Sam Thompson begins 260-mile run and cycle to deliver Soccer Aid match ball
The 32-year-old will travel from Chelsea's Stamford Bridge stadium in London, the location of last year's charity match in aid of Unicef, to Manchester United's Old Trafford home, which will host the 2025 game that Thompson is due to play in.
Speaking before setting off on Monday, the former Made In Chelsea star said: 'I had no sleep last night, I'm absolutely terrified but I know I just need to keep my head in the game and remember why I'm doing this.
'It's all for Unicef and to raise as much money as possible, so I'm going to dig deep and get on with it, and look forward to a hot shower at the end.'
On Monday, Thompson will run 26 miles towards Hemel Hempstead, where he will then cycle 23 miles further to the first finish line at MK Dons' Stadium MK ground in Milton Keynes.
Thompson was joined at the start line by I'm A Celebrity … Unpacked co-host Joel Dommett, his sister Louise Thompson, her partner Ryan Libbey and his nephew Leo.
His sister said: 'Sam's such a happy, entertaining person, I've never seen him do something that will require so much resilience and endurance.
'I'm so proud of him, he's put so much work in and it's all for an incredible cause, and will help so many children. I'm waving him off at the beginning and I'll be seeing him at the end, that's all the support he needs from me.'
From Stadium MK, Thompson will travel to Aston Villa's Villa Park in Birmingham, then on to Port Vale's Vale Park in Stoke-on-Trent, then to Everton's Goodison Park in Liverpool, before finishing at Old Trafford.
His journey will be broadcast live on ITV's This Morning and Hits Radio each day, with the star due to arrive at the finish line on Friday June 6.
The challenge will also feature in a one-off documentary on ITV1, Sam Thompson's Match Ball Mission, which will air in the lead-up to Soccer Aid for Unicef.
Thompson is taking on the challenge to raise money for Soccer Aid charity Unicef's work to help children grow up safe, healthy and able to play.
Soccer Aid 2025 will take place on Sunday June 15, at Old Trafford, and will be broadcast live on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
37 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Club World Cup winners will get to wear special golden badge for FOUR YEARS
The winner of this summer's highly-anticipated Club World Cup will get to wear a special badge on their shirts for the next four years. The tournament will get underway on June 14, kicking off a busy month of football for the 32 teams involved. It will be held at various venues across the United States and involve the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and PSG. And the first winner of the expanded version of the competition will have a a golden badge on their shirts recognising their achievement until the next edition takes place in 2029. The design of the crest is yet to be revealed but it will likely be similar to the one Man City have had on their kit since they won the Club World Cup two years ago. City have been allowed to wear it for back-to-back campaigns as the tournament did not take place in 2024 with the Fifa Intercontinental Cup taking place instead. This year's tournament will consist of 32 teams a stark contrast compared to the old format which only included seven teams from the six FIFA confederations. As a result of the expanded pot of teams, instead of seven games being played across 11 days, the event will see 63 fixtures crammed into 28 days. While the competition may be viewed as an after-thought by some fans, it comes with a lucrative award - as the winners of the tournament will receive up to £97million ($125million) from FIFA. A £774million ($1billion) will be shared between the 32 clubs - in addition to a £406million ($525million) participation fee shared based on sporting and commercial criteria, with a further £368million ($475million) shared based on sporting performance.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Chelsea transfers Q&A: YOUR questions answered - the latest on Hugo Ekitike, Jamie Gittens, Mike Maignan, which players will leave in a mass exodus and more
It's another huge summer transfer window for Chelsea, boosted by the £100million jackpot they picked up by securing Champions League football for next season. The next few weeks could see them claim another £100m, if they win the Club World Cup in the United States, but they will also have their focus trained on signing the players who can take them from fourth to the top of the Premier League.
Metro
an hour ago
- Metro
Why are Chelsea playing in the Club World Cup 2025?
Chelsea's season isn't over quite yet, with the Blues set to head stateside to take part in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025. The expanded 32-team Club World Cup is taking place across 11 cities in the United States and will run from June 15 to July 13. The tournament includes teams from all six continental confederations and will feature Premier League sides Manchester City and Chelsea – but not the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool. So, why exactly are Chelsea taking part in the Club World Cup this summer? Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro's Football Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link we'll send you so we can get football news tailored to you. Clubs automatically qualify for the tournament if they have won a continental club competition in one of the four most-recent seasons before the 2024/25 campaign. As one of the more recent winners of the Champions League in 2021, Chelsea are therefore eligible for the tournament. The remaining teams are made up of the highest-ranking clubs in the respective continental ranking systems. Europe is the most-represented continent with 12 clubs, followed by South America with six competing sides. There are four clubs each from Asia, Africa and the North American and the Central American Federation. Oceania only gets one spot while the US, as hosts, have been given an extra place. FIFA rules state that a maximum of two teams from the same country can take part, which is why Chelsea and Manchester City, who have both won the Champions League in the four years prior to this season, will be involved this summer at the expense of their Premier League rivals. Palmeiras – Winners of the 2021 Copa Libertadores Porto – Fifth-best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking Al Ahly – Winners of the 2020/21 CAF Champions League Inter Miami – Winners of the 2024 MLS Supporters' Shield PSG – Second-best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking Atletico Madrid – Sixth-best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking Botafogo – Winners of the 2024 Copa Libertadores Seattle Sounders – Winners of the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League Bayern Munich – Best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking Auckland City – Best OFC Champions League winners in the OFC four-year ranking Boca Juniors – Second-best ranked eligible team in the CONMEBOL four-year ranking Benfica – Seventh-best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking Flamengo – Winners of the 2022 Copa Libertadores Esperance de Tunis – Best-ranked eligible team in the CAF four-year ranking Chelsea – Winners of the 2020/21 UEFA Champions League Los Angeles FC – Winners of the play-in match River Plate – Best-ranked eligible team in the CONMEBOL four-year ranking Urawa Red Diamonds – Winners of the 2022 AFC Champions League Monterray – Winners of the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League Inter Milan – Fourth-best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking Fluminense – Winners of the 2023 Copa Libertadores Borussia Dortmund – Third-best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking Ulsan HD – Best-ranked eligible team in the AFC four-year ranking Mamelodi Sundowns – Second-best ranked eligible team in the CAF four-year ranking Man City – Winners of the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League Wydad AC – Winners of the 2021/22 CAF Champions League Al Ain – Winners of the 2023/24 AFC Champions League Juventus – Eighth-best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking Real Madrid – Winners of the 2021/22 UEFA Champions League Al Hilal – Winners of the 2021 AFC Champions League Pachuca – Winners of the 2024 CONCACAF Champions League Red Bull Salzburg – Ninth-best ranked eligible team in the UEFA four-year ranking The teams in each of the eight groups play each other once and the top two teams from each group will progress to the knockout stage of the competition. The knockout stage will consist of a Round of 16, quarter-final and semi-final stage, before the final itself takes place on July 13 at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. More Trending Clubs have already been warned by FIFA that they must take their strongest squads to the tournament. Chelsea vs Leon (June 16, 8pm, Atlanta) Flamengo vs Chelsea (June 20, 7pm, Philadelphia) ES Tunis vs Chelsea (June 25, 2am, Philadelphia) Chelsea have appeared in two Club World Cups before – in 2012 and 2021 following their Champions League triumphs in the respective years. The west Londoners – who as the European champions were parachuted into the tournament in the semi-final stage in 2012 – beat Mexican outfit Monterrey in the last four before suffering a shock defeat to Brazilian side Corinthians in the final. Chelsea finally got their hands on the trophy in 2021, however, beating Al-Hilal in the semi-finals and then Palmeiras in the final. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: Man Utd offered PSG star after Ruben Amorim's top target joins Chelsea MORE: Chelsea issue telling response after Paul Scholes makes wild Moises Caicedo claim MORE: John Obi Mikel backs Chelsea to sign two Man Utd stars and build Europe's best young squad
