Walking football club backed by new Costa

The new Costa store is opening at 10am tomorrow in Cowplain and it has agreed to sponsor the Emsworth & Hayling Walking Football Club, supplying new kits, match balls and training bibs.

The walking football club formed in June 2014 to give people no longer able to keep up with the physical demands of traditional 11 or 5-a-side game a chance to keep playing.

Club founder Steve Savage said: ‘We’re delighted Cowplain’s new Costa store has decided to sponsor our club.

‘It not only demonstrates huge support for our sport and the benefits it brings, including exercise, fitness, health, confidence, friendship and new skills, but also for the wider community in Cowplain. We wish the Costa team much success with their new store.’

Costa’s operations manager Matt Coulthard said: ‘We want to embed ourselves as part of the community and what better way to do that than involve ourselves with our local walking football club?

‘As well as providing new kits and equipment, we look forward to sponsoring the inaugural Costa Cup, a walking football tournament being hosted by the club on November 20, featuring teams from across the region.

‘We’re pleased that some of the club’s players will be at the official opening of our new store in Cowplain and we look forward to welcoming them, and the local community, to enjoy the Costa experience with us.’

The 1,800sq ft Costa store has created seven jobs and will provide much-needed training and apprenticeship opportunities for young people.

Premier Coffee, the Southampton-based franchise company behind the new store, says it supports helping young people from across the south get back into employment, offering them training and apprenticeship opportunities both in-store and at its dedicated Costa Training Academy which opened in 2012 in Southampton city centre.

The company has already trained more than 600 employees and apprentices across the south.