Hundreds of young people from across England and Wales recently gathered at St. George’s Park National Football Centre for the latest edition of the Premier League Kicks Cup.
As well as providing a memorable occasion of competitive football, music and workshops, the two-day event celebrated the work that Premier League Kicks carries out in high-need communities up and down the country, all year round.
To mark the special event, we met some of the half a million participants that have been helped by the programme since it began in 2006.
"I would tell my younger self to just seize the opportunities... don't be afraid of what might happen. Grab what's on offer to you."
Hafizul Islam was 16-years-old when he signed up for a Premier League Kicks tournament run by Luton Town FC Community Trust.
Three years later, Hafizul is now a full-time member of staff with Luton Town and is inspiring the next generation as a schools officer with another Premier League programme - Premier League Primary Stars.
"The last three years, it's like they have just flown past," he says. "It feels feels like a dream.
"If I look back to when I started Kicks, I never thought I'd be working with these guys, full time in a school. It's a very proud feeling. I'm so grateful for everything."
It was the simple act of seeing a Luton Town poster advertising a football tournament that began Hafizul's story with Premier League Kicks.
"We decided to go along and have a bit of fun," he says. "We started going to Kicks sessions and kept going back. It was a friendly and communal feeling we had there.
"You had a bunch of kids from all around Luton coming to play football, you could make friends on the spot. You could talk to anyone and all the coaches were very friendly and helpful.
"From that first session I just thought, 'this is me.'"
Being at PL Kicks gave Hafizul the confidence to try new things, such as volunteering, studying for coaching badges and hosting a youth summit.
He also launched a podcast which addressed issues that affected young people in the local area, and also encouraged Asian footballers to take roles in the game.
"Kicks helped me grow as a person," he says. "It has a special place in my heart, it's where I started, it's what brought me to where I am now.
"Just playing football and being in that environment, my confidence went up. I met new people and I broadened my horizons.
"I realised that I can do other stuff rather than just stay at home playing on my games console. It's that confidence to say that I can do this, let's keep pushing on."
In his two years at PL Kicks, Hafizul made a big impression at Luton Town, so much so that when he completed his A Levels last summer, more opportunities with the Community Trust opened up to him.
He started coaching three-to-five year olds on the club's Mini Hatters programme before a role on Premier League Primary Stars became available at the start of this year.
And for the last two months Hafizul has been working at Wigmore Primary School in Luton, using PL Primary Stars to engage youngsters in the classroom and in the playground.
"It came out of nowhere," he says. "I pounced on it as soon as I heard, it was such a great opportunity.
"At the start I felt a little overwhelmed and I was thinking whether it was right for me. I doubted myself a little but I really love what I'm doing now.
"I've not been here long but I can slowly see the effect I'm having. If I'm working on something like self-esteem, I can see that they are building that self-esteem. They are learning."
As a mark of the progress and impact Hafizul has made in the last three years, the 19-year-old was recently named as Luton Town's Community Captain as part of the Premier League's "More than a game" campaign.
"I was shocked but it was so lovely to hear my name being called out for the award," he says. "It's hard to put into words. It's a very big honour. I couldn't be more proud or happy."
Hafizul is unsure what his immediate future holds, whether that be university, work or an apprenticeship, but he does know that thanks to the encouragement of Luton Town FC Community Trust, coaching is going to play a big part in his life.
"Being a part of this has ignited something in me and I would love to keep coaching, it's a passion of mine," he says.
"I have changed a lot. I've come out of my shell. Working in football has forced me to be more vocal, it's taught me about connecting with adults and children and how to deal with different environments and situations.
"It's such a big thing in my life right now. I'm devoted to my work with Luton, it's like a family here."
Premier League Kicks uses the power of football and sport to inspire young people to reach their potential, in some of the most high-need areas in England and Wales.
To date, the Premier League has invested more than £81million in Premier League Kicks through the Premier League Charitable Fund.
What is Premier League Primary Stars?
Premier League Primary Stars is the Premier League's primary school education programme, using the appeal of football to support children to be active and develop essential life skills. It is available to every primary school in England and Wales, with over 19,000 schools engaged with the programme. More than 1.3million school sessions and events have already been delivered.
Funded by the Premier League, through the Premier League Charitable Fund, the programme has enabled over 68,000 teachers to use resources for English, PSHE, PE and Maths, to help children to be active and develop essential life skills. There are 650+ free resources available.
Currently 104 professional football club charities from the National League to the Premier League run in-classroom Premier League Primary Stars sessions in local schools, with over 18m attendances by primary school pupils.
To find out more about delivering the programme in your school, please visit plprimarystars.com.
More than a game
The "More than a game" campaign showcases the support the Premier League provides for communities and the wider game.
The Premier League has provided world-leading levels of investment into communities and football at all levels in England and Wales, with a £1.6billion contribution over three years, equating to 16 per cent of the League's total revenue.
