Bradford City FC Community Foundation and Bradford Metropolitan District Council host smoke and vape-free sidelines football tournament

Bradford City FC Community Foundation, the charitable arm of Bradford City AFC, have teamed up with Bradford Metropolitan District Council to host a special football tournament for grassroots clubs across the city and wider district.

The Smoke and Vape-Free Sidelines Tournament welcomed ten under-11 teams from nine junior clubs, who battled it out at the Co-Op Academy Southfield Grange sports facility on Saturday 25th October. Over 150 players, coaches and family members attended a day of competitive football, all whilst speaking to Foundation and Council staff about how they can keep their junior club sidelines smoke and vape-free.

Every participating club signed a charter outlining their commitment to keeping their junior club sidelines smoke and vape-free, ensuring that they remain a safe and healthy place for junior footballers in the city to enjoy the game. The tournament was funded by Bradford Metropolitan District Council, and delivered by the Foundation’s team of staff and coaches.

Lizzie Saunderson-Trowell, the Foundation’s COO, said: “The Foundation is committed to improving public health in Bradford, and to making sure junior sport is fun and inclusive for everyone, and that involves making sure that grassroot and junior sporting sidelines are smoke and vape free, so we’ve worked with Bradford Council to run a tournament, and share that message. We'd like to thank Bradford Council for funding and supporting today's tournament - it's been absolutely fantastic to welcome everyone here.”

Each club was also presented with a special banner designed by Adelina Fistac, a pupil at Westbourne Primary School. Participating clubs have now committed to displaying the banner at their sports facilities, emphasising that their club sidelines are smoke and vape-free, and outlining the benefits of a non-smoking or vaping space for junior footballers to play in.

Tyler Watts, from Bolton Woods JFC, said: “The tournament was an absolutely brilliant day for our players, they all had a great time and enjoyed some competitive football. We as a club completely support the tournament’s message - we will display our banner with pride, and are committed to keeping our sidelines smoke and vape-free.”

West Yorkshire Juniors were Championship Winners on the day, with Shelf Juniors runners up. North Bradford Juniors took home the Trophy Winners cup, with Allerton FC as Trophy Runners Up.

Nasar Ahmed, Senior Public Health Specialist at Bradford Metropolitan District Council, said: “It was fantastic to see so many people at the tournament, from players to coaches to family members, all pledging to challenge and prevent smoking and vaping on their junior club sidelines. They're signing our charter which outlines that commitment, and we and our colleagues from the Foundation have had many conversations about how we can ensure junior club sidelines are a welcoming, healthy place to be.”

All participating clubs will receive a set of equipment, paid for by the Foundation and Bradford Council, to support and expand their facilities. Free food was provided on the day by CleanCrust, a provider of sustainable and ethically sourced pizza, with hot drinks offered by Really Awesome Coffee. Matches were overseen by referees who were invited to the tournament by the Foundation’s partners at West Riding County FA.

Cllr Sue Duffy, Bradford Council’s portfolio holder for children and families and chair of the anti-smoking group, said: “Supporting this initiative is part of the wider work that our Public Health and Living Well teams are doing to reduce smoking in our district and the serious health issues it causes. We want all young people who play football in our district to be able to do so in surroundings that are healthy and free from smoking and vaping. This tournament has been a fantastic opportunity to showcase the benefits of a smoke and vape free environment and I want to thank everyone who was involved and those clubs that have signed up to the charter.”

The Foundation and Bradford Council will now embark on the next phase of their working partnership, with the launch of their Catch Your Breath anti-vaping campaign in November.

Find out more about stopping smoking via Living Well’s Support to Quit service: https://mylivingwell.co.uk/smoking/support-to-quit/

Take a look at our gallery from the day:

Images: Michelle Heseltine.