Football's philanthropists | Clarence Seedorf

Reuben Lewis explains to The Football Front the charity work that football legend Clarence Seedorf does.

Now the football season is over, interesting debates and incidents are minimal. Twitter is a hotbed for transfer bullshit, instigated by bored folk hunting for new followers to spew their in the know crap to. Thus, I decided that this summer I shall do a series on The Wonder of Wenger on football's most charitable players (in no particular order). It is certainly an interesting topic and one that I'm sure many will prefer over meaningless transfer gossip. My opener will be Clarence Seedorf - a man we all greatly admire as a footballer and hopefully after reading this, as a person.

A playing career which started before I was even born - in 1992 - would see Mr. Seedorf become one of Europe's most successful players. His tally for club honours is 20 (twenty!) which averages out to a trophy in every one of his 20 seasons as a player, while his individual honours are hardly scarce. He was named in Real Madrid's team of the century and also named by Pele as part of the FIFA 100, a list of the 100 greatest living players. Seedorf became the first ever footballer to win the Champions League on four occasions with three different teams; Ajax in 1995, Real Madrid in 1998 and AC Milan in 2003 and 2007. A tremendous achievement which will struggle to be beaten.

Aside from his remarkable playing career, Seedorf has invested heavily in charity. In 2005, Champions for Children was established, which is aimed to improve the lives of children in developing countries often by the means of sport and education.

“Witnessing the famine that strangled Ethiopia in the nineteen- eighties, when I was just a child, had a profound effect on me and sparked my desire to give and literally shaped my destiny. With this experience as a catalyst and seeing all the suffering around the globe, I made a vow in my youth to help hurting people and make a contribution to my world in as many ways as I could. Improving the quality of life through health and  education is my vision"  -Clarence Seedorf 

Seedorf was born in Suriname, a developing country in South America. Around half a million people are populated in and around the capital city, Parmaribo, yet there are just 4 hospitals. Champions for Children invested €110,000 in a neonatal respiratory care unit in order to provide care for newborns with respiratory deficiencies.

Due to his strong connection with his place of birth, Seedorf also invested €250,000 in the set up of the Para Junior Football League. Composed of 32 teams with players aged 9-15 years old, the project is aimed to "promote integrity and fair play" amongst the youth, giving them an alternative to life on the streets.

"My dream has always been to give back to this world and especially to children. By supporting education through sport, we can help build a brighter future and teach authentic life skills and community values.” -Clarence Seedorf

Since its foundation, Champions for Children has completed six projects in countries all over the world, such as Cambodia, Kenya, Brazil and of course Suriname. The charity invested €50,000 in sports facilities in seven schools in the Phnom Pehn district in Cambodia - one of Asia's poorest countries. Similar to the Para Football League, this project aims to provide young people with an alternative to life on the streets. Drug use is prevalent in Cambodia, and Champions for Children believe the investment in sports facilities is the best deterrent.

Moreover, the charity provided €150,000 for the construction of a secondary school in one of the largest slums in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. This provides over 250 thirteen to seventeen year olds the access to basic education, which they were devoid of beforehand.

Champions for Children then invested €50,000 in the construction of a sports and recreation centre in the favelas of Salvador De Bahia, Brazil's third largest city. Here, poverty is strife with almost 50% of the city's 3.5 million population living in 'structurally precarious' housing without sanitation. Gun crime is commonplace and the city is in desperate need of support. Thus, Seedorf's charity helped the government build the sports centre, which over 400 children utilize on a daily basis. Seedorf's vision of "improving the quality of life through health and education" is clearly one of substance.

Finally, Seedorf invested €80,000 in the construction of 'The Clarence Seedorf Playground' in Stedenwijk, Holland, where he grew up. This is a poor area and the playground - 6,400 sq. mt. long - aims to support the development of young people by teaching them life skills and values through sport.

“I not only want this playground to be a facility where kids can play sports but, also want it to be a place where kids develop their social and emotional skills” -Clarence Seedorf

Clarence Seedorf is now a free agent having left AC Milan, and if that marks the end of his remarkable playing career then I sincerely hope to see him move into management or coaching - there aren't many better role models.

It's players like him who ensure that football, engulfed by corruption and avarice, still has the power to change lives, as Mandela once said.


This Article was written by Reuben Lewis, you can find more of his work at The Wonder of Wenger. Reuben is on Twitter too: @Rlewisafc.

UEFA - will common sense ever prevail?

Arsenal fan Reuben Lewis highlights to The Football Front, the inconsistencies in UEFA which are rife.

If anyone needed confirmation that Uefa are unable to see the wood for the trees, so to speak, then here it is.

Following Arsenal's Champions League 2nd leg against AC Milan, Arsene Wenger criticised the Slovenian referee Damir Skomina, claiming he awarded Milan too many free kicks. He took this matter onto the pitch at full time, as well as in his post match conference - a heinous crime in the eyes of Uefa. What followed was perhaps inevitable, knowing Uefa: a three match ban and a ridiculous £33,000 fine. And we've been here before; in 2011, after Arsenal’s Champions League exit to Barcelona, Wenger confronted referee Massimo Busacca over some of his decisions. A one-match ban given, for 'inappropriate language'. What followed was nothing short of farcical, and was branded "a joke" by Wenger himself. Whilst sitting in the stands during the Gunners Champions League qualifier against Udinese, serving his ban, he was adjudged to have communicated illegally with the bench. Guess what happened next? A further two-match ban. Arsene had this to say:

"The first time was not justified. The second time was a joke because they told me what to do and afterwards they told me 'no, sorry, that was wrong'."

Any criticism these Uefa appointed referees receive is treated like a personal insult to the body's integrity. Arsene Wenger sums this up himself:

"I believe that they have transformed Uefa competition referees to be untouchable icons, where you cannot even have a word."

There is a big difference between a personal insult and a perfectly valid criticism. The latter is what Arsene is being punished for. If you ask me, this is hypocrisy at the highest level; Uefa can say what they please, yet Arsene Wenger - not your average man on the street - is punished for expressing his views.

Now surely, if anybody, one of the world's most respected managers should be allowed to voice his opinions without being at risk of reprisal. It reminds me of when I was 11 years old playing for a local Sunday League team, and my father was in charge of the match reports for the club website. Our keeper - who would make Gomes look like Casillas - had a shocker, and my dad told the truth in the report, that all twelve four of the oppositions' goals were goalkeeping errors. Uproar ensued among some of the other parents, and, to cut a long story short, I left the club.

They were shit anyway.

But in all seriousness, this anecdote is reminiscent of what Uefa are doing today. They seem to take everything as some kind of personal insult. What ever happened to freedom of speech? Let alone the benefit of the doubt.

It is no secret that Platini, was once friends with Wenger, now Platini has a barely disguised dislike of him. Platini, the head of Uefa, publicly stated his contempt for Arsene in an interview with a French newspaper a few years ago:

"I do not like the system of Arsene Wenger", "I like to talk about football, him (Wenger) about business".

This frankly bizarre outburst got even more sarcastic and personal when Platini went on to say:

"It would make me happy that Arsene Wenger never sees it (goal line technology)". Arsene is a known advocate for the introduction of technology in football, and Platini, to put it eloquently, takes the fucking piss.

And that's not all. Amidst all this, there have been various other incidents which were actually heinous, with consequences far softer than those meted out to Arsene Wenger.

Firstly, Porto were recently fined a meagre £16,000 after their fans racially abused Man City's Mario Balloteli. £16,000? For racial abuse? Really? I'd love to hear Uefa's justification for this.

Oh, but don't worry, there's more. Russian club Zenit St Petersburg were fined a total of just €50,000 for two separate incidents of crowd trouble, in last year's Champions League group stage. They brandished illicit banners, set off fireworks, and carried out a pitch invasion. A PITCH INVASION! And they were fined just €10,000 more than Wenger was for criticising a referee!

Celtic were fined just €15,000 after their Europa League match last year against Rennes, after illicit chanting from their fans. Shortly after, in their match away to Udinese, fans brandished a banner saying: 'Fuck Uefa'. Good on 'em, I say. However, as one would expect, this clearly offensive and personal message directed towards the body itself would result in a hefty fine for the Scottish club. Oh, according to Uefa.com, Celtic were fined just £21,000 for this? £12,000 less than what Wenger was fined? This must be some kind of mistake. Right?

I wish it was.

The above highlights the inexplicable inconsistency shown by Uefa in their disciplinary actions. Admittedly, nothing is ever 100%, or black and white, even the foolish and blinkered approach of Uefa. Moreover, I'm not saying they aren't allowed to punish Arsene for any offensive comments he may make, but when we see racial misconduct sanctioned to a lesser extent than that of perceived "inappropriate remarks", one must question the competence of those supposedly running the game.

At least now Wenger knows he can criticise the referee's performance, and racially abuse him whilst he's at it, and get fined half the usual amount. Sound system they have going on there, eh?

'Til next time, RL.

This Article was written by Reuben Lewis, you can find more of his work at The Wonder of Wenger. Reuben is on Twitter too: @Rlewisafc.

You can also find all of Reuben's work at The Football Front here

Objectiveness is key

Reuben Lewis explains to The Football Front why objectiveness is crucial when considering whether Arsene Wenger should stay at Arsenal.

Over the course of this season, where many have been quick to jump on the bandwagon, I have tended to take a more objective approach, perhaps instilled by my father. When hearing fierce criticism about the manager, from Arsenal fans in particular, I react defensively. This is simply because I love the man. His successes far outweigh his failures and despite the obvious lack of trophies (I was 9 years old the last time we won something), he has done an incomparably good job.

By creating this 'self-sufficient model', The Arsenal are almost guaranteed a consistent, sustainable future in the Premiership. One that in the next decade or two, teams around us at the moment will envy. In ten, fifteen years, we will still be in the upper quartile of the league. Will Chelsea? Will Liverpool? Will Tottenham? Dare I say the Manchester clubs?

Our objective of financial fair play and self-sustainability means the boss is reluctant to spend £20 million on a wonderkid. Sign Hazard! Sign Gotze! Instead, we have to settle for some unknown two-bob teenagers like Oxlade-Chamberlain. What a load of bollocks he's been.

In life, there is always a trade-off. This may sound a bit rich coming from a sixteen year old, and by the fact I learnt this term in my economics class, but the fact is, Arsene's deep lying love for this club has been his biggest downfall. He has opted to ensure future sustainability as a business and, perhaps more importantly, as a Football Club.

But at what expense? "TROPHIES!" I hear you cry, and yes, you are spot on. But in the grand scheme of things, what would you rather; an instant piece of silverware or a club that in 10 years will be stable, free of excessive debt? Perhaps the fans more in it for the trophies will choose the former, but the real Gooners - the ones who want what's best for the future of the club - will choose the latter. Well that's how I feel, although I'm sure some will disagree. But seriously, all teams go through transitional periods. Look at Liverpool for Bergkamp's sake! The best team of the '80s have not won a league title for twenty odd years, despite spending obscene sums of money, especially over the past year or two. Back to our club though.

To those who don't know, in the 1980s, Spurs finished above us about 5 years out of 7. Sincearriving in 1996, Arsene Wenger's Arsenal have never finished below Spurs in the league. Although St Totteringham day may have to be put on hold this year - unless 'Operation Dodgy Lasagne II' is launched - you can hardly say the boss has let us down in terms of bragging rights. Moreover, just to add a little more perspective, in 1995, the year I was introduced into the world, we finished 12th (TWELTH!). No, not 5th, 12th! Things must have been pretty bollocks back then. Thankfully for me, I was more or less born into the glory years.

I am by no means an 'Arsene Knows Best' - a term many fans mindlessly direct towards those who don't vociferously criticise the boss. I acknowledge his shortcomings - and there have been many - but my appreciation of what he has done overall - and the fact we are still there or there about's - mean I am reserving my judgements, and keeping the faith, until the end of the season at least. Even if we succumb to 5th place this year, and have a season in the mickey mouse prestigious Europa League (provided we qualify!), I will not be calling for Arsene's head. I'll let him decide when it's time to call it a day, and providing his adoration of the club, I'm sure he will decide accordingly. I will still follow my team over land and sea, as will many of the Arsenal fans I've come across - even if it means a summer holiday in Rubin Kazan! One thing's for sure- we'll soon find out who the real supporters are.

This Article was written by Reuben Lewis, you can find more of his work at The Wonder of Wenger. Reuben is on Twitter too: @Rlewisafc.

A Love for Football

In his debut article for The Football Front, Rueben Lewis writes a personal account on his burning passion to watch football.

My first ever game was at Craven Cottage to see a then third division (now the equivalent of League 2) Fulham side. I'd be lying if I said I remember their opponents, no matter how glamorous a tie it was. By all accounts, I was more interested by the police horses I passed during the walk to the ground- however my love for the game would soon ignite. After my father explaining to me that the linesmen were not players, that is.

Fulham - being my local team - was where most of my match -day experience lay in my early years. Incidentally, I even had a stint at their youth academy, from the age of 8 till 11! I was (and still am) a decent player- The David Bentley Bobby Pires-esq. playmaker, one might say. It was not until I was around 6 or 7 years old when my dad introduced me to Highbury-a ground which exuded a similar kind of charm to that of Craven Cottage, albeit superior in every single way. Again, I can't remember the opposition, but being slightly older, my new - found experience had led me to higher levels of footballing knowledge. So much so that I'd boo Edu whenever he'd come on/off the field, as that was what everyone else was doing. Turns out I got that one wrong. It was actually 'EDUUUUUU' that the crowd were chanting. To be fair, as a 9 year old, that could easily be perceived as a long jeering sound. Assonance and that.

Peculiarly, one of my earliest memories of Highbury was Arsenal’s 4-2 loss to Charlton, in 2001. Jason Euell put them 4-1 up! Subsequently, I realised it's not always going to be a happy journey home. However my mind was well and truly swayed 3 years later after winning the double and simultaneously going 49 games unbeaten! 'I'm in for an easy ride if it stays like this!' I thought.

How naive.

I had the privilege to attend some of the most significant matches at Highbury, including the Champions League semi-final vs Villarreal-the ground's ultimate Champions League match-where Kolo Toure scored the only goal. Moreover, the last ever game graced by Highbury, against Wigan, really was a special day - albeit highly emotional for many. Only over the past few years have I realised just how lucky I was.

In recent years - where my love for football has become somewhat unhealthy - attending at least one game a week has become the norm, whether it's Fulham, Arsenal or both. On the rare occasion I can't do either, Brentford offer some form of salvation. My last visit there was in the away end with the Exeter fans, with my mate who got a pair of free tickets. Coincidentally, Szczesny was in goal for the home team! There were about 300 travelling fans from the West Country-who brought with them some great banter. There is certainly a unique romance associated with lower league football, especially with the away fans.

Whether it's The Arsenal, Fulham or even Brentford, my appetite for football will always be satisfied. As much as I adore Arsenal, sometimes going to games where you don't necessarily care about the result, such as at Fulham or Brentford, can supply a greater amount of pleasure and enjoyment, simply because there is less stress involved. There is never a shortage of football to either watch, play or attend-much to the bemusement of my mother-which keeps me, and many others, so immersed in the beautiful game.

This Article was written by Reuben Lewis, you can find more of his work at The Wonder of Wenger. Reuben is on Twitter too: @Rlewisafc.