Soccer Aid is a British annual charity event that has raised over £106 million in aid of UNICEF UK, through ticket sales and donations from the public. The televised event is an exhibition-style football match between two teams, England and the Soccer Aid World XI (formerly Rest of the World (ROW) until 2018), composed of celebrities and former professional players representing their countries. It is the only mixed-sex match officially sanctioned by The Football Association.[1]
Event details
Soccer Aid was initiated in 2006 by Robbie Williams and Jonathan Wilkes. It initially took place every two years, but since the 2018 edition it is now held annually. The television broadcast is produced by Initial and distributed by Endemol Shine Sport, a Dutch company that distributes Dutch Eredivisie coverage.[2] Television coverage began on ITV on 22 May 2006 in a show presented by Ant & Dec. Dermot O'Leary took over as main presenter in 2010.
The ROW/World XI team narrowly leads the head-to-head, with seven wins to the England team's six.
On 16 June 2019, the fixture was the first to include female players as part of the squads. In 2020, the match was played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
22 May 2006 – Start of the television coverage, presented by Ant and Dec. Rest of the World defeats England in a penalty shoot-out
23 May 2006 – Practice match: England 1–0 England Legends (Craven Cottage, London)
24 May 2006 – Practice match: Rest of the World 3–7 Scotland Legends (Craven Cottage, London)
25 May 2006 – Rest of the World defeats England in a Football Quiz
26 May 2006 – Coaches name starting line-ups for the match
27 May 2006 – Soccer Aid Match: England 2–1 Rest of the World (Old Trafford, Manchester), attendance 71,960
The practice matches were played over 60 minutes, with the Soccer Aid match played over 90 minutes.
The competition was organised on behalf of UNICEF UK with profits from the matches, along with donations and sponsorship, donated to UNICEF programs in Africa, Asia and the Americas.
England beat the Rest of the World 2–1. Goals from Les Ferdinand and Jonathan Wilkes put England into a two-goal lead but a handball inside the area from David Gray resulted in a penalty, converted by Diego Maradona. Wilkes won the Man of the Match award.
England squad
The England squad was managed by former England national football team manager Terry Venables, assisted by David Geddis and Ted Buxton. The original squad comprised 16 players, with Bryan Robson added later. A handful of the players, notably Angus Deayton, had previous celebrity international experience from the previous month's England v Germany: The Legends match in Reading, which Germany won 4–2. The England squad went into the match with no major injury worries. Their victory over a squad of ex-England internationals from the 1960s to 1990s on Tuesday morning was tempered with defeats to the Rest of the World in a penalty shootout and football quiz.
The Rest of the World squad was managed by Ruud Gullit, with Gus Poyet as his assistant. Captain Gordon Ramsay injured his leg in the early training sessions and was considered doubtful for the match. The original squad of 16 players, which later saw 2 changes, was supplemented by the addition of Diego Maradona during the build-up to the competition. Lothar Matthäus had appeared in the England v Germany: The Legends match the previous month.
The Rest of the World squad was wracked by injuries and withdrawals, and suffered from a lack of players. Desailly, Matthäus, Schmeichel and Ginola all arrived with only 2 or 3 days to spare before the match; Ginola arrived during half time of their warm-up defeat to the Scotland Legends on Wednesday afternoon, and Diego Maradona only joined the squad on the day before the match.
Also, Craig Doyle and Brian McFadden went into the match carrying knocks, which led to management members Ruud Gullit and Gus Poyet coming on as substitutes on Wednesday and in the match itself.
Other notable participants
The match was refereed by Pierluigi Collina, the Italian referee considered by many fans as the best referee of all time.[3]
Soccer Aid 2008 was played on 7 September 2008. It was broadcast in the United Kingdom on ITV and presented by Ant & Dec. Before kick-off Jonathan Ansell sang the footballing anthem "Nessun Dorma", whilst the players were introduced to Sir Geoff Hurst.
The referee at the start of the match was Pierluigi Collina, who also refereed the previous match in 2006 and is regarded as the best referee of all time.[3] However, after Collina was injured in the first half he was replaced by Scottish referee Hugh Dallas. The process of two professional referees overseeing one half of the match each has since been maintained in subsequent series.
Soccer Aid 2012 was played on 27 May 2012, as something of a precursor to UEFA Euro 2012 and the 2012 Summer Olympics. It was broadcast in the United Kingdom on ITV and presented by Dermot O'Leary. Cat Deeley presented the backstage build up show before the main event.
At half-time British singer and actress Rita Ora performed new song "Ritual" with British DJ Jonas Blue and Dutch DJ Tiësto, the first time a musician has performed at Soccer Aid. American actor and filmmaker Tom Hanks kicked-off this year's Soccer Aid. Alan Sexton played in the England team as the first and only non-celebrity or legend player at Soccer Aid.
The 2020 match was scheduled to be played at Old Trafford on 6 June 2020. With the outbreak of COVID-19, the match was postponed with a rescheduled date of 6 September 2020.[20] This Soccer Aid 2020 match was played behind closed doors.[21]
The 2021 match was held at the City of Manchester Stadium on 4 September 2021. Lee Mack switched teams to the Rest of the World squad, due to his Irish heritage.
The 2023 match was held at Old Trafford on 11 June 2023. Jill Scott became the first female to captain a team in any edition.[24] Steven Bartlett withdrew from the game after a hamstring injury he picked up during practice.[25]
The 2024 match was held at Stamford Bridge on 9 June 2024. Steven Bartlett switched teams to the England squad. England lifted the trophy for the first time since 2018, after a 6–3 win against the World XI, breaking the previous highest scoring record from 2008 of seven.[26]Ellen White also became the first female player to score in a Soccer Aid match.[27]
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