Football teams raise thousands for The Wallich

A FOOTBALL tournament has raised thousands of pounds for homelessness charity The Wallich – and received backing from a sports star.

Businesses in Cardiff have been taking part in an event called Clash of the Corporates.

Each of the participating companies was given £50 and tasked with raising as much money from that as possible in just 50 days.

They have been working hard as the final days of the competition come around.

This week, a football tournament was organised by competitors Le Gros Solicitors. It was held at House of Sport in Leckwith, which donated the use of the pitch for free.

There were 11 teams in the competition, including a team of service users from The Wallich. Their entry fee was paid by PMG Cardiff Limited.

The Cardiff City Football Academy coaches put forward a team, including their under 18s coach – Bluebirds and Wales legend Craig Bellamy.

The last two teams to enter the final were Cardiff City Coaches v Office Image with Cardiff City Coaches eventual winners.

Each player was given chocolates and a bottle of wine donated by Fine Wines Direct UK. A buffet lunch was also donated by Milk and Sugar.

Claudia Le Gros, managing partner of Le Gros Solicitors, said: “We are delighted that the event was a success and everyone thoroughly enjoyed it.

“Most importantly, we are thrilled at the amount of money and awareness that has been generated by this event for such an important charity.

“We chose to take part in Clash of the Corporates as we really wanted to help make a difference.

“The Wallich is such a great charity that strives to help as many people as they possibly can and this is something we greatly admire. Clash of the Corporates is a wonderful initiative which has created so much support and money for the charity and we are thrilled to have been able to raise both awareness and money to help them.”

The Echo has joined forces with The Wallich to raise £75,000 to pay for new vehicles which will help staff go out on the streets of Cardiff and meet with rough sleepers to offer support.

We have already raised more than £25,000.

To find out more about The Wallich visit thewallich.com/donate