There are some days I like my job. And there are some days I *love* my job.

This is one of those days.

We received this in the mail today from a boy named David, age 8, who received one of our fairly traded soccer balls as a gift.

Of all the mentions on sites and blogs from Seth Godin’s recent comments about our Fair Trade soccer balls, this post by Silus Grok is my favorite so far. Likely due to just how close it hits home.

Definitely watch the video in the post the whole way through. Hilarious and heartwarming. And a brilliant pairing of topics by Silus.


Susan and I have a baby girl due mid-May. My son Justice is pretty stoked. I think he’s hoping for another soccer player in the family (did you watch the video yet?).

Children love soccer. But many of the world’s children live in poverty and have never played with a real soccer ball.

Instead, they play with balls made of rags, banana leaves, or wads of plastic tied together with string. This video from World Vision shows how much care and effort a 12-year-old boy in Africa invests in making his own soccer ball.

Join us as move move towards a more positive world where children around the world are encouraged and equipped to play. When you need a new soccer ball, please consider purchasing a Fair Trade Sports soccer ball and donating your current gently-used soccer ball to the World Vision “Get a Kick Out of Sharing” program.

Rally your organization or team to start collecting these items and send boxes of deflated balls and pumps with your donation form to:

World Vision Gifts-in-Kind Distribution Center
Soccer Ball Program
210 Overlook Drive
Sewickley, PA 15143

Fair Trade Sports is proud to be a member of the Fair Trade Federation. 

Membership means we adhere to standards and principals that pursue an equitable and fair partnership between marketers in North America like Fair Trade Sports, and the producers of our products around the world. 

For us, that is specific to Sialkot, Pakistan, the producer of 80% of all sports balls in the world, including our fairly traded soccer balls and more. 

A Fair Trade partnership works to provide low-income producers with a living wage for their work. Among many criteria, FTF membership includes:

• Paying a fair wage in the local context
  
  
• Being open to public accountability
  
  
• Building long-term trade relationships
  
  
• Providing healthy and safe working conditions within the local context
  
  
• Providing financial and technical assistance to the producers of our products whenever possible
  
• Engaging in environmentally sustainable practices
  

Fair Trade Sports, Inc is the first sports equipment company in the US to launch a full line of eco-certified Fair Trade sports balls, ensuring fair wages and healthy working conditions for our adult workers. Be sure to also check out our sweatshop-free apparel.

We are committed to donate all profits after taxes to children’s charities, both domestic and international. Sound familiar? It’s a similar idea to the one behind the Newman’s Own brand you see in the grocery store.

We expect to reach profitability in 2008. Until then, we are donating $1000 annually to these charities, which benefit at-risk children worldwide. 

Have a favorite charity to suggest? If it’s related to helping kids, then we’re interested. Drop us a line.

Need more information? Here are a few posts that will give you some insight into our goals of running an authentic and transparent company: 

• Volume discount pricing for Fair Trade sports balls

• Our team
• Secrets revealed - rude FAQ!
  
• The story always matters
• Our children’s charities

• Who is stitching your sports ball?
• Where are your sports balls from?
  
• The benefits of Fair Trade
• How you can help, Part I and Part II

Or ping us directly for additional information…

• Media Inquiries
• Partners/Suppliers
• Employment

Proud member of the Fair Trade Federation.

Here’s a quick visual tour of how we create that high-quality, hand-stitched Fair Trade Sports soccer ball that is conveniently delivered to your front porch.

From flat designs on paper…

…our Master Printers and Cutters create and divide the 32 panel pieces…

…for our adult stitchers receiving Fair Trade wages to hand-stitch.

Bushra is pictured here, holding a completed Fair Trade Sports soccer ball.

The final Fair Trade Sports soccer balls are packed and shipped from our Pakistani partner to our Seattle fulfillment warehouse…

…ready for you to purchase!

Ever dreamed of going to Ghana? Or are you part of a Catholic parish, school, or organization? If so, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has a great Valentine’s Day contest coming up for students, teachers and ministers in the US.

Fair Trade Sports is excited to sponsor this Fair Trade chocolate campaign with special equipment packs of our Fair Trade soccer balls and more. Learn more and register for the contest at the CRS website.