Launched in Black History Month during October 2023, the campaign signals our continuing commitment to celebrating Black changemakers from across the Chelsea community all year round

Here, we ask them some questions…

Why do you think a campaign like Making History Everyday is important for a club like Chelsea to do?

Reiss
Chelsea is one of the most diverse clubs in the country. It's important to remember that, and remember that a lot of people that come through the doors here are from different backgrounds, so it's good to make sure that they feel welcome and appreciated.

Somto
I think a campaign like this is very important because Black excellence is something that has to be celebrated even more. As we see in the game now, it's very diverse. The fact that we're even here is kind of an achievement in itself. So campaigns remind us how far we've come and then how far we can go together as a community.

Sude
It’s very important for a club like Chelsea to make a campaign such as Making History Everyday because Chelsea Football Club is extremely diverse and has a very wide fanbase, so creating something like this really shows that Black history should be part of everyday. So, Chelsea’s Making History Everyday campaign is a meaningful project and a huge step in the right direction.

Tia
With many races and nationalities within Chelsea, Black history is made every day and should therefore be celebrated every day and not just one month each year.

Thinking about all of the history-makers who paved the way across society, on and off the pitch, who has been your biggest inspiration and why?

Reiss
One of the obvious ones is Martin Luther King. He's such a global figure for Black people, and it's great to have someone like that who we can look up to as a source of inspiration. In terms of sport, I would say Tiger Woods. Golf is known historically for being a very white-dominated sport, and it's not been very accessible to many other cultures. Him becoming one of the greatest to ever play the sport is a really, really powerful thing.

Somto
I'm a Chelsea fan, so I'd say Didier Drogba. He's one of the reasons I fell in love with the club. And it's even better him being an African player, someone I can identify with. I feel like he's given people like myself and other Black kids the hope to achieve what he's achieved in his career.

Then off the pitch, I'd say probably my family; my parents. They've struggled and fought to give me the kind of opportunities I have now. I'm trying to repay them with hard work and trying to be excellent in anything and everything I do.

Sude
My uncle Karl will always be my biggest inspiration. He played football for Charlton and taught me everything I know. My mum is also a huge role model. Being a Black Nigerian woman, who is also a police officer. Her fighting crime every day has inspired me to be brave and believe that I can be and do anything I want. On the pitch, my uncle has told me about players like Rachel Yankey, Alex Scott, Mary Phillip, Hope Powell. These players have paved the way for people like me to believe I can be successful in football.

Tia
My biggest inspiration is my great grandparents. They all emigrated from another country with no idea of what was in store. They overcame adversity and racism to make a life for themselves. So, for me to see the benefits of their hard work and pain and to be able live a better life is why they’re so important to me.

Why do you think diversity is important in football?

Reiss
It improves the football. Having every type of person competing only improves the sport. It makes it more competitive and makes it more of a joy for the viewers to watch. I also think it's really important for young kids to see people from all backgrounds visible on the TV so they can aspire to be like that.

Somto
Diversity in football, as well as in life, is important because excellence comes from anywhere and everywhere. We've seen that the Premier League is one of the most diverse leagues in the world and it's also the best league in the world. So I feel like diversity brings brilliance.

Sude
Diversity is not only important in football but in every area across society. Seeing Black male players is very common but it’s less common in the women’s game. Women’s football as a whole needs to ensure that it’s doing all it can to support young Black girls in realising their dream. The first part of that is seeing Black women playing for the best teams, managing and coaching in our game, and also presenting football programmes. It’s very important as it shows that talent has no colour.

How important is your family and heritage in getting you to where you are and where you want to be?

Reiss
Family is really important. I'm originally from Barbados and go back to every summer to see all my family. It's really important for me to see where I've come from, and how hard they've had to work for me to be in my position right now. So I think it's a different type of motivation that other people just aren't able to have. It's really important, and it gives me that advantage.

Somto
I've got Nigerian heritage and every time I've managed to go back to Nigeria, I'm able to see the support and how many people are rooting for me back home. I sort of feel like my success is kind of their success. When you see just one person make it, it gives the whole nation a kind of confidence.

Sude
As a young Black girl, my uncle has always told me that I have to work twice as hard. At times I’ve been the only Black player on the pitch. But being proud of my Nigerian heritage has meant that I’ve always been proud of who I am and what I look like. Also getting me to and from games, I have to thank my family for that and supporting me in every way, if it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t be where I am today.

Tia
Diversity within football is important because it can help us see past race and religion. It enables us to see the talent in front of us without any bias.

What does it mean to you personally to be chosen as a history-maker, and what would you say your greatest achievement has been so far?

Reiss
It's great to be recognised as a history maker. It's something that you want to be as a young kid. You want to be someone that can be looked at as a role model. My greatest achievement so far, I'd say, is representing England. It's always an honour to play for my country.

Somto
I'm very proud to be chosen as a history-maker. I feel like a lot of talented and inspiring people, kind of devoted to uplifting people from under-represented background. My biggest achievement so far is a funny thing to say because I feel like it's something I'm still working towards, and I feel like there's so much more to come. But, as Reiss was saying, playing for England and signing my professional contract at Chelsea felt like an accumulation of all the work I've done up to that point.

Sude
To be chosen means a lot to me. I want to fulfil my dreams and play football for many years to come. Whilst playing football I’d like to inspire the next generation and help young Black girls to believe that they can also reach their dreams. One of my greatest achievements was with my old club. We won the FA Youth Cup, a game where I scored the equaliser to get us to pens and ultimately win.

Tia
My family play a huge importance in what I want to achieve when I finally finish my career in football. I come from a huge football family which lives and breathes it. Within my family we have seen how amazing a career you can have through my uncle’s international career.

What's been your stand-out memory at the Chelsea Academy so far?

Somto
I'd say winning Scholar of the Year. It's a privilege to win a prestigious award like that at a club like Chelsea and I was very proud to win.

Reiss
At Chelsea, signing my professional contract. I think that's a massive achievement for anyone my age.

Sude
Playing for the Under-21s when I was 15. Going on tour with them was special and inspired me to work harder so I can create more memories. Also, training with the first team players also inspires me and these memories will last a lifetime.

Tia
It’s a huge honour to be chosen as a history-maker. My greatest achievements so far have been signing for Chelsea, going a whole season unbeaten, and being named vice-captain of the Under-18s. I’m also really proud to have been part of the team that won the FA Youth Cup.

How do you think we can break down the barriers that young people from under-represented backgrounds face in football?

Reiss
The responsibility is on the big clubs like us. We have so much access to things that most people don't, so we need to share and give back to the community. Things like Chelsea Champions are great and going into the community and providing our expertise, experience and knowledge to the younger generations is really important.

Somto
I've seen when kids from the community come and visit the training ground and you can see that inspires them to work hard to try and achieve their footballing dreams. We're a big club, and we could invite some of these young people to have a tour of the training and maybe speak to one of the first team players to learn about their journey. I think it would help highlight some of the pathways available to young people from under-represented background, whilst also showing them that they can belong here.

Sude
Having role models like Lauren James, who has just started a campaign for supporting girls in football, is really important. I noticed after the success of the Lionesses, women’s football became a lot bigger, and people started to take notice by watching and engaging with it more. It's lots of huge steps in the right direction that will naturally bring about more facilities with more money put into it, and more people investing into it, financially and culturally.

As the next generation of trailblazers on and off the pitch, how do you think you can inspire the generations after you that are from under-represented backgrounds to pursue their dreams?

Reiss
Just being a role model, being someone to look up to, to relate to, is really important. Also, it's important not to forget where we come from so in the future, when we hopefully do make it and become big names, we need to remember that there will be people who are from similar backgrounds to us and in similar positions to the ones we've been in.

Somto
When we're more established, we can use our platform for good like Marcus Rashford, for example, and all that he's done. That's an extreme example, so even just us giving back in a small way to the community that's given us so much is important. For me, it's all about using our platform and our social media for doing good and changing things for the better.

Tia
I think I can inspire the next generation by getting more involved in the community. For instance, within Chelsea, I've helped do workshops and work with young kids in schools doing question and answers about my journey so far.

Sude
A way of inspiring the next generation is getting more involved and becoming role models, especially within the Chelsea community, but also where I live. My uncle works in a primary school, and he's head of the sports department. In my primary school, there are pictures of the achievements in my year and that I made, and I'd come in sometimes and speak to them.

I did my work experience there, and I had kids everywhere asking me questions. It's nice to see younger generations wanting to be something that you are, and that was how I was. It's a ripple effect almost. We have role models that I look up to, and the younger generation is probably going to look at me like that.