Individual Report

R E V I E W 201 8/ 1 9 S E A SO N

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Contents

Formed in 2010, the Chelsea Foundation brings together the Football in the Community, Education and international departments along with the club’s other charitable and community activities, including anti-discrimination projects and continued support for past players.

As one of the world’s leading football social responsibility programmes, the Chelsea Foundation uses the power of football and sport to motivate, educate and inspire. We believe the power of football can be harnessed to support communities and individuals both at home and abroad.

On top of our outstanding football development programmes, the Chelsea Foundation works on a broad range of initiatives focusing on employment, education, social deprivation, crime reduction, youth offending and much more.

04 Chairman’s foreword

06 Community

16 Educating through football

22 Foundation in numbers

24 Chelsea around the world

30 Working with charity

34 Promoting equality

38 Plan International

42 Past Players’ Trust

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Each year my fellow Trustees and I are amazed by the breadth and the depth of the Foundation’s work. There is a real and genuine need for programmes linking social benefits to sport, now more than ever.

There are few, if any, areas of society that football cannot help. It can educate, it can improve health, cut crime, inspire entrepreneurs, promote equality and ultimately it can bring people and their communities together.

This is exactly what the Foundation has been doing in more than 100 towns, cities and boroughs in the UK and in 21 countries internationally. We are engaging more and more female players, leading the way for disability provision and establishing new and exciting initiatives dedicated to using sport as a force for good.

Our players are also increasingly engaged with our work, promoting our programmes, visiting schools and hosting young people at our training ground in Cobham and at games at Stamford Bridge.

We believe it is not just about the quantity it is also about the quality. We maintain the high standards we have established over the last 10 years and continue to ensure a deep engagement and positive outcome to our work.

Our work tackling discrimination and promoting equality continues to grow. Through our Building Bridges programme we are delivering workshops in schools and engaging fans and the wider community in our work celebrating diversity. Our Say No To Antisemitism campaign is now a global leader and a blueprint in how sport can be used to tackle hatred across the world.

We were delighted when our men’s team took part in the ground-breaking Final Whistle on Hate game in Boston when we took on the New England Revolution. The match increased awareness of the dangers of antisemitism and raised $4m for anti-discrimination

Using sport to educate, motivate and inspire

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organisations. Similarly the women’s team visited Israel to play the Israeli national team, promote the women’s game and demonstrate how football can bring people together.

We were proud that the campaign was awarded the Community Programme of the Year at the London Football Awards and was honoured in the French Senate, receiving the ‘Gold’ award from Ligue Internationale Contre le Racisme et l’Antisémitisme (LICRA).

This and all our equality work will continue to expand and although we cannot stop hatred and intolerance overnight, we hope that we can play an important role in creating a club and communities that are welcoming to all.

Our partnership with Plan also continues to provide opportunities for young people around the world promoting the rights of children and providing important education programmes on health, hygiene and gender equality. I was proud to visit one of their programmes in Jordan at the Azrak refugee camp seeing their important work at first hand and how they play a vital role in the community. It is a visit that was truly inspiring and one that I will never forget.

The Foundation was set up to educate, motivate and inspire and I am delighted that is exactly what we are doing, week in and week out, benefiting hundreds of thousands of people of all ages and backgrounds. Our work will continue to grow and develop and I have no doubt we are creating a legacy that will be long lasting and impactful and something that staff, fans and our communities can be rightfully proud of.

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1. Participants in Vietnam receive some words of advice from Foundation coaches

2. Chelsea Women’s manager Emma Hayes and players Deanna Cooper and Anita Asante take part in a Foundation coaching session in Israel

3. Bruce Buck collects the Community Project of the Year award at the London Football Awards

4. Girls take part in a robotics challenge during one of our technology-focused education sessions

Bruce Buck

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The Community arm of the Foundation is committed to developing sport, promoting equality, engaging communities, inspiring through Chelsea and providing opportunities for all.

Our Soccer Schools remain the perfect way for your little ones to spend the school holidays, whether they are the next Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Fran Kirby or have never kicked a ball before. For those budding superstars, our Advanced Soccer Schools will provide a new level of challenge.

In term time we work with a number of schools partners. The majority of these sessions take place after school and specifically cater for the pupils attending that school, while our post-16 college academy offerings continue to expand.

The Chelsea Foundation are heavily involved in the nationwide Kicks programme alongside the Premier League, working with 11 to 19-year-olds across four different London boroughs to improve community cohesion and social integration within disadvantaged areas and with at-risk individuals.

The Foundation provides industry-leading opportunities in pan-disability sport and Chelsea staff

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also offer mentoring and training opportunities for teachers, empowering them to engage with young people with disabilities in a mainstream education environment.

Activate Seniors aims to develop and enhance the experiences of older people, focusing on key areas including reducing social isolation, improving health and wellbeing and bridging the generation gap, while our men’s and women’s walking football sessions help hundreds of people improve their health and fitness while building social cohesion.

Our female engagement programmes include Football Development Centres, women’s walking football and the Premier League Women and Girls project, creating a clear pathway for young women to play, coach and improve physical and emotional wellbeing through football based activities.

The Chelsea Foundation Futsal Club runs three senior futsal teams, allowing players to earn academic and coaching qualifications while competing at a national level, as well as successful junior sides across several age groups.

hours of free coaching per week

277

Soccer Schools for girls and boys of all abilities continue to thrive in London, Surrey, Essex, Kent, Sussex, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Middlesex and Berkshire

Players and staff pose for a squad pic at one of the colleges the Foundation support through our college academy relationships

Former Blue Joe Cole hands out the trophies at a Foundation Soccer School

Youngsters at one of our school sessions enjoy a practical session with Foundation coaches

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Developing sport Community

hours of coaching per week

1,067

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Developing sport

different sports offered by Foundation coaches

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Chelsea Foundation Futsal has continued to thrive this year with success for different age groups

Kepa Arrizabalaga surprises pupils and dons the gloves at one of our weekly school sessions

Participants pose for a picture during a joint basketball session with QPR

Ruben Loftus-Cheek dishes out the high fives at a

Foundation Super Camp event at Cobham

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Community

Inspire through Chelsea The Foundation enjoy a unique relationship with St Mary’s University, providing football-based academic courses for students interested in a career in sport.

We have officially worked with St Mary’s since 2016 with the previous two-year foundation degree now expanded to a three-year undergraduate degree, titled Chelsea FC Foundation Coaching Degree.

Designed to help create the future coaches for the Chelsea Foundation and other community sporting organisations, this year’s cohort enjoyed a day to remember when they began life at St Mary’s with a visit to our training ground followed by a stadium tour and networking opportunity. There were also celebrations at the end of the academic year as our second cohort of students graduated at Westminster Cathedral.

The Peter Osgood Award has been presented to a deserving and inspirational individual from the Chelsea Foundation’s many projects since 2016, with this year’s being handed to coach Harry Baker by the legendary Blues striker’s widow Lynn Osgood, in recognition of Harry’s voluntary work at Blenheim High School.

“The Foundation is so much bigger than any of us realised prior to visiting the stadium, there are so many people involved and within one week I can tell this course is the right decision for me” SHAUNA MUNNELLY

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Spotlight on Chelsea Champions The Chelsea Champions initiative was launched last year, seeing the Foundation place full-time staff within secondary schools in order to increase physical activity, support leadership qualities and improve the emotional wellbeing and resilience of pupils.

The full-time Foundation staff have been joined regularly at schools by some of the younger players from our Academy’s Under-18s team, talking to pupils about living healthily, both mentally and physically.

Among the highlights of the past year was a Christmas event at Stamford Bridge to tackle loneliness and isolation in the modern world.

The students were joined on the day by Blues duo Olivier Giroud and Rob Green, Dr Alex George, of Love Island fame, and a host of the Academy scholars who supported the programme all year.

young people involved in the Chelsea

Champions scheme

605

“It was a great experience being here. You have to live with social media in this modern day and it is important to discuss how this can have both negative and positive impacts. It was interesting and important to discuss with teenagers how they can improve how they use it and the impact it has on your life day to day” OLIVIER GIROUD

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Community

Engaging communities

offenders enrolled on to the Introduction to Coaching course

61

Our Breaking the Cycle initiative delivers football, vocational qualifications and employability workshops for prisoners. We also work with the prisoner case-workers, youth offending officers and families to build up a picture of how the young person can be best helped when they are released from prison

The Foundation have participated in the Premier League Kicks programme since 2006, using the power of football to regularly engage young people in activity with the goal of inspiring them to develop their potential, enhance their wellbeing and positively impact their communities to be safer, stronger and more inclusive

Participants on our programme in association with Universal Language, who have recently moved to England, take part in a practical session with our coaches

Deserving participants meet Gianfranco Zola at the men’s FA Cup third round draw

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Engaging communities

The Chelsea Foundation has always been committed to supporting the club’s older fans and in August two of our most loyal supporters, and members of our Active Seniors, were rewarded with a trip to the Royal Box for the Community Shield

Health and wellbeing remains a primary objective for the Community team with among our work a collaboration with Headway West London and Charing Cross Physiotherapists to develop and deliver a programme for those with brain injuries, supporting them to create positive healthy habits

A Chelsea Foundation walking football team were crowned winners of the 2019 Old Stars Walking Football Tournament, overcoming players representing Bruges, Schalke and PSV Eindhoven on route

During the season we announced a new collaboration with the Barry McGuigan Boxing Academy, with the aim of working together to provide new boxing and physical activity programmes for young people and older adults in Wandsworth and west London

reminiscence workshops delivered for participants experiencing memory loss

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Disability sport After its massively successful inauguration, the Disability Showcase returned for a second year in 2019, again taking place at our Cobham training ground and Stamford Bridge.

It remains the largest football disability showcase event in the UK, with more than 800 participants involved over the course of the weekend, including five disability football tournaments involving 72 teams from a host of different clubs.

The activities at Cobham included pan-disability tournaments for under-8s, under 12s and under 16 players. The focus switched to adults the next day, with three mini-tournaments taking place on the Stamford Bridge pitch.

Andy Rose, senior disability officer for the Foundation, said: ‘The event is all about creating an opportunity for disabled people to play football.

‘It doesn’t matter what club you play for or support or where you live, it is about having an opportunity to play football at Cobham or Stamford Bridge and it is vital we give children with disabilities the same opportunities as non-disabled players.’

On top of this we currently host a range of disability teams for adults and children as well as providing training for mainstream teachers to incorporate disabled players in their games and lessons. We also host specialist disabled coaching sessions in Cobham, London, Wiltshire, Sussex and Hants.

Community

disabled participants

3,500+

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Developing female sport

female participants attend our football sessions in the UK

7,500+Foundation coaches work with the Parliament Women’s football team with weekly sessions, helping the players to develop their skills

Women’s walking football is an up-and-coming sport with the number of participants on our weekly sessions rising rapidly

With the women’s game now in the mainstream, young females attending our programmes now have role models like Chelsea FC Women and England star Fran Kirby to look up to

Participants on our Chelsea Foundation Academy in partnership with Blenheim

High School present Eden Hazard with his Player of the Month award at Cobham

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Community

Asian Star The ground breaking Asian Star initiative celebrated its tenth anniversary at Stamford Bridge in 2019 as 200 youngsters took part in the annual event.

The first scheme of its kind undertaken by a professional football club, Asian Star is designed to give a much-needed boost to Asian participation at all levels of the game, with girls invited to take part for the second year.

The boys and girls in attendance compete in age groups ranging from under-9 to under-12. They were led by Chelsea Foundation coaches and judged on a series of matches and tests, with the winners invited to join the Foundation’s Football Development Centres.

Under-11 winner Rayhan Islam discussed his feelings after he was presented with a trophy: ‘I think I had the motivation and wanted it more than others and I’m really looking forward to attending the Football Development Centre because the Chelsea coaches are really good.’

“I have been here a few times and seeing the smiles on the faces of the girls and boys playing just makes me really happy. The main thing is about having fun but this event is growing every year and continuing to provide opportunities for young players. It is great the club is doing this and you can see what a success it is” TORE ANDRE FLO

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Our Foundation education programmes encourage lifelong learning for people of all ages, with an emphasis on innovative programmes and teaching methods to improve employment prospects, inspire children and teach information technology skills for the modern world.

Working in partnership with learning providers, schools and businesses, we use the power of football and Chelsea to excite and motivate more than 2,000 learners each season aged from seven to 65.

The 2018/19 season saw new ground broken via our innovation and STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) initiatives with trips to the United States and Holland taking place as our Digital Blue programme went international.

Our employability programmes support job seekers to find work, while we support learning in more than 75 partner schools and colleges within our community, with particular focus on literacy, numeracy, employability, enterprise and technology.

Anti-discrimination, celebrating equality and diversity are also key messages taught across our programmes.

unique participants attended our

education sessions

13,834

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Educating through football

Spotlight on schools

“I couldn’t believe that Azpilicueta was with us at my school and we were able to play with him. I’ve never had anything like this before, it’s been really good and I was really shocked when he came in” MARCI (PUPIL)

The Foundation is committed to supporting primary schools in our communities.

During the 2018/19 season a host of players took time out to visit these schools as part of the Premier League Primary Stars initiative, which uses the appeal of football clubs to inspire children to learn, be active and develop important life skills in the classroom, the playground and on the sports field.

Among those to make a visit was Cesar Azpilicueta, who surprised pupils at Fulham Primary School when he walked into their Premier League Primary Stars PE lesson.

While there the Spanish international donated a Premier League Primary Stars equipment pack, including footballs, numbered and lettered floor spots and giant dices, which teachers at the primary school can use in lessons across the curriculum to help inspire children to learn and be active.

Azpilicueta said: ‘I really enjoy doing things like this, the kids were Chelsea fans and they love all the actions that the club does with the Foundation for them.

‘It was very special and I enjoyed myself and I think they had a good time too.

‘For myself, school was a big part in my football career so I can spend time with the kids to help them understand a bit more about being a professional footballer and what it takes to be one.

‘I think it’s important they know that they are at that stage where they have to study in school and enjoy playing football and I’m sure they will fight to achieve their dreams.’

education sessions delivered throughout

the season

2,000+

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Employability and entrepreneurship Employability and entrepreneurship is a fundamental part of our education work with our unique Edge of the Box Club now considered one of the most important early start-up clubs in London.

Established in 2015 the monthly event hosts innovation workshops to help new businesses. These include guest speakers and provide opportunities to build the right networks, attracting more than 150 start-up businesses each month at Stamford Bridge.

Among the highlights in the 2018/19 season was the visit of Made in Chelsea star and co-founder of Candy Kittens, Jamie Laing.

A life-long Chelsea supporter, Laing and managing director of Candy Kittens Edward Williams were guest speakers at Stamford Bridge where they delivered an engaging talk about the highs and lows they’ve experienced during the building of their brand.

Laing said: ‘You have a lot of risk, a lot of pressure on yourself and so places like this bring a community together that can give you advice on so many different things and there are a lot of people out there who are able and willing to help you, and I think that is the key thing.

start-ups have attended the Edge of the Box Club

4,000+

“These events that the club are doing are incredible. The thing that people think and fear is that they have to do it all by themselves and entrepreneurship can be a lonely place” JAMIE LAING, CO-FOUNDER OF CANDY KITTENS

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Educating through football

Girl powered

of participants attending our education programmes

are female

58%Players from the Chelsea Women’s team meet girls hoping to represent the Blues at the annual Premier League Primary Stars tournament

Participants listen intently to a guest speaker at our Female Focus event; Be the Best You

Club ambassador Katie Chapman joins the participants from our girls’ only robotics event at Stamford Bridge

More than half of the attendees at our Edge of the Box Club and Young People’s EOTB are female

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Innovation, enterprise and technology students have takenpart in STEM focused

programmes

424

Chelsea Foundation staff take our Digital Blue programme on the road to support unique skateboarding festival, Innoskate, at the Olympic Park

The Chelsea Foundation joined forces with leading education technology company EVERFI in New York to launch an exciting new STEM programme, benefitting 25 schools in Harlem and the surrounding areas

Chelsea FC Women defender Ali Riley takes part in the first-ever Chelsea Foundation

Digital Blue live event, engaging with more than 300 students from three schools and

10 classrooms located in America

Our Digital Blue programme crosses the continent with staff delivering the programme to students attending the Feyenoord Foundation in Holland

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Educating through football

Providing inspiration Our players are crucial in supporting our education programmes with members of both the women’s and men’s teams regularly taking time out to visit projects.

These included Anita Asante popping in to a local school to support a Premier League Primary Stars workshop and Eden Hazard and Antonio Rudiger attending equality and diversity workshops at schools in London.

“Events like these are very important because with the way the world is going everything is multi-cultural so it’s very good that young kids at this age are starting to know and understand the meaning of us all being equal” ANTONIO RUDIGER

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£8.2m invested by the Foundation in our communities

More than 250 charities supported via donation of signed memorabilia and tickets

raised through Bucket Collections

people engaged on the Activate Seniors programme

of participants within our education programmes are from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Groups

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£12,394

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of staff have previously attended Foundation

programmes

21%

Soccer Schools per season

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coaching hours per week Working in more than 500 schools

unique participants per season

people involved in intergenerational sessions

participants undertaking additional academic qualifications

adapted sports sessions delivered including walking football, curling, walking cricket

adult participants now in full-time education

former players aged 55 and over received Christmas hampers

young people involved in health initiatives within schools

1,431

82,836

149

273

232 144 117148

Chelsea Foundation in numbers

Number of colleges we work in regularly

17

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In addition to our wide-ranging work in the UK, we provide a community coaching network which operates across the globe, aiding the development of grassroots football with tailored programmes to meet local needs.

That work includes our first community club development partnership in the US with FC Harlem. The initiative began offering opportunities for young people in New York with low economic means to

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access soccer in a safe environment in 2013 and now, with Chelsea coaches on the ground, has extended into local schools and organisations to offer coaching programmes in the community.

The Foundation also runs permanent programmes located in Thailand and Singapore, as well as soccer schools in Hong Kong, Japan and Indonesia, with highlights including the Global Goals World Cup at NIST International School, Bangkok.

unique participants took part in international

programmes

29,248

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Chelsea around the world

USA The Foundation visited multiple locations in the USA during the season allowing us to work with a host of local schools and clubs in the country and make a meaningful impact in the community.

That work includes our work with FC Harlem, our first community club development partnership in the US, where our Foundation coaches have been putting on regular coaching sessions for kids in New York since 2013.

Other cities visited included Philadelphia, San Diego and Boston as part of the Final Whistle on Hate game against New England Revolution (read more on pages 36-37).

During the 2018/19 season the FC Harlem LIONS (Leaders In Our Neighbourhood) played their first major tournament when they competed in the Dallas Cup with the support of the Foundation. They also played New England Revolution Academy in Boston as part of the Final Whistle on Hate charity match.

Focus is on grassroots coaching, coach education and elite development throughout the cities we visit. Highlights from the season included the launch of a STEM programme across schools in New York, and our first-ever affiliation with a state association in Illinois, supporting the soccer for success coach education and Olympic development programme.

coaching sessions delivered to participants

in the USA

900+

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Asia The Foundation runs permanent programmes located in Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong as well as development camps in Australia and New Zealand.  

Highlights include ‘The Global Goals World Cup’ which took place at NIST International School, home of our Bangkok International Development Centre – a place which had its own success story in Garfield, Latte and Guy who all progressed on to the next phase of their footballing journeys.

Garfield, full name Nittikarn Muangkul, in particular attended our development centre in Bangkok as part of a scholarship programme, and earned himself a call-up to the national team!

As well as the permanent bases the Foundation coaches in Asia work to support local schools, coaches and communities with visits and coaching sessions arranged on a regular basis.

“My scholarship at Chelsea FC Foundation International Development Centre has given me the opportunity to work with great coaches and team-mates and to also play regular matches at a good competitive level” NITTIKARN MUANGKUL (AKA GARFIELD)

children attended Foundation programmes

in Asia

11,326

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Chelsea on tour Chelsea around the world

High fives all round for Ruben Loftus-Cheek during a Foundation

workshop at a middle school in Boston

A Foundation coach shows off his skills for young players during the pre-season tour to Perth

Emerson greets a young supporter during a visit to a school in Boston as part of our post-season trip

Former Blue Mark Schwarzer joined Foundation coaches for a junior tournament Down Under

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Supporting our partners

participants engaged through partner events

8,642

A young supporter takes part in a Foundation Yokohama Skills

Challenege in Austin, Texas

Our Africa XI, selected in collaboration with our partners Shield from across Africa, made a trip to Cobham where they met David Luiz, N’Golo Kante and Michael Essien

Participants enjoying one of the Foundation’s grassroots football sessions with the support of Carabao

Young female participants listening intently during a coaching session with principal partner Yokohama

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1. South Africa 2. Zambia 3. Zimbabwe 4. Nigeria 5. Ghana 6. Belarus 7. USA 8. Russia 9. Jordan 10. Qatar 11. Vietnam 12. Thailand 13. Spain 14. Greece 15. Italy 16. Ireland 17. Singapore 18. Japan 19. China 20. Holland 21. Australia

WORKING IN 21 COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD

Global Community

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The Chelsea Foundation is fully aware of our role in promoting and supporting other charities and good causes. With the support of the club we are fully committed to helping a number of charities raise funds for their vital work, through providing signed merchandise and offering matchday collections at Stamford Bridge as well as using the power of our players to spread key messages.

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Spotlight on…. When Telamsile met N’Golo Kanté Throughout the season Community Days and Matchday Wishes regularly happen with the Chelsea Foundation linking up with a range of charities and individuals to arrange visits for seriously or terminally ill supporters and their carers.

In the 2018/19 season, one visit in particular stands out, when Telamsile met N’Golo!

The visit was organised after a request from the Willow Foundation - the only national charity working with seriously ill young adults aged 16 to 40 to fulfil uplifting and unforgettable Special Days – for 21-year-old Telamsile Dlamini to meet her favourite player.

After counting down the days the life-long Blue finally got to experience that moment and her day was made even more special when the French midfielder surprised her with a signed Chelsea shirt.

Telamsile and her family also met the rest of the Chelsea squad on a day they will never forget.

Working with charity

families attended Cobham community days or other

player-based visits

70

“It was very special because I got to meet my favourite football player, N’Golo Kante. The moment I stepped foot on that training section, I couldn’t believe I was here, no, no, it’s not me that is here, but actually, it was me!” TELAMSILE DIAMINI

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Spreading joy to those in need Supporting our communities is key to both the club and Foundation and this is particularly prevalent during the Christmas period, with both our men’s and women’s teams visiting local hospitals.

For the men it is Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, while our women’s squad travelled to Kingston Hospital to meet the children, many of whom will spend the holidays away from home.

Throughout the year newborn babies at Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, along with those at Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea continue to receive a Chelsea FC teddy bear as part of our commitment to the local community.

teddy bears donated to newborns at local hospitals

3,300

“It’s been a pleasure, I like to see the players’ enthusiasm they have shown today. It’s been very good, very touching and very important” GIANFRANCO ZOLA

“It’s been an incredible experience and hopefully it has helped to take their minds off things for a little while whilst we have been here. It’s so important to do these types of visits as you can see how much fun everyone is having and for us it helps us feel that we are giving back to the people who give so much to us” ALI RILEY

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Working with charity

Supporting our armed forces The club and Foundation are committed to supporting our armed forces and the Royal British Legion.

Remembrance Day 2018 was particularly poignant as it marked the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War with a host of activities taking place to mark Armistice Day.

In the build up, we took part in the For Club and Country campaign organised by the Football Association, Premier League and Football League in partnership with the Woodland Trust and National Football Museum.

For that our club captain Gary Cahill and club ambassador Katie Chapman planted seven trees at our Cobham training ground to serve as a living legacy to those who had played for Chelsea and who served and died during World War One – Robert Atherton, George Kennedy, George Lake, Philip Smith, Robert Whiting, Arthur Wileman and Norman Wood.

Ahead of the men’s game with Everton on 11 November, volunteers from the British Legion were outside Stamford Bridge collecting donations before watching the fixture as our guests.

They were joined in the stands by serving members of the Armed Forces, who greeted the players on arrival at the stadium and placed a Remembrance banner and a display of the words ‘Chelsea Remembers’ on the pitch.

Both our men’s and women’s teams also proudly wore special-edition shirts embroidered with a poppy. All shirts were then signed and donated to the Legion for auction after the games.

tickets for troops at every home game

50

“It’s important we honour those who made the ultimate sacrifice for us during the war. The trees are a perfect way to commemorate the Chelsea players who did just that and a lasting symbol of that sacrifice” KATIE CHAPMAN

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We are proud to be a diverse and inclusive club which is open to all, whatever their background or identity, and it is through our Building Bridges campaign that we promote equality, celebrate diversity and make everyone feel valued throughout our club, stadium and wider community.

We work with everyone from children and young people in schools to community groups, anti- discrimination organisations and our men’s, women’s and Academy teams, to create a club where everyone feels welcome.

That includes our work with the Chelsea Disabled Supporters’ Association, a range of charities and football authorities including Kick It Out, and our LGBT fans’ group, Chelsea Pride, which was established in 2016 to increase visibility and give LGBT people a representative voice at the club.

In celebration of our equality and diversity work, our annual Game for Equality for 2018/19 took place when West Ham United were the visitors to Stamford Bridge. The squad wore Game for Equality T-shirts during the warm-up and proudly displayed the Building Bridges logo on their kit.

The club’s Say No To Antisemitism continued throughout the season with highlights including the men’s first team travelling to Boston for the Final Whistle on Hate and women’s team visiting Israel to promote the women’s game in the country.

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“I’m proud to play for a club where everyone is welcome, whoever they are, whatever their background and wherever they come from. At Chelsea being different is what makes us strong and helps us to be successful on and off the pitch. The Game for Equality is a great opportunity to celebrate that” CESAR AZPILICUETA

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Support Chelsea, support equality

Celebrating diversity

Pupils at a Fulham school after taking part in one of our many equality and diversity workshops

Players from our men’s first team show their support for Chelsea Pride

Academy players help promote the Premier League’s No Room for Racism campaign

The club remain committed to working with and supporting equality organisations like Kick It Out

equality and diversity themed sessions

delivered in schools

95

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Say No To Antisemitism With the leadership of club owner Roman Abramovich, Chelsea Football Club has been working alongside a number of key partners to help create a programme to tackle antisemitism that has a deep and meaningful impact.

The Say No To Antisemitism project, which was launched in January 2018, is now setting the standard for combating discrimination, not just at Stamford Bridge, but also in schools and in our wider communities, as shown when the campaign was honoured at the London Football Awards 2019 and received the Gold award from the International League Against Racism and Antisemitism.

As part of the campaign, our men’s senior squad visited America to join forces with New England Revolution for the Final Whistle On Hate match, spreading a message of inclusion and delivering education workshops in schools throughout our visit to Boston, as well as raising more than $4 million for organisations tackling antisemitism.

Ahead of that match, representatives from Chelsea joined a delegation from New England Revolution, and thousands of others from around the world, at the annual March of the Living at former Nazi concentration camps in Poland.

Chelsea became the first Premier League club to send a delegation in 2018 and returned for a second year on the walk from Auschwitz to Birkenau in 2019.

Thanks to the important work of the Holocaust Educational Trust, the club was also honoured when a number of Holocaust survivors met Chelsea players and fans during the 2017/18 season.

This continued last season when Susan Pollock MBE shared her story with the Women’s team.

All present were enthralled by the 88-year-old’s story which was both horrific and inspiring.

Chelsea Women also joined the Foundation in Israel for a friendly with the national team. The trip was designed to celebrate women’s football and support further development of the sport in Israel.

While there the players and manager took part in various Foundation activities and raised awareness of the campaign.

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Support Chelsea, support equality

Chelsea Chairman Bruce Buck collects the London Football Award for Best Community Project

Holocaust survivor Susan Pollock MBE and Chelsea Women captain Karen Carney share an emotional embrace

Representatives from Chelsea joined a delegation from New England Revolution, along with thousands of others from around the world, at the annual ‘March of the Living’

The Chelsea players in Boston for the Final Whistle on Hate match against New England Revolution visit the city’s Holocaust memorial

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We have been supporting global children’s charity Plan International for four seasons, and each year we are building our support for the children most in need through football, not only globally but also here in the UK.

Our work with Plan International has benefitted people at home and abroad with the 2018/19 season including multiple visits to the Azraq refugee camp on the Jordan Syrian border, home to 36,000 Syrian refugees.

Closer to home Hannah Blundell, Jorginho and Ruben Loftus-Cheek led our support for International Women’s Day. With celebrations and support culminating at our match against Wolves on 10 March, raising valuable funds towards Plan International’s vital work helping children.

The Foundation and Plan International have also delivered the inaugural Female Focus - Being the Best You conference and together we are sharing expertise to help support the lives of young people the Chelsea Foundation are working with in our outreach programmes.

The end of the season saw the return of the Champions of Change Cup six-a-side tournament and the first Women’s Skills Training with Chelsea Foundation coaches at Stamford Bridge. A perfect celebration to the end of the season raising £50,000 to support children around the world enjoy their childhood through football.

The Plan International name and logo also appears on the back of the men’s European match shirts and on the Chelsea Women’s kit throughout the season.

For further information please visit www.plan-uk.org

Syrian refugees enjoyed training with Chelsea Foundation coaches

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Spotlight on Azraq Camp, Jordan The war in Syria has been raging since 2011 with 5.5 million people, young and old, displaced by the conflict and forced to make perilous journeys to safety.

During the 2018/19 season we have supported hundreds of children and young people living in the Azraq refugee camp on the Jordan Syrian border, home to 36,000 Syrian refugees, 60 per cent of whom are children.

Club ambassador Katie Chapman joined the Chelsea Foundation coaches running training sessions with the young people living in the camp in October and Chairman Bruce Buck returned to the camp in April.

“As soon as these young kids see a Chelsea shirt, all they want to do is talk about the players and play some football, and hopefully through football we can help them a bit. Our Chelsea coaches have been before and when the kids saw them arrive again they were delighted. I know that Chelsea fans will share our pride in what we are achieving with Plan International here in Jordan and throughout the world” BRUCE BUCK

Chairman Bruce Buck meets children and their parents at the Azraq refugee camp

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A team prepare to play their part in the Champions of Change Cup 6-a-side tournament at Stamford Bridge

Young women enjoying the first Women’s Skills Training Session at the Bridge, the day included a surprise visit from former Blues captain Katie Chapman

Plan’s logo appeared on the back of the Chelsea men’s kit throughout our Europa League triumph

Hannah Blundell and Ruben Loftus-Cheek led the club’s support for International Women’s Day in March

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Girls Breaking Barriers in the House of Lords

Creating lasting change for children through football

How can we ensure that girls are able to achieve their potential in the UK and around the world?

That’s the question 200 girls debated at the House of Lords, as part of Plan International’s Girls Breaking Barriers event.

In November 2018, girls and boys were invited to meet a range of inspiring women including Chelsea ambassador Katie Chapman who shared their own experiences and expertise, in sessions aimed to help inspire and empower girls to pursue their goals.

Plan International’s dedicated Premier League match against Wolves was a day of celebrating our partnership raising more than £40,000 towards Plan International’s vital work helping children most in need.

Tanya Barron, chief executive of Plan International UK, said: ‘Everywhere I go in the world, people want to talk about Chelsea, pretty much everywhere in the world you will find people who have benefitted from Plan’s work so this is a great fit.

‘Chelsea’s support on Plan’s match day was a phenomenal success and the money raised will make a crucial difference to the lives of some of the poorest children in the world.’

students in the UK took part in gender equality workshops

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“This event is all about changing society. Men and women need to come together, it’s great to see boys here too and being a part of the conversation” KATIE CHAPMAN

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Chelsea Football Club is fully committed to our history and looking after the welfare of former players, coaches and managers who have played a part in making the club what it is today.

Hundreds of thousands of pounds have now been invested over the years to provide medical and welfare assistance to former Blues who have given so much to Chelsea during the course of their careers.

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raised at Annual Lunch

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Past Players’ Trust

Spotlight on…. Legends Game In June 2019, our annual Legends Match took place at the Bernabeu with a host of former Chelsea stars rolling back the years and putting the Blue shirt on once more.

Playing against a team of former Madrid stars, Andriy Shevchenko, Gus Poyet, William Gallas and Florent Malouda all netted for the Blues on a night where 60,000 fans attended to watch the two sides battle it out.

Despite the fact the Spanish side went on to claim a 5-4 victory, the night was a huge success with thousands of pounds raised for charity.

“The match was a very nice occasion, not only on the field, but also to support the work of both the Chelsea Foundation and Real Madrid Foundation who make the lives of thousands of people around the world better” TORE ANDRE FLO

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www.chelseafc.com/foundation

@CFCFoundation