Former Premier League forward Duncan Watmore addressed delegates at the United Nations General Assembly in New York during Global Health Futures Day. The 32-year-old, who played 336 times over a 15-year career for clubs including Sunderland and Middlesbrough, argued that lessons from elite athletic performance should improve public health. Now head of elite performance at wellbeing firm PEAK4, Watmore completed a first-class economics degree and a master's while playing.

He stated that using football to make the world better is a lifelong passion, and speaking at UNGA was a privilege. Watmore follows in the footsteps of football legends who have addressed the assembly, including Pele, David Beckham, Didier Drogba, and Kaka. Former Ballon d'Or winner George Weah spoke as President of Liberia, while icons like Lionel Messi, Brazil's Marta, Ronaldo, Megan Rapinoe, and Alex Morgan have championed humanitarian causes at UNGA summits.