From mascot to club benefactor: Local lad Levi Colwill lives the dream

After winning the Club World Cup, Chelsea's first-team squad won't officially return to training until the beginning of August. However, the club will fulfil a friendly fixture against Sholing, who play in the seventh tier of English football.

It's a very special match for Levi Colwill, who has ties to both clubs. He wears the 'Blue' shirt, but his childhood binds him to his local team.

This event between the two teams arose precisely from those connections. The LSC academy is based in Southampton and was founded by Levi Colwill himself in a collaborative programme with Sholing.

Football and education for young talents, to promote development in a special environment for the English defender. "The academy's objective is to find the next Levi Colwill", says Ross White, director of the LSC, as a motto.

In 2024, the modest British club announced that the footballer had taken on the role of associate director and ambassador after founding the LSC Academy. His uncles Byron, Dan and Barry Mason all played for Sholing.

Colwill, who on occasion donned the mascot costume, walked out onto the pitch with a player in the 2014 FA Vase regional final, which saw Sholing crowned champions of the Wessex League at Wembley thanks to a goal from Marvin McClean. Ever since then, he has always wanted to do his bit, and a decade later, the project kicked off.

In that time, he has already inaugurated a new stand at the stadium, sponsored the first team's shirts and financed a new pitch.

Whenever he can and his schedule permits, he tries to watch the team both at home and away. He has even been seen with Cole Palmer, a high-profile companion.

And now he has helped Sholing secure this attractive fixture against Chelsea, even though they will be fielding many second-team players. The club has already sold more than 1,000 tickets for the match.

"He's doing things that you'd expect from someone at the end of their career. He's trying to build something here for himself and his family. For someone who is 22 years old to recognise that says a lot. He is helping us enormously," acknowledged Paul Knott, the club's chief executive.