Nominations are officially open for this year’s FA & McDonald’s Grassroots Football Awards. The awards celebrate the efforts of grassroots volunteers across the UK who go the extra mile in their local communities.

The FA spend approximately £1 million every week in supporting the grassroots game catering for the 12.3 million players across the country.

McDonald’s is the longest-standing supporter of grassroots football in the UK, having worked with the four UK FAs for 18 years. Throughout this time, it has continually championed the work of volunteers who invest countless hours of time to deliver safe, fun football to children and young adults regardless of age, gender or disability.

The awards are supported by football legends from the men’s and women’s game across the UK including Sir Geoff Hurst, Sir Kenny Dalglish, Casey Stoney MBE, Martin Keown and Pat Jennings.

Sir Geoff Hurst, McDonald’s Fun Football ambassador and 1966 World Cup winner, said: “For 18 years, McDonald’s has celebrated the important roles of volunteers who dedicate hours of their own time by supporting their local grassroots football community.

“I’m always amazed each year at the personal stories I hear about these grassroots heroes and the dedication of individuals and groups across the UK who invest so much time into the game they love. With awards for everything from coaches, to groundsman, if you know any local heroes make sure you nominate someone deserving.”

The awards feature a wide mix of categories which reflect the huge range of roles that volunteers play, including Coach of the Year, Club of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Football Mum of the Year and Community Project of the Year. Individual awards take place in all home nations including England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Nominations for the 2020 FA & McDonald’s Grassroots Football Awards are now open. To nominate a grassroots football club or volunteer go to www.mcdonalds.co.uk/awards. The award nominations close on 11^th May and winners will be presented with their awards at Wembley Stadium connected by EE.

Last year McDonald’s also celebrated a milestone moment in the McDonald’s Fun Football Programme as it reached 2 million hours of Fun Football provided to children across the UK. McDonald’s is committed to its target of giving over 500,000 children the opportunity to play football for the first time and providing over 5 million hours of football to 5-11-year-olds by 2022.

For further information on McDonald’s involvement in grassroots football and to find out how your club could benefit, follow @FunFootballUK on Twitter and Instagram.