Grass roots football gets £45m boost

Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell has announced a £45 million funding package for the Football Foundation over the next three years.

The funding matches recent financial support from the Football Association and Premier League which will help the development of football at grass roots level across the country.

Ms Jowell said: "The Football Foundation has, for three years, provided new and better football facilities for kids up and down the country. I am delighted to announce that, what started as an experiment is about to become part of the fabric of local sport.

"The Government will match the £45 million from the Football Association and the Premier League over the next three years. And on top of that, Barclays Bank, the new sponsors of the Premier League are contributing £30m.

"But that money is for more than football. We know the more chances you have to play more sports, the more likely you are to keep playing and the more likely you are to discover a sport you truly enjoy. The Foundation will now reach beyond football and invest its new resources in multi-sport pitches and modern facilities."

The aim of developing multi-sports facilities alongside other football projects will be to encourage people to get fit and healthy by giving them the opportunity to play a number of different sports.

The Foundation is currently the largest sports charity in the country and has so far invested in 1,660 varied football projects worth a total of £390 million with another 350 projects worth around £125 million in the pipeline.

It was launched in July 2000 to provide investment into the grass roots of football by putting into place a new generation of modern facilities in parks, local leagues and schools as well as providing capital/revenue support to increase participation in grass roots football.

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