First, a few stories, then the swapping of shirts and finally everyone in front of the screen, cheering on Italy. On Friday, September 25, as Italy face Belgium in the Nations League, WAO Kitchen will host the first Jersey United Night, an evening that looks at football through everything that happens around it, too: passions, memories, objects and people that the sport brings together. Jersey United is a community that wants to experience sport in a genuine, non-divisive way, and this first edition will focus on football as a force for unity at a time of deep global divisions and fractures. It grew out of the coworking spaces at WAO – We Are Open, bringing together people from different backgrounds who share a passion for the great stories of football and sport, as well as the memorabilia that surrounds them. It is a dynamic that reflects WAO’s own philosophy: creating spaces where work can also generate relationships, exchanges and new projects open to the city.
The Jersey United Night begins at 7pm with a talk featuring Giuseppe De Bellis, co-founder and director of Undici and Executive Vice President of Sport, News and Entertainment at Sky Italia. At the centre of the conversation is football as a cultural phenomenon, and as a force that shapes language and identity. It is an approach that has been part of Undici from the beginning, with the editorial project bringing together sport, personalities, culture and innovation. At 8.45pm, attention turns to the match, with Italy v Belgium shown on the screens at WAO Kitchen. It is the Azzurri’s opening game in Group A1 of the 2026/27 UEFA Nations League, which also includes France and Turkey.
A Swappinho stand will also be there throughout the evening. The project was founded in Bergamo by Giorgio Remuzzi, Giulio Locatelli and Filippo Locatelli and is dedicated to football shirts and the culture of swapping them. The idea is simple: guests can bring their own shirts and meet other enthusiasts to exchange them, in a gesture inspired by the post-match shirt swap between players, a form of recognition that goes beyond the rivalry on the pitch. The talk and watch party will be accompanied by WAO Kitchen’s food and drink offering, with guests able to stop for an aperitivo or something to eat, choosing from sandwiches, toast, pizza slices and the rest of the menu. The wait for kick-off becomes a chance to meet, swap a shirt or simply talk about football.
WAO Kitchen is located inside WAO Bassi, at 8 Via Ugo Bassi, in the Isola district, and was created as a space not only for the community that uses the coworking space every day, but also for the neighbourhood and the city. During the 2026 World Cup, it hosted a series of watch parties for the final stages of the tournament. With Jersey United Night, the match becomes part of a wider story: first comes the conversation around football, then the shirts change hands, and finally everyone comes together in front of the screen.