Every year, the Premier League organises a Truce Tournament in Ypres, Belgium, commemorating the 'Christmas truce' – a temporary ceasefire during initial months of the First World War, where British and German soldiers put down their weapons and played a game of football together.
In order to compete in the tournament, Premier League U12 teams are set three 'missions,’ on a different theme relating to the War each year. The theme for 2024 is 'Pals Battalion,’ celebrating a tactic used by the British Army to get men local to one another to enlist together.
Pals battalions were formed in local communities across the UK, where recruiters promised that those enlisted would be able to serve alongside their friends, neighbours, colleagues, and in some cases - their teammates.