Coaches from the Celtic FC Foundation joined four local teams on a rain-soaked pitch in Brixton, south London, to launch a new football programme for girls and young women from underprivileged backgrounds. The initiative is the latest in a series of projects the foundation has run in the capital since 2013, when it expanded its reach to mark Celtic’s 125th anniversary.
Another London-based programme, Breaking Barriers in Hackney, uses football to help integrate refugee and asylum-seeking communities. Vladyslav Kysil, a former professional player from Ukraine who works as a coach for the foundation, admitted he was surprised to see a Scottish club so active in England, but said the club’s heritage in London is substantial.
Celtic was founded in 1887 as a charity to provide hot meals for Irish immigrants by Brother Walfrid, a Marist Brother who later moved to London’s East End in 1893 and continued working with underprivileged children. The foundation expanded its work to London, Sligo and several US cities in his memory. Chief executive Tony Hamilton said: “This is not an exercise for us. This is inherent in who we are and it’s in our DNA.”
In Glasgow, the foundation runs long-standing schemes including working with young offenders, opening Celtic Park four times a week for hot meals, and a fuel bank initiative. It donates £400,000 to local families, homeless people and refugees through a Christmas appeal. The foundation also donated £100,000 to the UN World Food Programme for feeding people in Gaza.
Hamilton noted that the foundation is mainly funded by Celtic and through charity events, receiving little public funding compared with English counterparts. He praised Celtic supporters’ social conscience and generosity, which he said enables the foundation to reach many people. The foundation now has programmes across the US and 11 supporters’ clubs in London, with the capital’s economy providing crucial support.
