A delegation from the Chelsea Football Club landed Sunday in Israel to take part in a series of events organized by the club and the Israel Football Association, in preparation for a friendly game scheduled for Tuesday.
The game, which will be held in the HaMoshava Stadium, was preceded by a Sunday practice in Shefayim's Beit Hanivkharot. The practice was organized as a joint project of the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation and staffed by the professional staff of Chelsea Football Club Women.
Israel Football Association CEO Rotem Kamar greeted Chelsea Chairman Bruce Buck, women's coach Emma Hayes, and players Anita Asante and Deanna Cooper, as well as girls from football teams from Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Raanana, Pardesiya, Be'er Sheva, and Palestinian Authority Muslim girls from the "Twin Schools for Sports and Peace" project.
All of the groups participated in a professional training session on the field, as well as a leadership session.
"We are happy to bring the group to Israel," Buck said. "Our commitment to women's football is thanks to our owner, Mr. Roman Abramovich, and his enormous support for the group and for advancing women's sports. We hope the visit to Israel will be a special moment not just for our fans and players, but that it will also strengthen women's sports in Israel. We see our game in Israel as another step in Chelsea's commitment to harnessing the power of football for good purposes around the world, similar to our widescale international campaign against anti-Semitism."
Kamar said: "The arrival of the Chelsea women's group in Israel for a friendly game is an excellent opportunity to place the focus on women's football. Chelsea's contribution, thanks to its owner Roman Abramovich, to the fight against anti-Semitism and the advancement of equality and tolerance is well known, and we see the upcoming meeting as cooperation for the purpose of achieving positive social goals. The audience watching the game will enjoy professional quality and an opportunity to make a clear statement in favor of women's soccer."