When Sir Stanley Matthews retired from playing football he had a brief spell in management at Port Vale F.C. but his real passion was coaching children and young people in the skills of the game.  He travelled extensively, working in Europe and North America but also visiting countries where he knew he could make a much bigger difference.  He coached in places like Uganda and Ghana but perhaps most famously in Soweto in South Africa at the height of the apartheid regime, where his efforts and determination to break down barriers and fight prejudice resulted in his ban from the country.  It was a price he felt worth paying.

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The Sir Stanley Matthews Foundation has been established to carry on his legacy.  We have projects in the U.K., teaching the skills of the game and the life lessons that sport can give us all to a new generation of players, but we also have a heart for those who haven't had an easy journey through life, for whatever reason.  Football is a game that should be open to everyone but more and more we are finding that, even at grassroots level, many young people are being left behind, unable to afford the fees to play for local clubs while the cost of living crisis means that even owning a pair of football boots isn't always possible.  Government statistics published in 2023 show that in the U.K. 4.3 million children are living below the poverty line, a truely shocking figure.  The pressure on parents is enormous and is steadily getting worse.  Our aim is to make a difference where we can, helping those in need across the U.K. and further afield.  Amongst our projects we work with former child soldiers in Uganda, refugees in Malaysia and  girls who have been rescued from traffickers in India.  We also work with children with acquired brain injury, providing tailored sports sessions to help with their rehabilitation.  You can find out more about our individual projects by following the links below but we'd like to do a lot more.  If you feel you can help us out and get involved with our work, please contact us.  Football is a team game and we'd love to hear from you!