The United Games of Nations (UG) were founded in September 1989 in Mürzsteg, a little Austrian village with about 600 inhabitants. In the following year, the first international event of the United Games took place simultaneously in Austria and Hungary, and the first organisational and structural guidelines were made. UG Austria, UG Hungary and UG International with its headquarters in Graz, Austria, were founded. In the same year, a border monument across the former “iron curtain” between Austria and Hungary was constructed. When UG Germany and UG Czech Republic joined in 1991, the United Games were also involved in the organisation of regional children and youth councils and summits to promote the UN convention “Rights of the Child”. UG co-organised also the German nation-wide children’s summit “natur-Kindergipfel”.

In 1992, first co-operations started with the Young Voice International Campaign based in Oslo and with Peace Child International in London, and the annual United Games festival took place simultaneously in the four participating countries. In 1993, UG Slovenia joined the UG family to spread the UG idea also in the former Yugoslavia. Some other major projects were organised and co-organised, for example, the Austrian Children’s Summit and the International Peace Festival for Children on the occasion of the Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer in 1994.

In the same year the Post Pessimist Movement was initiated to bring together adolescents of all former Yugoslavian countries to build up a network for understanding and against the war and hatred. United Games helped to develop this movement as an independent NGO. 1999 the Post Pessimists received the Global Youth Peace & Tolerance Award at the UN in New York.

Also the history of the United Games festivals went on, in 1995 UG Serbia & Montenegro joined, so the festivals took place in six countries at the same time. In that year, the 50^th anniversary of the United Nations was celebrated, that was why the United Games/Peace Child Musical was performed simultaneously in seven towns in seven European countries on June 10^th at 08:00 pm. More than 1000 young people were on stage.

1996 was an intensive project year for the United Games. In addition to the festivals in spring, the first mayor’s meeting in Subotica/Serbia was held, a UG Bike Tour from Berlin to Brussels was started and the United Games Young Voices were founded. UG also co-organised the international Youth Parliament at the UN in New York. The idea of UG India was born, and one year later, the first Indian delegation travels to the European festivals. Also another UG Bike Tour was made from Berlin via Prague to Olomouc, from the German president Roman Herzog to the Czech president Vaclav Havel. The UG Symphonic Orchestra was founded in Berlin and a Post Pessimist Theatre Tour went through Croatia, Bosnia and Serbia & Montenegro.

The children’s opera “Brundibar”, produced by the United Games, toured from Mürzzuschlag via Terezin in the Czech Republic to Berlin. The opera had already been performed in 1942 by children of the concentration camp in Terezin.

The first United Games India took place in Bangalore and Karnataka, where all European UG countries send delegates to. In the year of the 10^th anniversary, the European Youth Resolution was developed and presented in front of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg and the European Parliament in Brussels. In 1999, the United Games took over the mentorship for Millennium Young People’s Congress in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA where more than 650 young people from 110 countries participated.

In the year 2000, they dedicated its events to the International Year for a Culture of Peace officially declared by UNESCO in Paris and the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York. – All United Games events and programmes in all participating countries were focused on this topic.

The main project that was developed out of this process was the ”Young People’s Book on Non Violence”, which was written by young people from all United Games towns and countries involved and from partner organisations and was finally finished in 2003. UG also started the two years´ project by building a village school in Banjarpalya in India, where in 2001 delegations from Europe helped to build the school during the UG India Festival. Finally, after fundraising for the UG “Born Free School”, the opening was in 2001.

It was in 2001, too, when United Games started to work on an official town partnership between all UG municipalities and regions. So the heads of the Borough of Treptow-Köpenick of  Berlin (Germany); Mürzzuschlag (Austria); Subotica (Serbia & Montenegro); Izola (Slovenia); Balatonfüzfö, Zirc (Hungary) and also the Veszprém County Council Assembly (Hungary) and the Olomouc Region (Czech Republic) signed the town partnership declaration in January, 2002.

The municipalities and the Veszprém County Council Assembly mentioned above commit themselves to extend and intensify their cooperation in all aspects of designing a common Europe.

With their partnership they are aiming at a permanent exchange of experience in order to support and develop the chance for citizens to get to know each other.

The political representatives of the partner municipalities commit themselves to strengthen and develop youth participation. The partners consider direct partnership in associations, schools and youth initiatives to be extremely important.

In 2003, the UG became a member of the International Organisation Committee of the World Congress of Youth in Casablanca, Morocco. More than 850 young people from 135 countries had the possibility to work together on the issues “Tolerance – Solidarity – Sustainable Development”. As official member of the International Organising Committee, UGI coordinates and supports the organisation of the World Congress of Youth. In cooperation with the national Moroccan Organising Committee, UGI and the FH Joanneum develop the website of the World Congress of Youth

From all European United Games countries and from India, 30 young people participate in the World Congress of Youth.