The first ever Homeless World Cup Day will see a selection of classic games featuring punditry from current and former professional footballers among other festivities.
The Homeless World Cup is a yearly tournament that uses football to inspire people who are homeless to make positive changes in their lives.
The organisers work with a network of Street Football Partners across 70+ countries and every year organise an inspirational street football tournament for men and women experiencing homelessness around the globe.
Last year’s tournament which took place in Cardiff, was spearheaded by actor Michael Sheen and saw over 500 players representing over 50 countries travel to Wales to attend the week-long festival of football.
As the coronavirus pandemic has led to the cancellation of many events across the globe, including this year’s 2020 Homeless World Cup, that was due to take place in Tampere, Finland, an alternative, the Homeless World Cup Day, has been planned.
The virtual celebration, due to take place on July 5, will be hosted by TV presenter David Tanner featuring classic games from former tournaments, interviews with former players and showcase the final of the Homeless World (Keepy Uppy) Cup.
Tanner has led live coverage of UEFA Champions League football, Scotland international fixtures and currently hosts “In Conversation with David Tanner”, a sports chat show for BT Sport.
The broacaster will host a panel of professional footballers who will give their insights into some of the games that were played in Homeless World Cup tournaments in Mexico City, Glasgow, and Cardiff over the last four years.
James McMeekin, Chief Operating Officer at the Homeless World Cup said: “We’re delighted to welcome David Tanner as a host for Homeless World Cup Day. We’re excited to bring his experience into our event and are sure he will have a fantastic time too.
“We are also very excited to welcome the many professional footballers who have shown support for our cause, which we will be unveiling in the coming weeks.”
Combining creative talent and various digital media, the event will also showcase players stories, engaging talks and fun challenges for people wanting to participate from all over the world.
As with every Homeless World Cup tournament, the #HWCDay will be free for anyone to access.
The Homeless World (Keepy Uppy) Cup final will also take place.
Involving 50 teams from around the world, 34 in the men’s competition and 16 in the women’s, this competition will see individual players representing their teams across several rounds.
The Homeless World (Keepy Uppy) Cup launches on June 15 and games will be available to watch across the Homeless World Cup’s social channels including YouTube.
The Homeless World Cup Foundation has positively impacted the lives of 1.2 million people around the globe since its inception in 2003.
A survey conducted on the players who took part, found that 77% believe their lives have changed significantly because of their involvement in football.
If you would like to learn more about the Homeless World Cup you can visit their website.
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