Christians to have fun ‘the attractive game’ at Wembley

I’m looking forward to joining hundreds of other football-supporting Christians making their approach to Wembley Stadium for a pitchside party.

We can be gathering at the house of English soccer on Monday 8 December for a ‘Celebration of Christianity and Football.’ 

The evening, hosted by Sky TV sports presenter Simon Thomas, will feature carol singing and speakers – including skilled players and coaches – involved in the game that boasts around 30 million spectators and 100,000 grassroots clubs within the UK.

The event is a component of the Football Association’s technique to use ‘the attractive game’ to bring communities together. The evening is a key element within the FA’s Faith and Football series that goals to ‘encourage positive change through football.’ 

For me, it’s a welcome acknowledgement of the close links between Christianity and football, as increasing numbers of high-profile footballers are declaring their faith, and lots of clubs have chaplains working alongside the players, staff and supporters.

When Eberechi Eze scored a shocking hat-trick for Arsenal against their north London rivals Tottenham in November, he said afterwards, “I prayed for a hat-trick before the sport and God delivered.” 

As someone who writes and broadcasts concerning the relationship between faith and football, I’m pleased to see this special evening happening within the run-up to Christmas. Sometimes, once I’ve written about faith, I’ve had pushback from fans complaining about ‘religion’ being brought into football. 

But faith plays a crucial part in the game and shouldn’t be sidelined or hidden. As on the Wembley event, it must be celebrated.

Earlier this yr, Dal Darroch, the FA’s head of diversity and inclusion told the Religion Media Centre how involving faith communities formed a key a part of kicking division and discrimination out of football.  

He explained that faith and football were each significant components of many individuals’s identity. An individual’s faith, spirituality or set of beliefs played a crucial part in how they saw themselves.

Darroch said, “It shapes the way in which all of us perceive ourselves and our place on the planet, and is an enormous connection to sport and football. So it is basically necessary for the FA that we connect with our participants, that we engage, we open doors and we get out into as much of the broader communities across the country as possible.”

He added, “Faith and football are completely connected, inextricably linked.”

December’s high-profile occasion will have fun the close links between Christianity and football, stretching back to the roots of a few of the country’s most distinguished teams.

Clubs from Aston Villa to Tottenham Hotspur, from Barnsley to Southampton, and from Everton, Liverpool and Manchester City to Queen’s Park Rangers, from Fulham to Bolton Wanderers can trace their origins back to churches or local church ministers. Faith has been a driving force behind many clubs.

The FA has organised a series of events at Wembley with a spread of religion groups, including Jewish, Sikh, Muslim and Hindu communities. A previous Christian event was held at Wembley in December 2023.

Darroch explained, “Everyone wants a bit of Wembley Stadium. Everyone likes to be there. It is, in fact, the house of English football.  And we’ve been very lucky to have been in a position to welcome many hundreds of people from across the country from various faiths to participate in pitchside events There is a deep connection between all those communities and football.”

The FA wants to construct on these events to encourage dialogue across the faiths in support of constructing football more inclusive and stamping out racism and other anti-social behaviours.

But increasingly, it’s Christian football players, like Eberechi Eze and Arsenal team-mate Bukayo Saka, who’re being more open about their beliefs. 

At Brentford, the Premier League team I support, star striker Igor Thiago has spoken about his Christian faith, telling the club’s fans, “The biggest thing is to have faith and to imagine in God. To play and imagine with my faith makes me have the religion and confidence that I’ll at all times rating.”

Kyreece Lisbie, a Brentford ‘B’ team player, who moved to Colchester United earlier this yr, was profiled within the west London club’s matchday programme before the move. 

He said, “Whatever situation you might be going through the Bible has a verse of comfort, a solution to that situation, and that fills me with confidence about my faith and why I hold it in high regard. It has helped me through the darkest of times.

“As a Christian, I need people to see in my actions the type of person who I need to be. Through that, there can come an understanding of where my character stems from.”

The Wembley ‘Celebration of Christianity and Football’ will give many Christian football players, officials and fans the possibility to proclaim their love of Christ and provides thanks for the various close links between the game and life-changing faith.

It guarantees to be an evening to recollect under the long-lasting Wembley arch.

Rev Peter Crumpler is a Church of England minister in St Albans, Herts, UK and a lifelong supporter of Premier League club Brentford FC.