Albion in the Community's virtual fundraiser, the Albion Challenge, is now at its halfway point and has so far raised over £6,000 to support vital community projects across Sussex.
The Albion Challenge encourages participants to end 2020 positively by getting active and raise funds to support vulnerable people throughout the community, by virtually covering the distance from the Amex stadium to other football grounds by the end of the year.
To mark the halfway point, Albion's women's team have helped launch a new 22-mile route from the Amex Stadium to the People's Pension Stadium in Crawley, home of Albion's Barclays FA Women's Super League team.
Supporting the fundraising effort, players will be tracking their miles to help fans compare their distances to the women's team and will also be donating to the event, as well as offering a signed football. All participants in the Albion Challenge will be entered into a prize draw to win the ball.
Forward Aileen Whelan said, “We really miss our supporters and this fundraiser is just a small thing we can do to reconnect with the local community, who we hope to see back at our games as soon as it’s safe to do so.
"We typically cover 1.2 – 6.2 miles per training session and 4-6 miles per match which across the squad, equates to between 40-105 miles per month.
"We will all be attributing these miles to the Albion Challenge and also donating money to Albion in the Community.”
The women's team staff have also decided to participate by running twice the distance of the new route and general manager Polly Bancroft noted, “the women's first team and staff are proud to get involved with the Albion Challenge 2020 and support the local community.
"It's proving a really nice way to keep happy outside of work and during a difficult period for everyone”.
You can take on the new 22 mile virtual route to the People’s Pension Stadium by signing up to the Albion Challenge here: https://www.albioninthecommunity.org.uk/albionchallenge