Celtic Football Club and its charitable arm, Celtic FC Foundation, are today delighted to join a host of football clubs and foundations throughout Europe, in taking part in the European Football Development Network’s (EFDN) #Morethanfootball campaign.
The EFDN consists of professional football clubs, leagues and Football Associations who are committed to their communities and social responsibilities and have the passion to cooperate and engage on a European level.
The network aims to promote the power of football as a tool for social development and support the efforts of the network members in their initiatives to use football to reach out to various target groups in their communities.
Through the #Morethanfootball campaign, EFDN members will showcase their Community and Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives and highlight how their organisations are about more than just football.
The campaign, which kicks off today, will feature a series of action days over the next four weeks, with a focus on Solidarity and Diversity, Education, Partnerships, Social Inclusion, Social Cohesion, Health and Wellbeing, Environmental Sustainability and Employability.
Over the coming weeks, Celtic FC Foundation will be participating in each of these action days, highlighting examples of our project delivery.
As an EFDN member, Celtic Football Club is unique in the sense that it was formed initially for charitable purposes. Our founding father, Brother Walfrid, established Celtic as a means to raise funds to help alleviate poverty in the East End of Glasgow.
The Club was also formed as a vehicle for community cohesion between the immigrant Irish and resident Scottish populace – hence the name, Celtic. Celtic Football Club’s very existence, is so much more than football.
Today, Celtic FC Foundation continues Brother Walfrid’s vision of football as a force for good and we uphold this charitable heritage in the name of supporters worldwide.
To kick-off our participation in the campaign, we are delighted to illustrate that we are #Morethanfootball, with a video piece featuring a number of our project participants, highlighting how Celtic FC Foundation aims to harness the power of football for good.
Over the past year, our focus has been redirected in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We launched our Football for Good Fund (FFGF) on Friday, March 20, 2020 to assist those in need and it recently surpassed the £1m milestone.
As a result, we have helped to provide food and essentials to thousands within our communities, most affected by the pandemic. Two additional strands of the FFGF have now also been dedicated to tackling fuel poverty and the ever increasing mental health and wellbeing issues faced by so many of us.
This simply would not have been possible without the continued backing of the Celtic support, for which we are eternally grateful.
Throughout the coming weeks and months, we will aim to continue to provide this support to the growing number of people affected by the ruthlessness of COVID-19.
