Ahead of Oxford United's first season in the second tier of English football for more than 20 years, the CEO of the club's charitable arm has been sharing his expectations.
Matt Everett, CEO of Oxford United in the Community, highlighted the excitement for the new season and the importance of the community's role in the club's successes.
He said: "Anticipation for Oxford United’s forthcoming campaign is understandably high as the club embarks on its first season in the Championship this millennium.
"It’s the 29th U’s campaign I’ve followed since the supporting the club as a football-mad youngster growing up in our great county, and behalf of everyone at Oxford United in the Community we wish Des Buckingham and the first-team the best of luck.
"Away from the buzz surrounding the action on the pitch, it’s important to familiarise ourselves with the positive impact the U’s badge has off it before the first whistle blows."
He continued: "With support from the team behind the scenes plus our community coaches and programme leads, we’ve made strong progress this year to increase opportunity, expand our core deliverables and upscale impact."
Acknowledging the changes since the U's were last in the second tier, Mr Everett highlighted the transformation of the charity's impact on the community.
He said: "Traditionally, the charity is known for providing children’s football camps during the school holidays. It’s a service we continue to deliver to great success with hundreds of youngsters attending mixed and girls only camps in Oxford, Kidlington and Banbury this summer.
"But the wider impact of our work today is near unrecognisable to when United last kicked a ball in the second tier."
The charity has broadened its reach to assist the elderly, people with disabilities, prisoners seeking rehabilitation and refugees and asylum seekers.
According to the CEO, the success of these programmes is largely thanks to the community’s support.
Mr Everett said: "It’s support for our traditional paid-for provisions which fuels this success."
The upcoming season promises new opportunities for young aspiring footballers who might otherwise struggle with financial barriers, while the charity's inclusion football team, in partnership with Abingdon and Witney College, is set to kick off its second full season.
Mr Everett added: "The number of positive outcomes and genuine feel-good stories emerging from our team’s work is incredibly rewarding and we’d encourage all supporters to take five minutes before kick-off at each fixture this year to consider the outcomes the club badge can help achieve."
United finished their per-season campaign with a 2-0 home defeat against Italian side Palermo on Saturday.
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