NOW GET READY TO GRACE THE BIG STAGE
NON-LEAGUE Day is ready to celebrate on the big stage – and once again it’s going international!
Originating from a humble Facebook group established by James Doe in 2010, this annual event has evolved into a much-loved fixture on the football calendar, embodying the spirit and charm of Non-League football.
This year’s celebration takes place on Saturday with clubs up and down the country laying on special offers, while Premier League and Championship clubs take their international break.
Fourteen years on, NonLeague Day has grown enormously to the extent that Spanish giants Athletic Bilbao are even embracing the concept across the Basque region.
Visionary Doe admits he is still amazed that a concept that started between him and some friends has grown into an international phenomenon.
He said: “In 2010 I went to see QPR in a pre-season friendly at Tavistock.
“I’d been into Non-League football as a teenager watching Harrow Borough but this match reignited my interest.
“There were adverts all across the town, on the side of the road and on the buses. The ground was packed, the staff and volunteers were friendly and we had a great night.
“A few weeks later, I went back to watch Harrow and they were having a collection for new floodlight bulbs. At that point, I had a eureka moment to set something up, so I created a Non-League Day event on Facebook and sent it to a few friends. They circulated it, it went viral and I had a national event on my hands in six weeks.
“It grew so quickly. The Non-League Paper ran it from the start and I scheduled it during the international break to avoid conflict with the Premier League and Championship.
Initiatives
“We made a very conscious effort for the day to be a celebration rather than a protest, so we’ve been able to bring organisations with us like the Premier League and Sky Sports who have promoted it and helped it to grow into what it has now become.”
Now, it has even spread across Europe following last year’s successful link up with Athletic Bilbao, who have created their own day and will mark the occasion this weekend too.
“A Bilbao director approached me on LinkedIn at the end of 2022,” Doe told. “The board wanted to do something on their 125th year anniversary, they only select Basque players and have huge partnerships with the 170 clubs in the region working as a feeder system.
“We went over to Bilbao, did a presentation, they showed us around their facilities and treated us like new signings and we went to a game with the club president.
“They did their first dry run in September. We were taken from one game to the next, did ceremonial kickoffs with legends of the club.
“And they’re doing it again on Non-League Day, this is their first really big attempt – it looks quite exciting.”
Doe is also excited about the many initiatives that clubs have organised this time around to continue making Non-League Day a success.
“Harrow Borough and Wealdstone are doing special discounts for fans going to England versus Brazil at Wembley,” Doe added.
“We’ve got Basingstoke Town raising money for Reading FC fan group charities and even a partnership with South Western Railway this year for the first time to promote the games taking place on their train lines. We’re even trying to get a celebrity to record messages in the stations.
“This year is our 10th year supporting Prostate Cancer UK, so the National League have announced that all of their member clubs playing at home will be supporting the charity.
“There’s so much going on – it promises to be bigger and better than ever.”