The Royal British Legion

07 November 2012

For the second consecutive year, the poppy will be emblazoned on all 20 Premier League clubs on Remembrance weekend, with every player on every team in every big game wearing poppy kit.

This is the first time that all Premiership clubs will be wearing the official red poppy of The Royal British Legion and raising funds for the Poppy Appeal.

The Premier League teams aren't alone in wearing poppies this year, with strong support from Rugby Union teams too.

The Combined Services Rugby teams will battle it out in the Welsh valleys tonight  in support of the Legion, followed by teams donning poppies at this weekend's Rugby Union action in the Autumn Internationals.

England and Fiji's rugby teams will both be wearing poppies on their kit when they play at Twickenham on Saturday.

Wales, who welcome Argentina to the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday afternoon, will wear poppies sewn onto their shirts too.

Scotland and the All Blacks take to the field at Murrayfield on Remembrance Sunday and have opted to have poppies on their warm-up tracksuits.

Early supporters

Two games last weekend kicked-off the Premier League support of the Poppy Appeal in the lead up to Remembrance Sunday.

Tottenham v Wigan

Tottenham wore poppy shirts in support of the Legion on Saturday 3 November in their game against Wigan Athletic.

As fans arrived at White Hart Lane ahead of the match, they were greeted by MTS CCF Army Cadets, holding a bucket collection, with poppies available from all White Hart Lane receptions and match-day retail stores.

Members of the 2nd and 4th Battalions of the Rifles regiment formed a guard of honour to welcome the two teams onto the pitch and fans were given the chance to show their appreciation for the work of the Armed Forces during a minute's applause that took place ahead of kick-off.

All match-worn shirts were then signed by the respective players and will be auctioned online via the Club's official eBay website over the course of the following week with all funds raised going directly to The Royal British Legion.

Charles Byrne, Director Fundraising at the Legion, said: "The Royal British Legion is extremely grateful for the support that Tottenham Hotspur is giving the Poppy Appeal once again this year. We look forward to seeing the players, manager and staff wearing their poppies with pride over the coming days."

Click here for more information about the Tottenham v Wigan game.

West Ham v Manchester City

West Ham United supported the Poppy Appeal at their match against Manchester City on Saturday 3 November. Players wore shirts with poppies, which will be signed after the game and auctioned with all proceeds going to the Legion.

Representatives from local squadrons attended the match, with the club offering 40 free tickets to troops, this is in addition to the long standing offer where members of the Armed Forces can get £10 tickets for selected home matches.

Just before kick-off, representatives from both clubs layed wreaths in the centre circle, followed by one minute's silence when the Legion's East Ham and District Branch Standard's flag was lowered.

Click here for more information about the West Ham v Manchester City game.

Watch here for details of further participation in the Poppy Appeal and Remembrance by Premier League clubs in the coming weeks, including information about auctioning of poppy-emblazoned kit.

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