Football fundraising , here we go again...

It is with great honour and some trepidation that i will be leading the legendary 99 Problems, once more into Tackle's 12 hour Brighton Football Marathon, on Saturday the 18th July 2026, from 8am to 8pm - a unique fundraising event. Each year over 1000 people take part in Tackle's regional 12-hour tournaments.

The squad and why we do this...

Once again we have our three experienced older heads in myself , JC and DJ, supported by marathon regulars and youngsters Tom, Ollie and JD , plus this years debutants Toby and Alex, making up our 8 man squad.

We combine our love of football with raising money for a truly great charity that makes a real difference on the ground. I have been fortunate enough to visit Senegal and see the work they do and how the money we raise is used to transform lives. We will be playing football for a massive 12 hours, playing some 20+ games, scoring goals, getting blisters and drinking endless water as we struggle through to 8pm.

We go hard with our fundraising and have topped the leader board on a couple of occasions, one year raising over £4k... can we beat that this year... We are not bad at football either, once losing the final on penalties!

The charity...

Tackle uses the power and popularity of football to deliver HIV and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) information and services to young people on football pitches across Sub-Saharan Africa.

The money you and your team raise will improve countless young lives across sub-Saharan Africa where ignorance and myths about HIV, and lack of access to information and services for sexual health result in over a million preventable deaths every year.

The Football Marathons unite fans of the beautiful game through our shared love of football. Here in the UK, we use it to raise cash, and in Africa, we put that money into our sexual health through football programmes.

You can find out all about their amazing work here https://www.tackleafrica.org/

The ask

So once more i am asking you to dig deep and contribute whatever you can, however large all small. Every pound makes a difference. If you can sponsor me, and come down and support even better. Its always good to have some support as the hours pass and the legs tire.

Thank you for taking the time to visit this page and and even bigger thank you for your wonderful sponsorship.

Game on!

Tony D (team captain)