Kandima Maldives Brings International Football Talent and a UNDP-Funded Art for Biodiversity Exhibition to its Shores
London, UK, 27 August 2026: Summer Kamp 2026 at Kandima Maldives has delivered on its promise of a season built around Play, Create, Move, and nowhere was that spirit more visible than in the resort's football-led guest activations. With World Cup fever sweeping the globe, Kandima Maldives welcomed freestyle football world champion Lia Lewis and Portuguese footballer Paulo Bernardo to the island, giving guests a summer highlight that blended sport, entertainment and genuine access to top-level talent.
PlaySpace and Football Fever Take Centre Stage
At PlaySpace, Kandima's social hub for sport, gaming and entertainment, guests gathered throughout the summer for lively seasonal moments, casual bites, family fun and shared experiences, giving families, teens and active adults another way to connect after a day in the sun. The space took on extra energy during Summer Kamp's World Cup Watch Party, becoming the island's home for football fever this season.
This year, Kandima welcomed freestyle football world champion couple Lia Lewis and Nolan Cacheux for a beachside showcase of freestyle tricks, followed by a hands-on masterclass that saw holidaymakers of all ages picking up skills alongside the pair. Portuguese midfielder Paulo Bernardo also brought his expertise to the island, trading passes with guests and staff in a football friendly and making special appearances around the resort throughout his stay.
With football woven into the fabric of Kandima's active lifestyle programming, Lia and Paulo join part of a growing roster of athletes who have touched down on the island, following Italian striker Mario Balotelli’s visit at the start of the year, alongside appearances from goalkeeper Ederson (Fenerbahçe, formerly Manchester City), Joe Gomez and Daniel Agger (Liverpool), and Wes Brown (Manchester United), among others.
Music, movement and family moments
Music adds another playful layer to the summer programme, with kids’ music lessons under the guidance of the resort’s musical talent creating fun opportunities for younger guests to explore rhythm, expression and performance.
Art, biodiversity and a living island exhibition
While football gave summer its energy, the resort's Art for Biodiversity Exhibition, developed under the long-running KULA Art Initiative and backed by a grant from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), takes Summer Kamp into its final chapter.
The exhibition's island-wide art trail will continue to feature into early October, with headline artist Petra Maitz, an Austrian interdisciplinary artist known for bridging contemporary art, science and environmental activism, joining with a residency. From 21 September to 5 October, Petra will host talks and crocheted craft workshops, while curating a coral artwork built from contributions by guests, local artists, resort staff and the wider community.
Beyond the art trail itself, the exhibition forms part of a wider effort to turn Maldivian creativity into a source of conservation funding and community support, alongside raising awareness of biodiversity and ocean ecology through storytelling.
An island that never stands still
Beyond these headline moments, Summer Kamp 2026 kept the wider island busy: mornings with the Kandima Running Club, tennis and yoga, diving and water sports with the Aquaholics team. This feel-good energy is one that Kandima will carry into autumn with Oktober Adventures, which will see residencies from tennis, karting and football talent, in the next chapter in the resort's island-wide programming.
More information on Kandima's autumn edit will be available soon. In the meantime, travellers can seize the tail end of summer with Kandima's Flash Sale, offering up to 55% off room rates for stays this summer or next, when booking direct at kandima.com.
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About Kandima Maldives
This game-changing resort is an affordable lifestyle destination. Kandima Maldives is smart, playful, rooted, and responsible. This 3-kilometre resort is a place with an authentic Maldivian soul. It is all about genuine hospitality with a human touch and innovative solutions that make use of the latest technology. Kandima Maldives is part of the hospitality group Pulse Hotels & Resorts and caters to guests of all ages: families, couples, groups of friends, and honeymooners. Whether you seek relaxation, aquatic and island adventures, well-being, fitness, or just family time, this 270-room beach resort has something for everybody. With one of the longest outdoor pools in the Maldives, a football pitch, tennis and volleyball courts, Aquaholics water sports, E-Go-Karting and dive centre, KULA Art Studio and many more, there is plenty to keep everyone occupied.
For more details, please visit: www.kandima.com
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