Zakho FC Fans Win FIFA’s Best Fan Award 2025 for Humanitarian Gesture
FIFA honors Kurdish supporters for donating thousands of toys to sick children, hailing their global impact beyond football.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Fans of Zakho Sports Club have been awarded the FIFA Fan Award 2025, FIFA announced on Tuesday, recognizing the Iraqi Kurdish supporters for an extraordinary humanitarian gesture that captured global attention and exemplified the power of football to inspire compassion.
FIFA said Zakho SC supporters earned the prestigious award after throwing thousands of stuffed toys onto the pitch ahead of their Iraqi Stars League match against Al-Hudood on May 13. The toys were collected before kickoff and distributed to children suffering from illnesses across the region, a moment that resonated far beyond the stadium.
The Zakho fanbase edged two other international nominees to claim the award. Established in 2016, the FIFA Fan Award honors exceptional expressions of commitment and humanity by football supporters, regardless of league, nationality, or gender.
The winner is determined through a combination of expert panel selection and a global public vote conducted on FIFA’s official platform.
According to FIFA, the three finalists were initially chosen by a panel of FIFA Legends and football experts. Fans worldwide then ranked the nominees, with points allocated based on first, second, and third choices. Zakho supporters ultimately secured the highest overall score.
Zakho SC captain Ahmed Ibrahim, Iraq’s sixth-most capped international player with 118 appearances, told FIFA that the toy-throwing initiative was only one example of the supporters’ broader humanitarian efforts.
“I’ve played everywhere — in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and for 12 years with the national team — and it’s the first time in my life I’ve seen fans like these,” he said.
Ibrahim added that Zakho fans follow the team relentlessly, filling stadiums at home and traveling in large numbers to away matches across Erbil, Baghdad, and Basra. “It doesn’t matter who we play. They are always there. It’s truly special,” he said.
Beyond matchday support, the captain highlighted the fans’ ongoing charitable work, which includes fundraising for sick children, visits to schools, and assistance for homeless families and those lacking food or medicine.
“They do many things like this. It’s truly amazing,” he said.
Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani welcomed the international recognition, congratulating the passionate supporters of Zakho SC on their historic achievement.
In a message posted on X, he praised the fans for earning FIFA’s Best Fan Award, thanking everyone who voted and describing the honor as a significant victory not only for Zakho, but for sports and sports fans across the Kurdistan Region and Iraq.
Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani also extended his congratulations to the club’s administration and supporters, hailing the award as a global accomplishment that reflects the humanitarian spirit of Kurdistan’s sports community.
He emphasized that the recognition goes beyond a sporting success, calling it a source of pride for the entire sports movement in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq, and commended Zakho’s fans for conveying a message of peace, compassion, and solidarity to the world through their exemplary conduct.
Zakho, a town of roughly 250,000 people near the Turkish border in the Kurdistan Region, has gained international visibility through its football culture. While the club enjoyed a strong 2024–2025 season on the pitch — finishing third in the league and reaching the Iraq Cup final — FIFA noted that its supporters’ off-field impact has been even more remarkable.
“The city is small, but the hearts of the fans are so big,” Ibrahim said. “There is nowhere like Zakho. They are crazy about football and about helping people.”
❤️ “The city is small but the hearts of the fans are so big."
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) December 16, 2025
Learn more about this year's FIFA Fan Award recipients, Zakho SC fans. 👇
