Right To Play Appoints Leading Sports PR Agency

Pitch has been appointed to significantly increase awareness of the charity and to help Right To Play reach its fund-raising targets in 2008. The PR campaign will include the promotion of the charity through its athlete ambassadors, including the England international footballer Frank Lampard, 5,000m runner Mo Farah and former England cricketer Darren Gough, and to maximise opportunities around Right To Play’s official relationships with sports organisations, such as Chelsea FC.

In addition, Pitch will devise and execute PR campaigns around a number of specific initiatives next year, including an international programme aimed at getting five million children involved in sport prior to the London 2012 Olympic Games, an exhibition of behind-the-scenes photographs taken by top sportsmen and women, and a major pro-celebrity golf event at Celtic Manor, home of the 2010 Ryder Cup.

"The appointment of Pitch PR will significantly raise our profile and will help people in the UK to have a much better understanding of our work, our objectives and our mission to improve the lives of children in the most disadvantaged areas of the world by using the power of sport and play for development, health and peace.

"Pitch has developed impressive contacts across all sectors of the media and is the leading PR agency working in sport in the UK. The agency will provide valuable additional resource to our marketing efforts and we are delighted to be working with them."

Right To Play is an athlete-based international humanitarian organization that emphasizes sports to aid the development of children and youth in underprivileged areas of the world. Right To Play uses sports as a way to teach children about teamwork, fair play, conflict resolution, self-esteem, communication, commitment, respect, and integrity. Right To Play is committed to improving the lives of children and to strengthening their communities by translating the best practices of sport and play into opportunities to promote development, health and peace. Right To Play programmes aim to improve the lives of children affected by poverty, war and disease, and initiatives are currently being implemented in 23 countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

The organisation was founded by Norwegian speed-skating star and four times Olympic champion Johann Olav Koss. Other Athlete Ambassadors include Matthew Pinsent, Ian Thorpe, Wayne Gretzky, Haile Gebreselassie, and Carolina Kluft. In addition, Right To Play UK recently signed a six-year partnership with one of the world’s most successful football clubs, Chelsea FC. Innovative initiatives between the two organisations will actively contribute to the UK’s fundraising achievements.

Pitch is the UK’s leading independently-owned communications consultancy in sport. The agency was founded by Henry Chappell in 2002 with the backing of Matthew Freud, Chairman of Freud Communications. Chappell, 33, started his career at IMG, the leading sports management group, and is a former Director at Freud’s.

Pitch’s clients include major brands such as ABN AMRO, Hugo Boss, Skandia and Sony Ericsson, sports organisations such as Chelsea FC, the Brazilian Football Federation, MCC and the NBA, media companies such as Sport Magazine and Racing UK, and sports personalities including Rio Ferdinand.