Over 400 athletes and local football legends raise record $950,000 for charity

Football fans have been known to get heated over the game, but this gathering of local football legends and over 400 football players was nothing short of wholesome.

The athletes, representing 39 companies, battled it out for a good cause on Saturday (Nov 9) in the sixth edition of Football With a Heart (FWAH) and raised a record-breaking $950,000 for charity, the highest amount raised in a single tournament since its launch in 2012.

FWAH, organised by Singapore Pools, Football Association of Singapore (FAS) and Sport Singapore, kicked off the festivities at Our Tampines Hub with a corporate tournament where Team Keppel emerged as champions.

The event also featured a celebrity match which pitted local football legends such as Aleksandar Đurić, Indra Sahdan Daud and Lim Tong Hai against each other. 

Raising the stakes for the celebrity match, Singapore Pools pledged to donate $5,000 for each goal scored, with dollar-to-dollar matching from Tote Board.

The football stars, many of whom were ex-national players, eventually scored a combined total of 16 goals, garnering $160,000 in donations.

All proceeds raised from FWAH will go towards nine designated charities this year, including Singapore Children's Society, Society for the Aged Sick and Campus Impact.

According to Singapore Pools, FWAH, which aims to use sports as a force for good, has raised over $3 million for 43 charities and social enterprises since 2012.

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kimberlylim@asiaone.com