Leeds United Foundation celebrate World Religion Day | OneFootball

The Leeds United Foundation were thrilled to welcome Joel Piroe to Elland Road recently for a special workshop focused on allyship as part of their celebrations for World Religion Day.

Delivered by the Premier League Kicks team, the Leeds United forward was asked to join a group of local young people as they took part in an educational workshop that centered around supporting others and acting as an ally, especially in difficult situations they may face or people they know may face.

The main aim of the session was for the children to gain a better understanding of some of the key principles of the most recognised religions in Leeds, but also to find out more about the similarities between various religions rather than focusing on the differences.

During the workshop, the group of youngsters were split into five groups to tackle various scenarios they could come across in their own lives, and they were then asked to present and feedback to Piroe, who was also on hand to offer advice, sign autographs and have photos with everyone in attendance.

Joel Piroe spoke to LUTV during the visit, and he said: “I enjoyed the visit a lot, it’s great that the children are made aware of different things in the world, especially how diverse everyone is, and that people have different beliefs and view things differently, and to see how they learn to co-exist with each other. Also, they spoke about what to do in difficult situations and it was a pleasure to see them being open and giving their honest opinions.

“I think it’s very important for the players to be a part of the community, we set examples as well for people out here in the city and they need to know that it’s not just them that we are talking about but it’s all of us, we all have to play our part and we all have to make sure it is a better place for everyone.”

Richard Foye, who leads on Race Equalities at the club’s official charity and is the Senior Project Officer for Kicks, added: “Today we’ve had some groups down to celebrate World Religion Day and a really important aspect was that the young people not only came away with an understanding of what the key religions are but most importantly actually how we can work together and show allyship by supporting people who are different to us and have maybe come from a different culture or follow a different religion to us.

“It was fantastic to have Joel Piroe here as a first-team player, he took a real interest in the young people and what they were learning about. It really helps and supports us as coaches as we are delivering these workshops to know we have their backing and to help encourage the youngsters.

“I hope that the key takeaway from the session today is allyship and supporting each other, whether it is within football, society, schools or workplaces, they are all made up of a fantastic blend of different cultures and it’s really important for young people to understand that this isn’t something that is going to change, and it’s something that should be embraced and celebrated. With a bit more understanding these young people will hopefully continue to be really warm and welcoming to anyone joining or taking part in our Kicks sessions.”

Some of the religions the group spoke and learnt about during the exclusive workshop at Elland Road, included Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism.

World Religion Day took place on Sunday 19th January 2025 (it falls on the third Sunday in January every year) and the aim is to promote understanding and peace between all religions, encouraging people to learn about other faiths and beliefs. For further information, please click here.

For more information on the Premier League Kicks programme, including the various locations for sessions, please contact Richard.Foye@leedsunited.com.