Description
Soccer Aid is a British annual charity event that has raised over £38 million in aid of UNICEF UK, through ticket sales and donations from the public. The televised event is a exhibition-style football match between two teams, England and the Soccer Aid World XI (formerly Rest of the World (ROW) until 2018), composed of celebrities and former professional players representing their countries. It is the only mixed-sex match officially sanctioned by The Football Association.
Soccer Aid was initiated in 2006 by Robbie Williams and Jonathan Wilkes. It initially took place every two years, but since the 2018 edition it is now held annually. The television broadcast is produced by Initial and distributed by Endemol Shine Sport, a Dutch company that distributes Dutch Eredivisie coverage. Television coverage began on ITV on 22 May 2006 in a show presented by Ant & Dec. Dermot O'Leary took over as main presenter in 2010.
