The gaffer: Stormzy at his new sports, music and gaming centre in Selhurst
Stormzy’s fusion of music and football made another massive stride today with the announcement that, backed by global sports brand Adidas, he has taken over the sports pitches at what was Selhurst Sports Arena to launch #Merky FC HQ, a multi-purpose centre providing opportunities across sport, music and gaming.
“I’ve wanted to do this for a long, long time and now there’s a community space that everyone in the area will be able to use and benefit from,” the world-famous rapper said this morning.
The choice of Croydon for his new centre is very deliberate. “Proper homegrown!” said Stormzy, who last year became the co-owner of one of the borough’s non-league football clubs, AFC Croydon Athletic, whose men’s first team are playing in their league promotion play-offs this weekend.
The facility at Dagnall Park includes football pitches, a state-of-the-art recording studio, a sports gaming hub and multipurpose rooms.
Selhurst Sports Arena is managed by Communities First Foundation which aims to empower communities across London through access to sport, training and employment support.
A whole new ball game: #MerkyFC has recording studios and gaming rooms as well as football pitches
In a statement announcing the move, Adidas said that their “investment will enable the charity to operate the multimedia rooms, changing spaces and a newly refurbished 3G pitch, enhancing facilities that were previously available to residents and local groups”.
The venue will continue to host year-round events and educational activities, on and off pitch, providing access to training and development opportunities for young people in the local community and beyond. “The addition of the music studio will allow for a bolstered offering to aspiring local artists to record as well as a space for all other multimedia uses, including podcasts and gaming events,” they say.
Computer gaming company EA Sports is also involved with the gaming hub, which includes the latest consoles and games.
As a means of active participation, engagement and use of #MerkyFC HQ, EA Sports will also buy back 500 hours of play time split evenly between the pitch at the space and the sports gaming hub. The hours will be distributed to local organisations and projects in collaboration with Communities First, to provide open, safe and fun areas of play.
The opening of #MerkyFC HQ follows the launch of the #MerkyFC careers programme with Adidas, which aims to address racial equity in the football industry. More than 60 people of black heritage have been placed in roles across multiple brands in the football industry since 2022.
“I’m gassed that we can finally open the doors to #Merky FC HQ,” Stormzy said.
“Working with Adidas, I’ve wanted to do this for a long, long time and now there’s a community space that everyone in the area will be able to use and benefit from. It means a lot that we now have a facility like this in Croydon. Proper homegrown!.”
Following the official opening of the space today, all the facilities will be available to book via www.merkyfchq.com.
For further information on events at #MerkyFC HQ and how to become a member, visit http://www.merkyfchq.com or follow @adidaslondon on Instagram or Twitter.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T
FREE ADS: Paid-up subscribers to Inside Croydon qualify for a free ad for their business, residents’ association or community group, just one of the benefits of being part of our online community. For more information about being an iC subscriber, click here for our Patreon page
PAID ADS: To advertise your services or products to our near 10,000 weekday visitors to the site, which is featured on Google News Showcase and followed by 16,000 on Twitter/X, email us inside.croydon@btinternet.com for our unbeatable ad rates
- If you have a news story about life in or around Croydon, or want to publicise your residents’ association or business, or if you have a local event to promote, please email us with full details at inside.croydon@btinternet.com
As featured on Google News Showcase
- Our comments section on every report provides all readers with an immediate “right of reply” on all our content. Our comments policy can be read by clicking here
Inside Croydon is a member of the Independent Community News Network
- Inside Croydon works together with the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, as well as BBC London News and ITV London
ROTTEN BOROUGH AWARDS: In January 2024, Croydon was named among the country’s rottenest boroughs for a SEVENTH successive year in the annual round-up of civic cock-ups in Private Eye magazine
I can’t say how much I love this. It has the potential to really change lives and improve society. I hope it’s a roaring success and politicians see that it’s worth investing in young people.
This is fantastic news and alltogether brilliant, thanks Stormzy and Adidas. Now, can we see decent investment in the skills young people need to get jobs? ‘Sport, music and gaming’ won’t help much. This is NOT an Eeyore comment, btw
I don’t disagree that deeper investment in young people is also required, but I disagree that this “won’t help much”. By having a ‘third space’, it can build a positive sense of community; and people investing their time in sport, music and gaming helps build them to become more ambitious. This is a stepping stone towards that next stage (which I agree with you is required). Also, life is for fun, and just not achieving productivity for the government!