A project to unite diverse communities across Walsall by using football as a force for good has received a £100,000 funding boost.
The Saddlers United Project, launched by Walsall FC Foundation last summer, has secured £70,000 backing from the Premier League Fans Fund to cover the next two seasons.
This has been enhanced with an additional £30,000 from Wolverhampton-based Pallet-Track, which is entering the third year of its partnership with the Saddlers and is the title sponsor of its home ground, the Pallet-Track Bescot Stadium.
Pallet-Track has also donated 500 matchday tickets which will be handed out as part of the scheme, to encourage fresh faces to enjoy the matchday experience during the 2026-27 season.
Walsall FC Foundation is the official charity of the Sky Bet League Two club, and director Adam Davy said the additional funding will help the community cohesion scheme go from strength to strength – including employing a permanent staff member to lead it.
He said: “Saddlers United is about showing that football can be a positive tool for social connection, cultural understanding, and inclusion. Football is a vehicle which can bring communities together.
“The programme is about ensuring Walsall’s diverse communities feel welcome at the club, including those which are not currently as visible in the matchday crowd as they are in the streets around the stadium.
“Our view is simple – if you took 10 people from 10 countries and 10 different languages and threw a ball in, they’d be playing five-a-side in no time. We believe football can unite people and genuinely be a force for good, and this programme is about celebrating that.”
Saddlers United is built around a steering group of community leaders and delivers themed matchdays using football, food, and cultural experiences to bring people together.
To date, the project has co-hosted two large Community Iftars during Ramadan, attended Mosque Open Days and shared in the celebration of Diwali.
It has also run Afghan football and food events with Walsall Churches, a Community Christmas Cohesion event and delivered homelessness and food bank support.
Despite operating with limited funding to this point, the scheme has already achieved national recognition, finishing third in the National Business Awards’ EDI category, behind Crystal Palace and Fulham – both Premier League clubs with access to significant funding.
“We have done a really good job without any significant national funding. That was a big part of the bid to the Premier League for this grant: look at what we’ve done with no funding, imagine what we could do with some,” added Adam.
“Now this funding is unlocked, we want to make sure we utilise it to do even more than we already are. It’s an ambition to make the football club the centre of cohesion and integration in the local community.”
Stuart Godman, CEO of Pallet-Track, said: “Our partnership with Walsall FC has grown significantly over the past three years and when we spoke to Adam, and the team, about the possibility of supporting Saddlers United, we did not hesitate for a second.
“This is a wonderful community project which has already shown its value without the benefit of any funding, so its impact is only going to grow over the next two years now financial backing has been secured.
“We’re excited to see the lasting impact of this project on many diverse communities in and around Walsall and are very proud to support the local community.”
The community groups currently represented on the Saddlers United steering group are the Union of Muslim Organisations; Walsall Churches; Walsall for All; One Walsall; Her Game Too; Armed Forces representatives; Guru Nanak Temple; Shree Ram Mandir; Castle School; Eastern European community group Nash Dom; Walsall Black Sisters Collective and the Afghan Community and Welfare Centre.
Plans are also afoot to establish an LGBTQ+ supporters’ group and integrate that into Saddlers United.
More information about Saddlers United is available on the Walsall Foundation website and YouTube.
