Bohemian FC raises €10,000 from sale of ‘Refugees Welcome’ jersey

Bohemian FC has raised €10,000 from sales of its second strip this season, which carries the message “Refugees Welcome”.

The money will be spent on 35 laptops, which will be donated to students in direct provision centres to allow them to learn remotely amid the Covid-19 crisis.

The club sold more than 400 of the shirts in June in 20 different countries, including many to the US in the wake of the George Floyd killing.

Bohs donated 100 per cent of the profits from the "Refugees Welcome" jersey to the Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland (MASI).

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The club had also been involved in bringing residents of direct provision centres to games. Before the coronavirus pandemic, it had a prominent banner that said “Refugees Welcome” displayed at home games.

Bohs, who are currently second in the League of Ireland table behind Shamrock Rovers, have been struggling financially without any supporters at games for the last six months as a result of the Covid-19 crisis.

Bohs chief operating officer Daniel Lambert said the Covid-19 pandemic has been a "tough time for everybody", but the club decided to forge ahead with the MASI donation because "we wanted to shine a light on something that is important both locally and globally.

"We are delighted to show solidarity with people in that position. We made the decision to allow our shirt to be used as a platform, alongside Amnesty International, to highlight a very real and pressing issue in Ireland today.

“Football is a universal language, and it can be a vehicle for great good in our society.”