Jez George
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 24 January 1970 | ||
| Place of birth | Cambridgeshire, England | ||
| Teams managed | |||
| Years | Team | ||
| 2006–2011 | Cambridge Regional College | ||
| 2011–2012 | Cambridge United | ||
Jeremy "Jez" George (born 24 January 1970) is a former English football manager who is now Chief Executive Officer for Cambridge United in the Football League Two. He is also a prominent figure in the Cambridge United Youth & Community Trust. He has been hailed as "the heart and soul" of the club by former England international Dion Dublin.
George is also a noted football lobbyist and fundraiser, campaigning for changes to rules in youth football funding which currently see clubs relegated from the Football League lose the entirety of their funding after two seasons. As part of his work he has founded the organisation Protect Football's Future, has taken part in two cross-country charity walks raising over £100,000 for youth development schemes, and in doing so has earned plaudits from an array of high-profile football personalities including Bob Wilson, Sam Allardyce and Sir Alex Ferguson.
George was integral in setting up the Cambridge United Youth & Community Trust, which was formed in March 2010 to provide sport and learning activities for children in Cambridge and the surrounding area. Its mission statement is "to positively influence the lifetime potential of 10,000 children annually through sport", which it seeks to achieve through operating football courses and a Centre of Excellence, alongside more traditional education courses which it runs out of its state of the art Learning Centre at the Abbey Stadium.
As a result of his involvement with the Trust, and as manager of Cambridge Regional College, George became intimately involved with the financing of youth football. Because of its status as a non-league club, Cambridge United receives no funding from the Football League Youth Development scheme, despite its historical success in producing players for both its own first team, and other clubs; indeed, the club's youth system is regarded throughout professional football circles as one of the best in England. George's first fundraising venture saw him walk from Torquay to Cambridge to highlight the injustice in the funding rules which saw Torquay United receive £180,000 for their youth set-up following their victory over Cambridge United in the 2009 play-off final. The walk saw George, along with then centre of excellence manager Matt Walker, cover 260 miles and raise £40,000 to help towards the annual running costs of Cambridge's youth teams.
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