BEST SPORTS COMMUNITY SCHEME – FOOTBALL CLUBS
Aston Villa Foundation
Launched in 2024, Everybody’s Game demonstrates the Aston Villa Foundation’s commitment to EDI principles and provides much needed support in the local communities around Villa Park.
South Asian representation in grassroots and professional football is significantly lower, despite South Asian communities compromising the biggest ethnic minority group in our target communities.
Everybody’s Game breaks down barriers to football for young male and female players of South Asian background who live in Birmingham, whilst supporting volunteer coaches and other club officials in developing their confidence in football delivery. Overall, the objective of
Everybody’s Game is to create a stronger football infrastructure amongst the British South Asian community.
To date, we have worked with just over 20 clubs, religious or community groups which has seen:
– Over 500 participants (children, young people and adults) from South Asian backgrounds benefiting
– 34 festivals, tournaments & activation events, engaging hundreds of young male and female players
– 526 1:1 mentoring sessions for volunteer coaches
– 15 coach development workshops
– Distribution of AVFC tickets, kit and equipment to participating clubs and organisations
– Developing a network of delivery and funding partners advocating for our project (FIFA Foundation, Islamic Relief, Muslim Sports Foundation, Panjab FA)
LFC Foundation
The LFC Foundation stands as one of the largest football club foundations in the UK, supporting 127,000 individuals across the Liverpool City Region, North Wales, the Republic of Ireland, the USA, Senegal, and Tanzania during the last season. With a dedicated team of over 100 staff members, the Foundation achieves a remarkable social return of £13.70 for every £1 invested. Nearly 60% of participants within the Liverpool City Region originate from the most deprived 20% of wards nationally. The Foundation’s programmes have delivered substantial health benefits, with over 88% of participants reporting improved mental health and more than 90% noting enhanced physical fitness. The Foundation’s work addresses the persistent challenges of multi-generational deprivation and limited aspirations by collaborating closely with Liverpool FC’s commercial partners, generating over £600,000 in funding in the past year. Notable programmes include Kodansha Creative Works, which fosters creativity and offers paid work experience opportunities; Wasabi Technologies’ Red Hot Beats, which supports children’s mental health through football and music; AXA’s World Earth Day engagement involving Premier League players and providing unique experiences. These initiatives exemplify the Foundation’s commitment to creating lasting, positive change in communities through strategic partnerships to raise aspirations home and away.
Saints Foundation
Saints Foundation is the charity of Southampton Football Club, supporting Southampton by delivering a variety of projects in response to the ever-changing needs of our city. Using sport and the power of the Saints badge, we connect with our communities to help those who feel the impact of inequalities the most.
We run a total of 15 projects spread across our five key pillars: Health, Education, Pathways (crime prevention), Employability and Gender Equality. Using the power of tailored interventions and sport, we successfully engage beneficiaries to build a more positive future and support our vision of helping the city thrive.
Some of Saints Foundation’s achievements in the 2023/24 season include:
Saints Foundation generated £7,381,255 of social value for the city of Southampton
Engaged with 5779 unique participants with 85% achieving a positive outcome.
76% of young people referred to us by youth justice didn’t reoffend for 3 months and 50% didn’t reoffend at all.
Through working with us, 59% of participants have improved their engagement in school.
As a result of our men’s mental health project, 92% of participants increased their knowledge of what mental health support is out there and how to access it.
Tottenham Hotspur Foundation
Over the past two years, our foundation has made significant strides toward our vision of becoming the leading CCO in the country. We are proud of the progress we’ve made—and even more excited about the future.
Our work is rooted in a deep commitment to North Central London in the Spurs Heartlands where we are actively embedding our culture and values within local systems, key partnerships, and stakeholder relationships. We are not only working in communities—we are working with them to thrive.
From improving access to integrated care services to supporting community-led initiatives, we are helping to build stronger, healthier, and more connected neighbourhoods across the region. Our focus areas include tackling health inequalities, supporting mental wellbeing, championing preventative care, and co-designing services that reflect the diverse needs of the people we serve.
By fostering collaboration with local authorities, schools and NHS partners, voluntary sector organisations, and residents themselves, we aim to create lasting, positive change. Most importantly, we want to make North Central London a truly thriving place to live and work—where everyone has the opportunity to lead a healthier, more fulfilling life.
Watford FC’s Community Sports and Education Trust
The Trust is on a mission to create healthier, happier, stronger communities. The team delivers 26 projects across Hertfordshire and parts of Greater London. Over the last year, the Trust has grown it’s impact across the community and responded to additional local needs.
This has included delivering a series of adult health events, strengthening delivery of key mental health projects, and helping to address concerns around life-limiting behaviours.
As a result of the team’s dedication and hard work, 17,796 unique beneficiaries were supported, in addition to weekly footfalls of 1,500 and 1,100 at the Trust-run Community Centres. An independent assessment of outcome data, commissioned by the English Football League, demonstrated that during the period, the Trust delivered £22,700,960 of social value.
Feedback has been extremely positive:
“She became more confident in class, answering more questions and getting involved in group discussions. She became a helper to her class peers which has helped me.”
“My partner was advised to go straight to A&E as his blood pressure reading (taken 5 times) was 227/121!! He has had no symptoms but because we attended the event his GP is monitoring him now and he has been prescribed medication. You probably saved his life!!”
West Ham United FC & Lyca Mobile
In East London—a region of rich culture, but economic hardship—West Ham United and Lyca Mobile have transformed grassroots engagement through Lyca Mobile in the Community. Developed with the West Ham United Foundation, our strategy went well beyond traditional tournaments, embedding inclusion, talent pathways, and community storytelling at its core.
This season’s Community project welcomed over 400 participants, many of whom were from backgrounds which are underrepresented throughout elite level football, to providing Talent ID sessions, Academy insights, and coaches workshops. As a result, 22 players were provided with a previously hard to attain opportunity to progress to a Premier League held tournament. We also launched Hotspots, a content series celebrating East London’s hidden food businesses, reaching 7M+ impressions and delivering measurable uplift for local enterprises.
Importantly, Lyca Mobile’s approach reflects long-thought commitment, not short-term optics. As Lyca’s Deputy Chairman said, this partnership stands out for “shared commitment… tangible examples” such as the Cup and Hotspots series. Today, Lyca ranks among our three most recognised commercial partners, with awareness rising from 47.5% to 70%.
This initiative is more than one season-it’s a template for inclusive community impact, scaling diverse pathways for young people, businesses, and coaches across east London and beyond.
