On Sunday 18^TH July, 2021 Crewe FC hosted the KPI Cup at the Cumberland Arena in Crewe.

The tournament was a follow up to the Crewe World Cup Tournament that was successfully delivered back in 2019.   

The men’s 7 a side tournament was attended by 80 Crewe residents from all over the world who represented their country in the tournament.  Teams representing England, East Timor, Ghana, Poland, Cheshire East Leavers and more all competed against each to claim the trophy. 

After a competitive start on a glorious summers day the eventual winners were Cooper Buckley who emerged as the Super Cup Champions after beating Crewe FC on penalties in the final.  The previous winners from 2019, the Ghana Stars won the KPI Cup beating FC Timor Black 1-0 in a closely fought game.       

Throughout July Crewe FC has deliver several weekends of tournaments for boys, girls and adults across Cheshire.  These events would not have been possible without the support and commitment of the club’s volunteers who gave up their time and worked tirelessly to deliver a series of quality events.     

After supporting the previous event Crewe FC approached Cheshire FA to see if they could further support Cheshire FA’s Inclusion Strategy and deliver the event as part of their wider KPI tournament programme.  The event would not have been possible without the commitment of Chairman, Steve Parker and Vice-Chairman, Andy Aspinall who said             

“It was a pleasure to host this season’s ‘Crewe World Cup!’ After 18 months of disruption, isolation and a lack of football, seeing so many footballers out, competing and playing together, all from different backgrounds and cultures was really uplifting and a welcome return to some normality.

A massive thank you to all the volunteers that supported the event, but also to the players and clubs for participating in a fiercely competitive evening.

We look forward to the 2022 competition and welcoming back the new champions to see if they can retain their titles.”

Cheshire FA, Football Development Officer, Daniel Landstrom said ‘Cheshire FA is committed to embracing inclusion and removing discrimination within the game.  The previous Crewe World Cup event was a huge success and this years competition was bigger and better and it was great to see everyone enjoying playing football again.  All the teams embraced the competition and it was great to see the cultural and ethnic diversity within Crewe being shown on the football pitch.  It’s a great example of how the Cheshire FA can work together with its member clubs to deliver an impactful event which can be delivered in future years and engage more people from the local community.’    

To deliver the adult competition Cheshire FA were successful in securing funding through Active Cheshire and Sport England’s Tackling Inequalities Fund to provide five free places for teams.         

If you require any additional information or support about any of our inclusion projects please visit Cheshirefa.com or email Inclusion@CheshireFA.com.