Our History
07 Jul 2007

In August 1999 Kibworth and Smeeton Juniors FC was formed to provide Saturday morning football training in the School Sports Hall for children aged aged 6-7.

The aim was to provide affordable quality coaching in a safe and controlled environment with the aim of expanding to include other groups in subsequent years.

At that time there was no football club in the village following the earlier dissolution of Kibworth Town Football Club due to problems with access to adequate pitch facilities. However, senior football was not dead and former players sought to resolve their pitch problems by negotiating the lease of a field the edge of the village from John Briggs, a local farmer. They had heard of our venture and invited us to join them in a ground share with the aim of establishing a fully fledged football club in the village.

In order to facilitate these developments, an umbrella organisation, Kibworth Football and Sports Association, was formed to represent the interests of the junior club, Kibworth and Smeeton Juniors F.C. and the Senior club, Kibworth Town F.C. The committee of Kibworth Football and Sports Association, is responsible for raising financial support (Sport England, Local Parish Councils, County Council and local businesses), preparing the pitches for play and paying all of the running costs, e.g. lease, pitch mowing, purchase of shared equipment.

We have been successful in raising funds and we now have a well maintained ground offering 2 full size pitches, 6 mini soccer pitches and changing facilities.

Our club ethos remains the enjoyment of football, and this was reflected in the Under 13 League awarding us the prestigious John Peet Memorial Trophy. This award is given to clubs providing a welcoming atmosphere to visiting teams and referees, and is voted for by the Referees. We are extremely proud to have won this award.

From simple beginnings where we trained only a dozen children, the club has grown rapidly and we now offer football training and matches to over 120 children from the village and surrounding area (aged 6 to 14). Our activities are governed by guidelines set out by the English Football Association and we have developed codes of conduct for players, coaches and parents/spectators. In addition, our Child Protection policy requires that all coaches and parents involved with the club have been screened (Criminal Record Bureau).

This has been a massive project and a large number of people in the community have given up considerable amounts of their time and energy to ensure its success. Our future success will also depend on the active involvement of coaches, parents and others in the community and we encourage anyone interested in helping us, either by giving some of their time or by donating financial support to contact us through the contact details listed on this site.