David James calls for grassroots club to be given financial support to get them though Covid crisis
Former England goalkeeper David James has called for grassroots clubs to be given urgent financial support to help them survive the coronavirus pandemic, after a new report suggested many could go out of business within months.
According to energy firm, Utilita, 10% of grassroots clubs fear they won't be able to make it through the next year.
Many clubs have suffered huge losses already during the pandemic, with cuts in funding and sponsorship, club bars shut down, and parents not being able to afford fees among the main reasons many are struggling.
James, 50, used to play for the youth team at Welwyn Garden City and returned to his former club over the weekend to launch a campaign which aims to highlight to just how much precarious the situation is.
He won the Hertfordshire County Cup with the club back in 1984 when he was just 14, and he says it's vital that clubs are given a helping hand soon.
"The probability of 10% of clubs being lost is a key thing for the community," James told ITV News Anglia.
"Having gone through different levels of football, it's difficult to appreciate at times what grassroots has to go through, but when people are losing money, businesses losing money, that means it has an impact on grassroots football.
"They've sponsorship money, the affordability of participants, so it's not just about producing the next international footballer, it's about having a valuable asset in the community disappearing."
The news comes after Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden called on the Premier League to support lower-league clubs, but Welwyn Garden City chairman Ray Fiveash believes the money should filter even further down the football pyramid as well.
"It costs about 80-100k pounds to run a club like this," he said.
"We need as much money from grants from the government, from the council. With the pandemic going on, we're getting less and less help."