Leicester City Youngsters Head For Ypres

In the build up to the annual Christmas Truce International Tournament, which comprises of teams from England, France, Belgium and Germany, the Foxes will join the 19 other English teams in a qualifying tournament to decide who will progress. 

Alongside this there will be comprehensive tours of sites around Ypres that aim to provide a valuable education for players from all Premier League teams of the events of the First World War. 

Premier League Chief Executive Richard Scudamore will also be on hand to conduct the opening ceremony of a new 3G pitch, which has been presented to Ypres as a gift to mark the centenary of the Christmas Truce. 

Accompanying the City youngsters on the trip are Lead Foundation Coach Richard Keeling, Education Officer Ian Cawley, Academy Coach Rodney Ballintyne and Academy Phyiso Tom Gibson. 

Leicester City’s Academy Director Jon Rudkin felt the trip would be hugely beneficial for the young players. He said: “When this opportunity was first presented to us by the Premier League we knew it would be a fantastic chance for our young players to have this wonderful combination of education and football experiences. 

“To go to Ypres and view the places where the events of the First World War happened will give our players a great understanding of the sacrifices made 100 years ago. 

“It’s such an important period in history and I have no doubt that the boys will bring back a great deal of powerful memories. 

“As part of their education programme they’ve already begun learning about the events of the First World War, including a presentation by Club Historian John Hutchinson. Some of our players have also used this as part of other projects in their schools, who have been very supportive throughout the process.” 

Leicester City’s youngsters will be joining several of their Premier League counterparts for tours and learning across a number of venues including: 

Langemarck German Military Cemetery 

A visit to one of just four German First World War cemeteries in the region, with the aim of learning about the events from a German perspective. 

Dochy Farm New British Cemetery 

Recounting the story of Bradford City’s 1911 FA Cup winning captain Jimmy Spiers to highlight the links between football and the First World War. 

Visit to a Recruitment Stand 

Guides dressed in character will provide more insights into the First World War while providing an opportunity for the young players to handle equipment from the era. 

Tyne Cot CWGC

A poignant visit to the largest Commonwealth War Graves Commission site in the world, where almost 12,000 service personnel are buried. The tour will highlight battlefield conditions and provide a chance for all to reflect together. 

The young Foxes will then join the rest of the teams for the opening of the new 3G pitch donated by the Premier League before getting down to work with the Poetry Society. 

This will provide the youngsters will another opportunity to reflect on what they have learned, with the overall result seeing one poem read at a Parliamentary Reception in December. 

Following this, all teams are invited to lay their own wreaths at the Menin Gate war memorial, where the Last Post Ceremony will be observed before a trip to Ypres’ concert hall on Saturday evening. Once there, a special performance of ‘Our Friends, The Enemy’ will be put on – a show that tells the story of the Christmas Truce and the First World War. 

What is the Christmas Truce? 

On Christmas Day in 1914 in the trenches of the Western Front, the fighting stopped and was replaced by gestures of goodwill between enemy soldiers. Presents were exchanged, songs were sung and there were even cases of football matches between the two sides. 

With the carnage and brutality of the First World War as its background, these games between soldiers from Great Britain and Germany took place in the area called no-man’s land between the trenches. 

One such match took place in Wulverghem near Ypres. Company Sergeant Major Frank Naden recalled: “On Christmas Day, one of the Germans came out of the trenches with his hands held up. Our fellows immediately got out of theirs and we met in the middle. For the rest of the day we fraternised exchanging food, cigarettes and souvenirs. The Scotsmen started the bagpipes and we had a rare old jollification, which included football in which the Germans took part.” 

The games provided a demonstration of the importance and power of sport, as well as the principle of friendship, which remains strong in football to this day.

To watch Leicester City's tribute to its players that fought and died in the First World War, click .