United extend UNICEF partnership

Manchester United have agreed to extend their partnership with international children’s charity UNICEF for another four years.

Manager Alex Ferguson, who is also a UNICEF personal ambassador, attended today’s announcement in Beijing, along with Ryan Giggs, Dong Fangzhou and chief executive David Gill.

In the process, they also handed over the first 500 specifically designed ’Sport in a Box’ kits to children from the Sichuan Province in China.

The pilot scheme is aimed at using sport as a vehicle to warn of the dangers of trafficking, creating a playful environment in which the charity believes children are more receptive to messages of this kind.

Today’s announcement extends a link between United and UNICEF which stretches back to 1999, since when the club have raised £1.5m (€2.2m) for the organisation, directly helping more than 1.5 million children in countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

Aside from personal visits by players and club officials, the Red Devils also provide direct assistance to UNICEF’s Sport for Development project.

“UNICEF’s work is close to my heart,” said Ferguson.

“We at Manchester United are in a position to give something back to society and I firmly believe we have a responsibility to do so.

“It is inspiring to see our players using their international profile to deliver important social messages to children worldwide.”