On 21 March, the Stadium de Toulouse hosted the fourth edition of The Most Inclusive Match. 23,014 spectators attended the Ligue 1 McDonald’s fixture between Toulouse FC and FC Lorient — the first time the initiative, created by World Football Summit and Integrated Dreams, has taken place outside Spain.
A legacy built edition by edition
Since its first edition at Real Betis in 2023, The Most Inclusive Match has operated on a simple but demanding principle: each edition must leave something permanent behind.
- Real Betis (2023): 1,740 people with disabilities attended an official match. The club introduced a Sensory Room and began hiring individuals with intellectual disabilities in the VIP Box.
- Atlético de Madrid (2024): Audio description services for visually impaired supporters were introduced, alongside the AccessibALL Summit legacy.
- Real Sociedad (2025): NaviLens navigation established as a permanent service, and sign language incorporated into official matchday moments.
The fourth edition added a new dimension: for the first time, the initiative was driven not by an individual club but by a professional league — the Ligue de Football Professionnel, whose structural commitment to accessibility made Toulouse the natural next step.
What happened on and around matchday
The programme began two days before kick-off:
- A job-dating event for candidates with disabilities at the Stadium de Toulouse, in collaboration with France Travail
- A roundtable on professional integration for people with disabilities
- An accessible stadium tour for local associations
- A conference on inclusion and innovation in education and business at Toulouse Business School, followed by awareness workshops
On matchday, the stadium forecourt hosted:
- An introduction to blind football with Toulouse Football Cécifoot
- Wheelchair rugby sessions with Stade Toulousain Handisport
- Discussion spaces and participatory activities open to all supporters
The moments that defined the day
Several moments stood out inside the stadium:
- Players from both clubs walked onto the pitch wearing shirts with disability pictograms in place of their names — seven pictograms representing the different categories of disability
- Le Se Canto, the traditional Toulouse anthem, was performed in sign language ahead of kick-off
- An XXL tifo reading “Assis. Toujours.” — a deliberate twist on Toulouse FC’s “Debout. Toujours.” motto — was unveiled to celebrate supporters with disabilities
- The ceremonial kick-off was given by Lucas Mazur, Paralympic gold medallist at Paris 2024, alongside French actress Mayane-Sarah
- The Man of the Match trophy, specially designed by Essilor in the campaign’s visual identity, was presented by Mayane-Sarah to Emersonn
The initiative continues
The fourth edition of The Most Inclusive Match is a milestone, not a destination. The vision behind the initiative — that every professional league should host at least one inclusive matchday per season — remains the driving force. What Toulouse has shown is that when the commitment is genuine and the structure is in place, the impact follows.
