Stars from two rival football clubs and a basketball team have joined forces to give youngsters a head start in sport.
The charity foundations of Newcastle United, Sunderland, and Newcastle Eagles have launched Tesco Bank Junior Players.
The project will see 15,000 primary school pupils in the North East take part in football and basketball sessions from top coaches.
Ayoze Perez, the Toon’s ambassador to Newcastle United Foundation, welcomed the move.
He said: “A good coach is really important and it’s great that Tesco Bank is supporting the Foundation so their coaches can work with even more people.”
Sunderland player Duncan Watmore said: “I think it’s great that this project is encouraging so many young people to get involved in sport across the whole of the North East through the work of the Foundation of Light and other partners.”
And Fab Flournoy, head coach and player with the Eagles, said he hoped youngsters would find basketball to be fun.
He said: “It is always fantastic to teach young people about the sport I love playing and I hope they find as much enjoyment from the game as I do.”
It is the first time all three foundations have worked together on the same project.
The initiative was launched on Thursday at Tesco Bank’s base in Newcastle.
Iain Harnett, Tesco Bank, Managing Director, Operations said: “We are thrilled to expand our community programme into the North East of England with this fantastic programme.
“We focus on creating opportunities for young people and encouraging healthy choices which are objectives shared with all three of the Foundations.
“We are a major employer in the North East and this programme allows us to give something back to the communities which have supported us.”
Kate Bradley, Head of Newcastle United Foundation, said the aim was to encourage more youngsters to take part in sport.
She said: “We’re thrilled to have Tesco Bank’s support to share the coaching expertise of the Foundation staff across the region to help inspire more young people to get involved in grassroots sport.
“We’re really proud to be part of this pioneering partnership that sees the three Foundation’s work together for the first time.
“We know that through this initiative we can encourage even more young people to get involved in sport.”
Jamie Wright, Foundation of Light Managing Director, said it was great to work with on-the-pitch rivals Newcastle United.
He said: “We’re delighted to be working with Tesco Bank as well as our colleagues north of the Tyne on this exciting new project that will make a big difference to grassroots sport in the region.
“Thank you to Tesco Bank for supporting the Junior Players programme, it demonstrates a real commitment to the North East and we hope this is the start of a very successful partnership.”
Sports stars attended the launch with basketball players Drew Lasker and Joe Hart joining Ayoze, Duncan, and Fab.