Chelsea Football Club has embarked on a community tour in Jordan and Israel this week, using the power of football to bring people and communities together.

The visit has received the backing of Rt Hon Tony Blair, the former Prime Minister who does much of his work now promoting peace in the Middle East.

Blair said: 'I've always believed that sport can play a key role in helping to bring people of different backgrounds cultures and religions together, which is why projects like this can make a difference.'

'This is a great initiative, I wish Chelsea the best of luck for their visit to the Middle East and congratulate the club for their really imaginative work in helping to break down barriers and engaging with young people across communities in the region.'

Academy players and staff will be visiting projects run by our global charity partner Right To Play in Amman. The team will also be visiting community initiatives in Tel Aviv that provide sporting opportunities for young people from both Israeli and Arab communities.

The club will be also providing coaching master classes for aspiring coaches, demonstrating the skills and techniques that have helped Chelsea FC become one of the world's leading clubs.

Academy Director Neil Bath looked forward to the tour, he said:

'There is so much good work going on within football, particularly at Chelsea, that doesn't get reported.

'We have a proud history in providing world class programmes to deliver coaching, promote health and tackle social problems in London and throughout the world.

'I'm sure this year's tour will show the power of football to bring people together and show that there is no place for discrimination in our game or in our societies.'

Right To Play National Director Chris Robinson added:

'We are delighted to once again be able to show our partners, Chelsea FC, our work in action.

'We know that visiting our Jordan projects with Chelsea provides a huge boost for our local coaches and children and is a major positive message throughout the Middle East.

'The fact that Chelsea are interested in the lives of refugees in Jordan is a powerful message and once again shows the positive potential of sport.'

The Jordanian leg of the tour will take place between 26-28 May and will visit Palestinian refugee projects in Amman. The team will also be providing advice and help for young Jordanian coaches using practical examples of the Chelsea first team and academy coaching techniques.

In Israel between 29-30 May, the tour will focus around the David Lewis Centre in the historic city of Jaffa, which provides footballing and educational opportunities for young Israeli and Arab boys and girls.

The David Lewis Centre is home for the Jaffa Community Football Club which provides sport for children and young people from the Jewish and Muslim communities.

Members of the Chelsea youth and reserve team will be joining the tour including Israeli International Ben Sahar, England youth players Michael Woods and Shaun Cummings, Spanish youth international player Sergio Tejera and Football Icon winner Carl Magnay.

Chelsea Football Club Community Programme:

Chelsea are amongst the world's leading clubs in providing corporate social responsibility programmes for over 300,000 participants every year

During the 05/06 season the club helped to deliver £4.34m in community investment. This was 2.8 per cent of turnover, well over the one per cent standard in UK or the 0.8 per cent United Nations recommendation for major companies or western nations.

The tour follows last year's successful trip to Ghana which saw Chelsea and Right to Play coaches provide fun sessions and coaching master-classes to hundreds of youngsters, community leaders and aspiring coaches

Right to Play

Right to Play is a unique international humanitarian organisation that uses specially-designed sport and play programmes to improve health, build life skills, and foster peace for children and communities affected by war, poverty and disease. Working in both the humanitarian and development contexts, Right To Play has projects in more than 20 countries in Africa Asia and the Middle East.

Right To Play programmes aim to improve the lives of children affected by poverty, war and disease. They work closely with communities to set up sport and play programmes designed to teach important skills including leadership, teamwork, conflict resolution, self-esteem, communication, commitment, respect and fair-play.

Right To Play is supported by an international team of sportsmen and women who generously donate their time to actively support our programmes.

Their involvement inspires children and helps raise awareness of the humanitarian potential of sport. Led by four-time Olympic Champion, and Right To Play President and CEO Johann Olav Koss, their Athlete Ambassadors include Matthew Pinsent, Ian Thorpe, Wayne Gretzky, Haile Gebreselassie, Carolina Kluft, Martina Hingis, Lauryn Williams and Mike Powell.