The Black List Awards

The Black community have made a significant contribution in football over the years, but there aren't too many people looking to give individuals and groups the recognition they deserve.

Across the professional divisions in England, there are plenty of Black faces either leading the line and scoring goals or stopping the opposition at the other end. The lack of Black managers in football administration remains a constant disappointment for many. Currently, there are just two Black managers in the professional leagues with Chris Powell at Charlton Athletic and Chris Hughton at Birmingham City.

While the problems and injustices are rightly being highlighted in the media, there is one initiative which serves a valuable purpose of highlighting the achievements of the community both on and off the field.

The annual Black List Awards celebrates the contribution of the Black community across all levels of the game. They focus not only on the pitch, but also those who work tirelessly behind the scenes and the champions at grassroots level, is often referred to as the lifeblood of the beautiful game. Also getting recognition for their work are those who work in the media either as journalists, broadcasters and pundits. The inaugural event took place in 2008 and is the brainchild of BBC Sport journalist Leon Mann and Rodney Hinds, sports editor of The Voice newspaper. The Black List is seen as an indicator of how far the British African and Caribbean community has progressed.

Mann said,

“It is not right that our community can have more than 25 per cent of players on the pitch but not have the same representation in other areas, in particular administration. You can expect to see a number of new names on the list that people aren’t quite familiar with, but will be very impressed with their achievements. We need people to come forward with the people they believe are making a massive impact in the Black community and are helping us move forward. We would like to ask them to look at what people have achieved in the last 12 months."

Unlike last year, the event will not be taking place at Wembley Stadium, but Mann believes that the purpose the list serves is even more important than previous years following the recent riots which blighted a number of cities across the country.

He said,

"It's been a huge challenge just making the Black List happen this year. We couldn't find the match funding The FA required us to so we can't hold the event at Wembley but we've made good progress in recent weeks and should be confirming an even more impressive venue very soon. After the recent riots across the country. The Black List is needed now more than ever. Young people need role models. The Black List Awards is very special as it brings different parts of the black community together.”

The fourth annual Black List awards ceremony will take place on October 20th 2011. There is still time to put forward names for this year's list so anyone who wants to champion the cause of an unsung hero who has made a valuable contribution should email their nomination to Rodney.Hinds@gvmedia.co.uk

Picture: Aaron Mokoena DJ Spoony and Danny Wallace