The first day of the third edition of the Thinking Football Summit ended with a Solemn Session, which opened with a speech by Pedro Proença. “It is a source of pride for me, as President of Liga Portugal, to see the great Football Community once again gathered in this magnificent Super Bock Arena. Allow me to highlight three words that define what this Thinking Football Summit is all about: unity, leadership and vision!” he said:

“Unity because we are experiencing a special atmosphere in Portuguese Football. An environment of aggregation. Not only between all the clubs, but also between all the players. From the bottom to the top of the pyramid, as we saw recently at the Liga Portugal Awards. And as has been seen in the many public signs of convergence and dialog between our leaders! This unity is fundamental for the future we all want for Portuguese soccer. Leadership because Professional Football has been the great driving force of this industry in the discussion of the present and in the projection of the Future. We have taken on this role with responsibility, courage and a sense of mission, but also with an enormous spirit of aggregation, because we know that this is a path that we cannot travel alone. Vision, because it's not enough to want to, we need to know, think and plan well the paths we want to take together. For Better Football. For Bigger Football. For a Football of All and for All!”

For Pedro Proença, “the maturity, vitality and culture of partnership that we have achieved are an asset that cannot be wasted”. “On the contrary! This new era in Portuguese soccer must be capitalized on! Opponents on the pitch, natural business partners off it! It's the only way forward! We will leave here stronger in our goal of continuing to build the Future of Portuguese Football! Because at the end of the day, this is the Football that unites us!” he concluded.