CHELSEA football club continued its commitment to break down barriers in the Asian community this week.
Just a month after the club’s highly successful "Search for an Asian Soccer Star" event to unearth the stars of the future, Chelsea sent their coaches to Neasden Temple to treat more than 150 young Asian footballers to a free coaching session.
The club are committed to challenging stereotypes and providing a pathway for more Asians to get involved in the professional game.
In association with the Asian Media & Marketing Group (AMG), publishers of Eastern Eye, the club will visit 10 community organisations throughout the summer to address the lack of Asian players within the game.
The club’s Asian community tour kicked off with a free coaching session for girls at the Nonsuch School in Sutton last week and continued on Wednesday (June 17) when coaches visited the Alperton Community School in Wembley.
Simon Taylor, Chelsea’s head of corporate social responsibility said: “It’s important that Asian youngsters get the same opportunities as every other player and we hope our summer tour will help break down some of the barriers that exist between the game and the Asian community.
The fact that over 150 young people turned up shows that there is a passion for football within the Asian community and we hope to see many of the kids today go on to join local teams in their area.”
Kalpesh Solanki, managing editor of AMG added: “We are delighted to be involved with Chelsea and the Neasden Temple to involve the Asian community in football. We are keen to break down the perceived barriers and encourage Asian families to go to football matches and watch their team and help their children to play football.”
