Welsh Football Stars Promote Urdd's Peace Message in 75 Languages
Welsh football stars Ffion Morgan, Rubin Colwill, Angharad James-Turner, Dylan Lawlor, and Carrie Jones appear in a promotional video delivering the Urdd's peace message this year.
Among the international footballers, Angharad James and Rubin Colwill have declared the Urdd's peace message through a poem translated into 75 languages.
This year, the Urdd's Peace and Goodwill message focuses on minority languages, emphasizing that "peace speaks every language." The translations include several languages spoken in regions currently experiencing conflict, such as Arabic, Hebrew, Farsi, Kurdish, Russian, and Ukrainian.
The campaign was launched at Camp Nou, the stadium of FC Barcelona—a football club historically central to the fight for Catalan language and culture.
Wales hopes to learn from the 'incredible energy' of Catalonia's language movement.
Over 20,000 people learned Welsh last year, with numbers continuing to grow.
The Cornish language is described as being 'on the verge of success at last' by the national poet.
The Urdd's peace message dates back over a century to the founding of the organization in 1922 and often addresses significant global issues.
In recent years, themes have included child poverty, anti-racism, the climate crisis, and gender equality.
This year, the emphasis is on languages—particularly the preservation of minority, regional, and indigenous languages.
"For over a century, the Urdd has empowered young people in Wales to speak out on the world's most pressing issues," said Siân Lewis, the organization's chief executive.
Students from Morgan Llwyd School in Wrexham contributed to the creation of the peace message alongside poet Marged Tudur (far left).
"Launching this year's message from Camp Nou Spotify is a powerful symbol of international solidarity among minority languages.
We demonstrate that small linguistic communities can create a huge collective voice, and when languages thrive, there is an opportunity for peace."
It is estimated that approximately 60-75% of the world's population can speak more than one language.
However, of the 7,000 languages spoken worldwide, experts predict that half could be lost by the end of the century.
The most recent census showed 538,000 Welsh speakers, though this figure does not include those proficient in the language living outside Wales.
Honourary Presidents of the Urdd Eisteddfod Ynys Môn have been announced.
Anglesey's rivers and beaches inspired the Urdd Chair and Crown.
There is a call for all named Gruff, Griff, and Gryff to attend the Urdd Eisteddfod 2026.
The Urdd collaborated with secondary school students from Morgan Llwyd School in Wrexham on the 2026 peace message.
Among the languages translated are other Celtic languages, including Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Cornish, Manx, and Lithuanian.
The poem is also available in British Sign Language and West Riding English—a dialect spoken in parts of Yorkshire.
Among the minority European languages included are Basque and Catalan, as well as Guernesiais and Jèrriais from the Channel Islands.
The poem this year has now been translated into 75 languages.
The message has also been translated into some of the world's most common languages, including English, French, Spanish, and Chinese.
The Urdd expressed their desire to "remind world leaders and citizens alike that protecting linguistic diversity is a vital means of fostering peace."
"It was a privilege to work with young people from Wrexham to create this message," said poet Marged Tudur.
"They recognize that minority languages are essential for building peace and for better understanding ourselves, each other, and the world."
The Urdd stated that their message this year "reminds us that peace is built on empathy, respect, and protecting cultural identity."
Welsh international footballers Angharad James-Turner, Ffion Morgan, Carrie Jones, Rubin Colwill, and Dylan Lawlor read the poem in a video promoting the message.
Ffion Morgan was part of the delegation in Barcelona to launch the message—an event the Urdd hopes will reach 40 million people worldwide.
"As a Welsh speaker and athlete, I know how important it is to be proud of your roots while connecting with the wider world," she said.
"Sharing this message from an iconic global location like Camp Nou Spotify shows that young people are ready to lead the conversation.
Peace speaks every language, and young people in Wales are asking the world to listen."
