Uruguay to wear pink socks in Kolkata friendly to promote breast cancer awareness
Uruguay will wear pink socks for the first time in the national team’s history when La Celeste face India in an international friendly at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on 6 October 2026, kick-off 7:30 PM IST. The socks, bearing the pink breast-cancer ribbon, form part of the Uruguayan Football Association’s “ONCE” campaign in collaboration with Uruguay’s Ministry of Public Health and the Honorary Commission for the Fight Against Cancer.
The AUF’s “ONCE” campaign uses football to promote breast cancer awareness and early detection and takes its name from the number of players on a team. The association links the figure 11 to a statistic used by the campaign, stating that one in every 11 players could develop breast cancer during their lifetime. Uruguay’s decision to wear the pink socks adds a public-health element to a fixture that also carries sporting significance: it is Uruguay’s first meeting with India since 1982 and comes while La Celeste are touring Asia.
The campaign cites national statistics to explain the choice of message: Uruguay records five new breast-cancer diagnoses every day, amounting to more than 1,800 cases a year. The AUF material notes that 70% of women who develop breast cancer have no family history of the disease, while men account for around 1% of breast-cancer cases.
Sporting matters remain central for Uruguay. Diego Forlán’s side arrive in India having already played Japan and South Korea during the current international window; they lost 3-1 to Japan before responding with a 4-1 victory over South Korea, and the match against India will conclude their tour in Kolkata.
India enter the fixture under Khalid Jamil after drawing 1-1 with Panama and losing 4-0 to Brazil earlier in the same international window. The Blue Tigers will face a Uruguay side ranked 20th in the FIFA rankings, providing another opportunity to test themselves against a nation with World Cup pedigree.
India will play La Celeste on 6 October 2026 at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan (VYBK) in Kolkata, with the match scheduled to start at 7:30 PM IST.
