Football unites England and Russia

After organising games in London and Moscow during the Euro 2008 qualifiers between England and Russia and for the Champion’s League final, the British Council is providing another opportunity for football fans to come together and share their common passion. It is hoped that Thursday’s match will be attended by Roman Pavlyuchenko, who was transferred from Spartak to Tottenham Hotspur in the summer, but is ineligible to play against his former team in the UEFA Cup game.

Before the game, the Spartak fans will sit in on a Russian lesson at Highgate School and take part in a question and answer session with pupils, giving out prizes from their club for the most interesting questions. Visiting local schools is a key part of the Football Unites project and helps to build trust and understanding between different cultures. 

Football Unites is a partnership between the British Council and the Russian Football Union, and supporters’ clubs in both countries have played a key role in making the project a success. This match is supported by Russian sports website www.championat.ru 

Oleg Eletskiy, Head of Marketing and Communications for the British Council in Moscow said: 'The aim of Football Unites is to use football to create partnerships and friendships between the UK and Russia. We are working with supporters to demonstrate that bringing fans together can produce very positive and powerful messaging. Hopefully the game between Spurs and Spartak fans will be as entertaining as the action on the pitch between the teams at White Hart Lane.' 

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For more information, please contact Paul Melhuish at the British Council Press Office on 020 7389 4939 or e-mail paul.melhuish@britishcouncil.org   

Football Unites

Football Unites is a partnership between the British Council and the Russian Football Union and celebrates sport and the friendships created through sport.

The project began in May last year with a competition in Moscow to select four young Russian footballers to travel to the UK for the England Russia match on 12 September; on 11 September there was a friendly match between England and Russia supporters in London; followed by the return friendly in Moscow on 16 October; and a wreath laying ceremony in red Square on 17 October.

On 21 May this year the British Council organised a game between Manchester United fans in Moscow for the Champions League Final and local Spartak Moscow fans.

And on 10 September the British Council organised a game between Welsh and Russian fans when the two countries met in a World Cup qualifier.

In addition to the friendly matches organised for fans, an important part of the project is interaction with local schools and children, building trust and understanding between different cultures.

The Spartak fans will visit Highgate School, North Road, London N6 4AY at 1200 and there will be a photo opportunity with sixth-form students studying Russian.

The game will take place on Thursday 18 December at Paddington Recreation Ground, Maida Vale, W9. Kick-off is at 1545.

For more information, please visit www.britishcouncil.org/russia-science-football-unites.htm

The British Council

The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations.

We work in 110 countries worldwide to build engagement and trust for the UK through the exchange of knowledge and ideas between people.

We work in the arts, education, science, sport and governance and last year we reached over 128 million people.

We are a non-political organisation which operates at arm’s length from government.

Our total turnover in 2007/8 was £565 million, of which our grant-in-aid from the British government was £197 million.

For more information, please visit www.britishcouncil.org