The Craig Bellamy Foundation

In September 2007, leading Welsh international and Manchester City footballer, Craig Bellamy, visited Sierra Leone and was struck by the sheer scale of poverty and deprivation that exists in the country. Sierra Leone is struggling to recover from the devastating civil war which destroyed much of the infrastructure and most prospects for development. As a footballer, he also couldn’t help but be touched by the enthusiasm for football, despite the very obvious lack of opportunity available for young people to take part and play the sport that he loves, regularly. During the visit however, Craig did became inspired by the remarkable and humbling passion for football that he saw and the potential role that football could play in offering the youth of today, whole communities and the nation, a focus for positive social change and development. As a result of this trip and the clear and perceived needs that he identified within Sierra Leone, Craig is in the process of establishing the Craig Bellamy Foundation. The Foundation will establish a nationwide development league and Academy with the aim of using football as a vehicle for positive social development.