Over the course of the 2022-23 season the quest to improve lives through football continued apace with 14,430 participants engaging in programmes through the Club’s global community work alongside the launch of a new charity initiative, Healthy Goals.
Healthy Goals focused on the creation and refurbishment of community football spaces to deliver youth-led projects, uplifting the physical and mental health of young people across cities around the world, launching with two new community pitches in Manchester.
Alongside new initiatives, a number of long-standing projects continued to be delivered. This season the Club engaged 1,100 Young Leaders in 30 cities around the world, in line with its continued commitment to create lasting change in communities.
Together with Club partner, Xylem, there was an expansion of the Water Heroes Academy – a global initiative in ten cities using the power of football to tackle local water challenges.
The initiative continues to deliver demonstrable life changes having now engaged more than 200 Young Leaders over the past three years, providing vital water education to 12,000 young people.
This season, Buenos Aires, Cape Coast, Kuala Lumpur, Mexico City and Melbourne were welcomed into the network, taking part in a three-day digital water summit, connecting Young Leaders and Xylem experts to share learnings on tackling water challenges through football.
A fan-vote campaign was launched with thousands voting for the project that inspired them the most. Cape Coast was the top-voted project, with Young Leaders rewarded by winning the ultimate Manchester City experience, seeing İlkay Gündoğan lift the Premier League trophy after the final home game of the season against Chelsea.
Xylem Water Heroes Academy was also recognised at the UK Sponsorship Awards this season, winning the category ‘Best Use of Sponsorship to Encourage Environmental Goals’.
Former City playing legends were recruited to help promote and inspire the Club’s various global community projects, and Argentine defender Pablo Zabaleta took the Premier League trophy along to the El Coyolito neighbourhood in Mexico City.
During the visit, City in the Community (CITC) coaches delivered training to 40 Young Leaders in Mexico City, sharing expertise and knowledge in leadership, community football and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).
Alongside this, a pitch at El Coyolito was also refurbished with the support from fans from the local Official Supporters Club in Mexico City.
Another former City star, Joleon Lescott, paid a special visit to one of the Club’s projects in Ghana in February to help bring clean water access and vital water education to young people in local communities.
Lescott joined a dedicated team of Xylem employee volunteers and City fans, including those from the South Ghana Official Supporters Club, to build two new water filtration towers in Cape Coast. The towers will provide 1,800 people with access to clean water.
During the week, more than 35 young leaders from Play Soccer Ghana also received training from CITC coaches and delivered a football and water education festival for 100 local children.
Source: Manchester City
Following the devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, the Club worked with the Red Cross to support its emergency fundraising appeal by holding a ‘text to donate’ at games this season. City offered the use of matchday platforms including pitch-side LED for the ‘text to donate’ graphic, encouraging fans both in stadium, and watching around the world, to consider supporting the cause.
This collaboration built on the Club’s ‘text to donate’ campaign held in aid of Ukraine following the start of the war the previous year.
23 youth-led projects in cities around the world
Source: Manchester City
