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A very Red and White Non-League Day UK 2025

A very Red and White Non-League Day UK 2025

Six English non-league clubs teamed up with Athletic Club for non-league day, with the collaboration receiving global media attention

Athletic Club collaborated with six English non-league sides over the weekend as we aimed to connect Euskal Non-League Day with its UK counterpart.

The teams involved (Altrincham FC, Bromsgrove Sporting, Evesham United, Sheppey United, Steyning Town and Witton Albion) all share one thing in common: their home jersey features red and white stripes.

As part of the collaboration, Athletic sent all the sides one Athletic men’s jersey and one Athletic women’s jersey to raffle at their respective NLD fixtures, as well as a Euskal Non-League day flag to hang at their grounds.

The clubs used the shirts and increased exposure to promote their matches, while all of them donated proceeds from the raffle to their charity partners.

This initiative also drew media interest from across the UK and abroad, with institutions such as the BBC News, ITV News, DAZN, MSN News, Yahoo News and Forbes, among many others, all reporting on Athletic’s link-up with the red and white English clubs.

Both Euskal NLD and the UK edition were resounding successes. The cumulative attendance across Tier 5 to Tier 8 of English football rose to 149,060, an 11.92% increase on NLD last year.

At the same time in the Basque Country, 93 Athletic affiliated clubs participated, with special prizes up for grabs, such as double tickets for matches San Mames, guided tours of Lezama and the chance to travel to an away match with the men’s first team.

Everyone at Athletic Club would once again like to reiterate our thanks to the six teams for their dedication, time and effort that meant we could celebrate our colours together.

Club by club, here’s a brief overview of our collaboration with each English side.

 

Altrincham FC

The Robins lost 0-1 to National League leaders Barnet FC in a match that was broadcast all over the world on DAZN.

3,071 fans flocked to the J. Davidson Stadium, Altrincham’s third highest league attendance of the season.

Mr Pentland Club member Damian Dommett and his Bilbaina wife, Ainhoa Gomez, were joined by legendary England footballer Viv Anderson – the first Black footballer to play for the English national team – as they presented the two Athletic jerseys to the raffle winners at half-time.
 


One of the weekend’s standout clashes due to the importance of the fixture, all proceeds from the raffle were donated to Prostate Cancer UK.

 

Bromsgrove Sporting

Sporting massively bought into the collaboration, they played Basque songs to get the 1,012 strong crowd warmed up, while the team even walked out to Athletic Club’s beloved anthem.
 


Bromsgrove fell to a 1-2 loss against Banbury United at the UK Electrical Stadium.

In their case, funds from the Athletic shirt raffles were sent to St. Basils, a local charity which works with homeless young people across the West Midlands.

 

Evesham United

Flying high in the Southern League Division One South, Evesham have moved to within three points of the league leaders thanks to a 2-0 Non-League Day win against Cribbs FC at the Spiers and Hartwell Stadium.

The match attracted a bumper crowd of 422 spectators, while the Athletic jerseys were raffled at £5 a ticket, with the winners receiving their prize at an event after the fixture.

The raffle generated a little over £250 for the Evesham United Foundation, a charity recently set up to the help the club develop projects and activities for the local community, such as pan disability and walking football.

The men’s shirt was won by a member of staff and donated back to the club so it can be framed and put on display at their clubhouse.

 

Sheppey United

The Ites lost 2-4 to Deal Town at the Sharrocks Stadium. It was a day of remembrance for Sheppey as they celebrated the lives of former manger and player Ernie Batten, as well as Joules Smith, a young girl from the Isle of Sheppey who recenty passed away from cancer.

All the funds from the Athletic shirt raffle will be donated to a campaign fund set up in Joules’ honours for the Royal Marsden Children’s Hospital.

 

Steyning Town

Steyning suffered a 3-1 loss to Margate FC. However, Non-League Day was a huge success at the Shooting Field, with 210 spectators turning up to watch the match.

The club posted series of photos of their youngest fans, who were in charge of holding on to our Euskal Non-League Day flag throughout the afternoon.
 


Thanks to the Athletic Club shirt raffle, the Town were able to raise over £400 for Men Walk Talk, a men’s mental health charity.

 

Witton Albion

465 fans attended Witton Albion’s U Lock It Stadium for their Non-League Day clash with Avro FC. Witton lost 0-1 on the day, but had a great time celebrating their red and white colours alongside Athletic Club.

A few Athleticzales were present at the ground, while Albion also hung up an Athletic scarf in their clubhouse bar.
 


Proceeds from the Athletic raffle will be reinvested into the club to help with ground maintenance and the upkeep of their one-of-a-kind club museum.

 

About Euskal Non-League Day

Inspired by the British movement, started by James Doe in 2010, Athletic Club Foundation is preparing a third edition of Euskal Non-League Day for the weekend of March 22-23.

Non-League Day is an initiative that connects directly with Athletic Club’s identity. Besides playing a crucial role in local communities, grassroots football is a fundamental part of the club’s youth development strategy and Athletic has affiliate agreements with close to 170 clubs across the Basque Country.

Athletic Club is the only side in LaLiga that organises such an event with the purpose of celebrating non-professional football and encouraging attendance at local grounds during the March international break.

Check out the Athletic Club Foundation’s website for more information about Euskal Non-League Day and all their other projects across the Basque Country.