NI duo in city tomorrow

There has been a host of well-known faces supporting the re-launch of the Irish FA’s ‘Football for All’ project.

‘Football For All’ supporters include Snow Patrol’s Gary Lightbody, local politicians and football players from the Irish League, League of Ireland, English Championship and Scottish Premiership. All have been posting pictures of themselves sporting the ‘Football For All’ t-shirt on Twitter with the hashtag #footballforallNI to promote not only the programme but its re-launch.

The ‘Football for All’ project addresses issues of racism and sectarianism by working in partnership with football clubs, supporters, community groups, the PSNI, statutory agencies and volunteers. ‘Football for All’ aims to create a fun, safe and inclusive culture throughout all levels of the game in Northern Ireland.

With support from EU PEACE III, ‘Football for All’s new project ‘Looking Back to Move Forward’ aims to use football as a hook to promote good relations. The project will support interface projects, groups and clubs who strive to use the universal power of football to promote cultural diversity and equality, improving trust and tolerance within our society.

The FFA project will continue to support projects such as Limestone United, an interface project that uses football as a tool to engage young men who have been involved in anti-social behaviour. Through this project, football has enabled the PSNI to build a positive and healthy relationship with the young people, thus helping to create a shared sense of identity and reducing crime in the North Belfast area.