and gender-responsive approaches into their ongoing work.
With the onboarding now complete, the focus turns to the Training of Trainers and the beginning of programme implementation across all participating organisations.
We look forward to following this year’s cohort as they transform learning into action and continue building a global network of coaches committed to creating better sporting experiences for girls.
Girls Positive and Safe Coaching Pathway 