SKY’S £3M DEAL GIVES KICK IT OUT REAL TEETH

Troy Townsend will be delighted with the Sky deal

SKY SPORTS have signed a staggering £3million deal to back anti-racism watchdogs Kick It Out.

Mirror Sport understands the ground-breaking agreement will be announced this week in a powerful statement of intent in the fight against discrimination.

The agreement finally gives Kick it Out funding it has cried out for ever since it was launched by Sir Herman Ouseley in 1993.

It also leaves the FA, the Premier League and the Professional Footballers’ Association in the shade, each contributing just £150,000. That funding had not even been guaranteed for next year because of budget cuts.

Sky’s new three-year partnership will see it become Kick it Out’s broadcast partner in the body’s drive for inclusion in football and the battle against discrimination in all its forms.

It will build on the work of Kick it Out director Troy Townsend – a regular contributor to Sky Sports – who works with young players across the professional game and in non-league on education.

The £3m deal is a mix of cash and value-in-kind support, with Sky Sports committing to using its voice, it’s reach and established channels to support Kick It Out.

The two bodies will also work together on a string of initiatives, including making it easier to report discrimination online and inside football stadia, also developing transparency on football’s promises to diversify its workforce.

The Premier League’s own anti-discrimination drive, No Room for Racism, was launched last year. The cost for the two-week campaign, however, was understood to be similar to Kick It Out’s annual budget.

The FA have promised to ring-fence their budget to improve diversity – despite projected pandemic losses of £300m.