Ed Still, Daniel Bachmann, Adrian Mariappa, Tommy Mooney, Alec Chamberlain, Steve Palmer, Nigel Gibbs, Tommy Smith, Helen Ward, and Luther Blissett OBE DL joined partners, supporters, staff, and volunteers from Watford FC and Watford FC’s Community Sports and Education Trust for a night of celebration at Vicarage Road Stadium on 26th March 2026. The annual Gala Dinner is the culmination of a year of successful community engagement from the self-financing registered charity, launching their latest Impact Report, highlighting how the Trust’s work has engaged, inspired, and improved the lives of over 16,000 individuals, with participation numbers well over 200,000.
Importantly, the evening also provides the Trust the opportunity to recognise several beneficiaries of their work, known as the Trust Champions Awards. These are awarded to inspirational people who have achieved personally and collectively, spreading their positivity onto others, via various community projects, activities, and events put on by the Trust. Those recognised have been nominated and selected by Trust staff and volunteers. The winners are:
- Pamir – Social Action Champion, sponsored by Noble Foods.
- Pearl – Mental Champion, sponsored by BSG Financial Solutions.
- Lilya – Football Champion, sponsored by WSW Refurbishments.
- Jeffrey – Community Champion (Youth), sponsored by Noble Foods.
- Ollie – Education Champion (U11), sponsored by The Harlequin Centre.
- Golden Memories volunteer team (Simon, Geoff, Gill, Tim, Aiden, Jan, Colin, and Helen) – Volunteer Champion, sponsored by VWV.
- Yeganeh Khalili – Education Champion 11+, sponsored by Academia.
- Tom Ward – Physical Health Champion, sponsored by Stylographics.
- James Hayes, Community Champion (Adult), sponsored by Metroprinting.
- Giancarlo Gaglione – Fundraising Champion, sponsored by Cortland.
- Jamie Davies – Coach Champion, sponsored by Hertfordshire FA.
- Ze’ev Portner – Equality Champion, sponsored by University of Hertfordshire.
- Colin Monet – Overall Trust Champion, sponsored by Mercer & Hole.
- Steve Alexander and Kristian Hitchins, Trustee Champion, sponsored by Skechers.
There was plenty of smiles, laughter, and dancing throughout the night, with Vibe FM and Watford FC regular Lee Partridge on hosting duties, complete with a fittingly golden jacket. The audience included the Trust’s headline sponsor Skechers, corporate partners University of Hertfordshire, Eleven Sports Media, and Mercer and Hole, as well as the Elected Mayor of Watford, Peter Taylor, and the EFL’s Community Director, Debbie Cook.
Guests were kept entertained by the prestige of Miles, also known as the Bowler Hatted Magician, as well as the sublimely talented Grace George, a St Albans-based singer-songwriter that has amassed over 75 million streams on Spotify. Proceedings were accompanied by canapes, drinks, and three course meal, thanks to Watford FC catering partner, Gather and Gather.
As a charity fundraiser, the night also featured a raffle that raised over £1700, with a top prize of four seats in Watford FC hospitality, thanks to Club partner Koka. Moreover, an online auction was run by Superstars, featuring several unique Watford FC, sporting, travel, and dining items and experiences, with totals still being calculated.
Community Director at Watford Football Club’s Community Sports and Education Trust, Rob Smith, said of the event:
“Our Gala Dinner was a great success and provided us with an opportunity to celebrate another fantastic year of community work, as well as share the stories and recognise some of the people our community projects, activities, and events are supporting. I congratulate the award winners once again.
I’d also like to thank the team that enabled the evening to run so smoothly, as well as the many award sponsors, our corporate partners, the host of former players, current head coach Ed Still, Daniel Bachmann, our trustees, and of course, the brilliant staff and volunteers who represent the Trust so well every day of the year.”
Photo and video were captured by Social Video UK and AJL Media Productions respectively and will be published to the social media channels, searching @WFCTrust on Facebook, Instagram, and X, or watfordfc-cse-trust on LinkedIn.