WHO WE ARE
ITS A PENALTY
It’s a Penalty collaboratively combats human trafficking, exploitation, and abuse using sport’s unifying power to drive local and global educational campaigns during significant sporting events. We customise these campaigns for each host location, achieving worldwide reach averaging 180 million people.
Our multifaceted approach includes collaboration with sectors like sports, travel, tourism, law enforcement, and NGOs. Having so far campaigned during 17 Major Sporting Events and the Liam Neeson ‘What is Human Trafficking’ campaign, It’s a Penalty, together with partners, has facilitated the protection of over 17,000 survivors of abuse, exploitation and trafficking, and prevented thousands more from being victimised.
Parallel to our campaigns, It’s a Penalty runs three core programmes: CommonProtect advocates for legal reform in Commonwealth countries, the Student Ambassador Programme empowers UK university students to combat exploitation, and Safe to Compete, co-led with NCMEC, educates sports coaches and parents in the USA on abuse prevention.
Through education, awareness, and intervention, It’s a Penalty aims for a world free from exploitation and abuse.
Our multifaceted approach includes collaboration with sectors like sports, travel, tourism, law enforcement, and NGOs. Having so far campaigned during 17 Major Sporting Events and the Liam Neeson ‘What is Human Trafficking’ campaign, It’s a Penalty, together with partners, has facilitated the protection of over 17,000 survivors of abuse, exploitation and trafficking, and prevented thousands more from being victimised.
Parallel to our campaigns, It’s a Penalty runs three core programmes: CommonProtect advocates for legal reform in Commonwealth countries, the Student Ambassador Programme empowers UK university students to combat exploitation, and Safe to Compete, co-led with NCMEC, educates sports coaches and parents in the USA on abuse prevention.
Through education, awareness, and intervention, It’s a Penalty aims for a world free from exploitation and abuse.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
MISSING CHILDREN: LAS VEGAS
In 2021, of the 25,000 children reported missing to NCMEC who had run away, 1 in 6 were likely sex trafficking victims.- National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Keira Kilibarda Penn
17 Years Old
Henderson, NV
Arandis Janae Hargraves
18 Years Old
North Las Vegas, NV
Ariana Simmons
17 Years Old
Boulder City, NV
Beyonce Beauty Hall
18 Years Old
Oxnard, CA
Cristian Berzunza
15 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Jonathan Berzunza
14 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Daeja Bell
18 Years Old
North Las Vegas, NV
Emilio Jose Hernandez
16 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Gabriella Badillo Robinson
15 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Ja’Dai Cashmere Lee
14 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Jayla Barker
17 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Jayla Lee
16 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Jazzlyn Bailey
16 Years Old
North Las Vegas, NV
JeiaLe’ray Gray
15 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Jeremiah Montgomery
12 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Jessica Hernandez Ibarra
16 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Leah Guthrie
16 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Natalia Edwards
17 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Pachelle Cardwell
13 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Penelope Melody Mitchell
16 Years Old
North Las Vegas, NV
Peyton Slater
13 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Rachel Richardson
16 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Riley Glen Rinker
16 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Robert Francis
15 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Stephen McAfee
16 Years Old
Reno, NV
Syliyah Chandler
17 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
Xavier Hawthorne
17 Years Old
Las Vegas, NV
WHAT WE DO
OUR PROGRAMS
Student Activists
Our Student Ambassador Programme works with UK university students. We provide training on the different types, vulnerabilities and complexities of modern slavery and support students to carry out projects that make a difference.
Advocating for legal reform
Through our programme Commonprotect, we advocate for legal reform in order to protect children from sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA) throughout the Commonwealth.
LEARN MORE
Keeping kids safe in sport
Safe to Compete is a national initiative between It's a Penalty and The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to prevent abuse, exploitation and trafficking of young children as they learn to compete in youth sports.
LEARN MORE
LATEST NEWS
WHAT WE DO
OUR IMPACT
2022 Qatar World Cup Digital Campaign Impact Report
It's a Penalty and STOP THE TRAFFIK came together to run a digital campaign geotargeting football fans attending the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
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158,656 unique link clicks to the digital campaign
1,044,357 reach
68% confirmed they will start taking preventative action as a result of the campaign
2022 Birmingham Campaign Impact Report
Throughout the Commonwealth, modern slavery takes many forms. Most commonly, people are exploited through forced labour, commercial sexual exploitation of children, human trafficking, the worst forms of child labour, and forced marriage.
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22 missing people appealed for were found safe and well during the campaign period
Digital posters displayed in 5 stations throughout Birmingham reached a potential 7,154,495 people
93% of respondents felt it's a penalty improved their awareness of the issues of abuse, exploitation and human trafficking
2022 LA Super Bowl LVI Campaign Impact Report
California consistently has the highest human trafficking rates in the United States.
On the 26th of January 2022 we launched our Campaign in Downtown Los Angeles. Together with 19 partners during our campaign...
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14 missing children were identified
8 minors who were being sexually exploited in Los Angeles were rescued
20% increase in reports to the US Human Trafficking Hotline number
CommonProtect
A review of the legal systems protecting children from sexual exploitation and abuse across the Commonwealth.
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It is estimated that one in eight children are sexually abused worldwide, which amounts to 12.7% of the world’s children - many of whom live in the Commonwealth.
Only 6 countries have criminalised child marriage sufficiently.
18 out of the 21 countries analysed have not sufficiently addressed all forms of human trafficking.
WHO WE ARE
OUR AMBASSADORS
Usain Bolt
Olympic and World Champion
Mary Earps
England Football Player
Maxx Crosby
American Football Defense End for the Las Vegas Raiders
Sandra Douglass Morgan
President of the Las Vegas Raiders
Josh Jacobs
American Football Running Back for the Las Vegas Raiders
Liam Neeson
Actor
WHAT WE DO
OUR EVENTS
EVENT ENDED
Las Vegas: It's a Penalty Launch & Press Event
Mon 29th Jan, 2024
9:30 - 11:30am PST
Caesars, Las Vegas
EVENT ENDED
Las Vegas: Volunteering with It's a Penalty
Mon 29th Jan, 2024
January 29 · 1:30pm - February 1 · 3:30pm PST
EVENT ENDED
Rosen College of Hospitality & It's a Penalty Fundraising Gala, u-Knighting against Human Trafficking
Fri 26th Jan, 2024
7pm • EST
UCF, Central Florida Blvd, Orlando, FL, USA
PARTNERS
