Football, Community and Social Responsibility : Everton’s ‘Blue Family’ and Sport at the Service of Humanity

Abstract

This book shines a light on the value and effectiveness of football clubs’ community engagement work, the cultural value of sport and the position sport plays within people’s daily lives. The book considers the deep historical roots that many football clubs have as charitable institutions within their civic locales. Including original research carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic, the book presents an in-depth case study of Everton FC and their associated charitable trust. It takes a close look at the outreach work that they undertook during the pandemic to support vulnerable people in the local community and considers the value of that work more generally for local residents, football fans, club staff and other stakeholders. The book also places the Everton case study in the context of wider debates around the use of sport in the service of humanity, and corporate social responsibility in the sport industry. This is fascinating reading for any student, researcher, policy maker, practitioner or football fan with an interest in sport (for) development, community work, the relationship between sport consumption and wider society, ethical business or the English Premier League.