Halewood Apollo FC, a club that nearly went extinct during its first decade, has made history by announcing a partnership with seven-time Champions League winners AC Milan. The agreement, revealed in recent weeks, marks a steep rise for the Merseyside club from Division Five of the Warrington League to semi-professional status with an academy of 50 teams.
From Near Collapse to Historic Deal
Founded in 2014 as a group of friends playing in Division Five of the Warrington League, Halewood Apollo FC gradually climbed through the ranks. By 2020, they had outgrown the Warrington League and joined the Liverpool County Premier League, the top amateur league in the city. They gained promotion in their first season, and by 2024, they were among the best amateur sides in Liverpool. Recently, they turned semi-professional and launched their own academy, now boasting 50 teams across multiple age groups.
Chairman Joseph Stocks, 35, told the ECHO: "In those first 10 years, we nearly folded every season. I think getting players to play for you and the amount of times we've turned up with nine and 10 men, we could have easily just downed tools and gone 'I'm not doing this no more'. It can be costly as well. Clubs at this level don't make an income. You pay for refs, for facilities, trying to get sponsorships. We've stuck at it, we've dug deep."
Why AC Milan Chose Halewood Apollo
The partnership came about after discussions with AC Milan's academy commercial director. Stocks explained: "AC Milan want to put a foothold in the UK. You'll see them set up in the UAE, they'll have camps out there, but this one's different to that because they know they're in a deprived area. This one's more to get their brand out there and work with kids who love football. I think Italian football at the minute needs more eyes on it, it's great for them in that aspect."
However, Stocks emphasized that the move is about more than brand growth: "We got speaking to their academy commercial director about potentially linking up. They liked how Halewood Apollo was run, especially our junior section. The club has been in a great place recently, we started our junior section about two years ago and we've built up close to 50 teams already, with hundreds of kids at the club."
He added: "We're not here to just put football on and then go away. We care about our kids. We've got free camps across the whole summer for our children, we go the extra mile for our kids. Even though they're from Milan, they've got similar areas to us and I think that they care about giving children the best access. Every child should have access to sport, they shouldn't be priced out of it, and giving them the best opportunities to sport. That's what Milan absolutely loved, what our club stands for, and that's why they wanted to work with us."
Three-Stage Partnership
The partnership will unfold in three stages. Stocks detailed: "They're coming over to deliver camps using the AC Milan methodology with our kids and then they're taking some of our kids over to deliver experiences in Milan. They're going to be taking kids over to train at their facilities, play matches, go and watch matches at the San Siro, and go to the museum."
The surreal nature of the deal hit home when Stocks was invited to Italy. He said: "It was a bit, wow, we have AC Milan in Halewood. The most surreal moment was when we went out to Milan and they gave us a shirt with Liverpool on, they really treated us, the hospitality was unbelievable. It was like we were a new signing. They brought us out to their club facilities, took us for lunch in Milan, showed us all their facilities, took us round the museum. It was amazing, they didn't have to do that."
Looking Ahead
Despite the historic partnership, Stocks is determined not to rest on their laurels. He said: "I think that the way we want to take this club now and the vision we have for the club, this deal with AC Milan is just a milestone on the way. We don't want this to be the pinnacle we want to take this club as far as we can."
