On Saturday, 7 February, City in the Community joined forces with Kick It Out to host the inaugural One Community Tournament, which saw youth clubs from across the Northwest and Hull take part in an exciting 5-a-side football tournament.

The action-packed event kicked-off at 10:00am at the City Football Academy and rounded off with an informative workshop focusing on how football can be used as a powerful tool to encourage diversity in communities across the UK.

The event, delivered as part of CITC’s football-based community cohesion programme KICKS, attracted the attention of one of Kick It Out’s Next 20 Ambassadors and Manchester City Women’s star Toni Duggan, as well as former England U-21 star Fabrice Muamba and CITC Ambassador Alex Williams. 

All three enjoyed getting involved in the day’s activities and congratulated Newcastle’s young players on being crowned tournament champions after a tough competition.

During the workshop, participants had the opportunity to not only learn about the importance of diversity in football from players who have experienced its benefits first-hand, but to also share their own experiences on and off the pitch.

Toni Duggan enthusiastically praised the importance of celebrating diversity in football saying: “Every week football games bring people together and show how players from all walks of life can work together to produce incredible results on the pitch. 

“Tournaments like One Community make that experience even more real for young people and encourage them to have that positive attitude towards all aspects of their lives. It’s always a pleasure to support such empowering initiatives.”

Following the workshop, everyone then headed over to the Etihad Stadium where they were able to sit back and relax as Manchester City took on Hull City in their 24th Premier League fixture of the season. It was the perfect end to a great day for everyone.

Commenting on the event, Mike Green, Head of City in the Community, explained: “The main objective of our KICKS programme is to use the power of football to engage young people and bring them together. Working with Kick It Out, this event has given City in the Community the perfect opportunity to highlight the importance of mutual respect in the world of football and to demonstrate how football can empower communities.

“As a result, we hope the One Community tournament has been both a memorable and a life-changing experience for everyone involved.”