Welcome to CAFE!

We are the Centre for Access to Football in Europe.
'Total Football - Total Access'

CAFE is supported by the UEFA and is working closely with its 53 associations to improve access in European football stadia.

Happy new year!

Everyone at CAFE would like to wish you a very happy new year!

2011 was a very important twelve months in our history, with highlights such as our first ever European conference, which took place in September, and moving to our brand new offices in Chester.

The next twelve months will be huge for CAFE, as we get ever closer to UEFA EURO 2012. Thank you very much for your continued support, and best wishes for 2012!

Respect Inclusion Project - Football With No Limits

Respect Inclusion logo The Respect Inclusion project continues to grow with just a matter of months left until UEFA EURO 2012.

Our dedicated website, http://euro2012.cafefootball.eu/, will continue to be updated with important news.

Speaking about the importance of the RESPECT campaign, Michel Platini said: “As the governing body of European football, UEFA has the responsibility to protect the game and its supporters. RESPECT at EURO 2012 highlights UEFA’s continuous commitment to combat any form of discrimination, increase access for fans with disabilities, promote health through physical activity and encourage intercultural dialogue between fans and the host cities”.

As a part of our Respect Inclusion - Football With No Limits project, CAFE have launched a European-wide competition to promote disability and access awareness amongst the football family and wider public. Competitors are invited to submit a photograph, video clip, short story, poem or song that reflects and celebrates inclusive design, accessibility and/or disability awareness.

Whether you are a football fan or not, we would be delighted to hear from you. We are looking for all kinds of ideas, so be as creative as you can! It could be something personal to you, something good that you have seen or something that you have been told about. The competition is open to everyone, and you can submit as many pieces as you like by visiting http://euro2012.cafefootball.eu/uploads.aspx.

We look forward to receiving your entries!

Records broken in Poland ahead of UEFA EURO 2012

We were delighted to find out recently that the game between Sląsk Wrocław and Wisła Kraków was attended by 230 disabled supporters - a record number for a match in Poland.

With Poland co-hosting UEFA EURO 2012 this year, it is fantastic to see such a large number of disabled supporters attending a football match and we hope that this becomes a growing trend.

For more information, and an account of the match from the Sląsk Wrocław Disabled Supporters Association, please visit http://www.cafefootball.eu/2012/01/31/news/230-Breaking-Records-Breaking-Barriers.aspx.

To find out more about the Sląsk Wrocław Disabled Supporters Association, KKN, visit their website at http://www.kkn.wroclaw.pl/index.html.

CAFE Managing Director honoured

CAFE's Managing Director, Joyce Cook, has been awarded an OBE in the Queen's New Year's Honour List for her services to disability sport. This is a fantastic honour in the United Kingdom and is an excellent reflection of the high-regard that Joyce is held in.

Joyce said, "I am deeply honoured to have received an OBE but the award is really a reflection of the hard work shown by everyone at the Centre for Access to Football in Europe as well as our supporters and partners who are helping us change the landscape for disabled fans”.

Joyce works tirelessly to promote good access for all supporters, and we are delighted that her contributions have been recognised. Congratulations on a well-earned honour!

CLUB CAFE Network continues to grow

At our September 2011 conference we launched the CLUB CAFE network. CLUB CAFE exists to bring like-minded people together to work towards our goal of Total Football, Total Access.

Since the conference, the network has expanded considerably. People from all across Europe have added their voice to our cause. The more people speak up, the more our voices are heard.

For more information on CLUB CAFE and to download a copy of the form, please visit http://www.cafefootball.eu/2011/10/03/blog/Introducing-CLUB-CAFE.aspx

CAFE website updates

A number of new blogs have been posted on our website this month. They include stories from Belgium, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland and Scotland:

We have also received a number of stadium reports and fans comments this month. They can be found, along with the stadium reports template, at http://stadium.cafefootball.eu/Default.aspx. New reports and comments have been added to stadiums in Belgium and the Netherlands.

If there is anything that you can add to our stadium reports, or any news stories that you would like us to cover, please do get in touch.

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