The 18th edition of the Red & Black Blood Donation was held from October 27 to 30 at Place Masséna. The operation brought together several hundred people and resulted in a significant number of donations. The club, institution, and municipality coordinated their efforts around a concrete goal: to encourage blood donation in the Azurean region.
The event welcomed 655 volunteers and resulted in 519 donations. Among the participants, a significant portion was first-time donors: 243 people donated for the first time. These new donors represented nearly 40% of the volunteers present. The collection thus exceeded some ratios usually observed at traditional collections.
The format of the event played a role in this attendance. A village dedicated to donation, decorated in the club’s colors, was set up at Place Masséna. Training center teams, players from the D2 women’s team, former players, and club staff took turns welcoming and informing passersby. Activities and a charity raffle enlivened the days. The prizes included tickets to matches, jerseys, and club merchandise.
Alexandre Talamoni, head of development for the Azurean territory at ESF, expressed the significance of the partnership: “by partnering with the Gym, we reach a new audience, often supporters or students, who leave proud to have done something that saves lives.”
Sport and solidarity: a regular partnership
The initiative is part of a long-standing relationship between the French Blood Establishment and OGC Nice. Since 2016, the two partners have met twice a year to organize this collection. This recurring calendar makes the event one of the regular fixtures of local life. For the organizers, the goal goes beyond a single collection: it is about creating a reflex and encouraging donation habits throughout the year.
The Donor House in Nice, located at 3 rue Galléan, is a facility that continuously welcomes donors for blood, plasma, and platelet donations. Organizers encouraged participants to go there to continue the momentum initiated by the event.
Virginie Rossetti summed up the club’s ambition: “this partnership perfectly embodies our values: solidarity, the collective, and surpassing oneself. Seeing that nearly 4 in 10 donors gave for the first time thanks to the Gym’s appeal is the greatest success. The club wants to be a driver of engagement in the territory, not just on the field.”
Local impact and territorial challenges
The Alpes-Maritimes department faces particular constraints in terms of supplying blood products. It remains one of the territories that sometimes needs to rely on external supplies to meet its transfusion needs. In this context, local mobilization actions take on an operational dimension. The presence of a large club and a mobilizable audience provides complementary capacity to the usual collection systems.
The connection between the sports world and the health initiative allowed them to capture new profiles. Using the club’s visibility and the presence of its members helped turn curiosity into action. On-site interactions and the warmth of the operations encouraged participation.
Future prospects
The organizers plan to continue this format and strengthen its benefits. The idea is to maintain the momentum created during the collection period and to direct new donors to regular appointments at the Donor House. Maintaining key moments in the city and repeating semi-annual events constitute a strategy to stabilize contributions within the department.
At the local level, mobilization remains essential to ensure the availability of blood products. Similar partnerships, if deployed methodically, can help strengthen the supply chain and change behaviors.
