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The ‘Make an Impact’ campaign features a unique collection of art created by professional football players kicking painted balls against canvases.
The prints are designed to highlight the lasting impact of heading footballs and concussions in the sport.
Among those who have already contributed canvases include Sir Geoff Hurst, England’s 1966 World Cup winner and former Baggie, Albion hero Chris Brunt, current men’s first team players including Tom Fellows, John Swift and Ousmane Diakite and current women’s first team players Fran Orthodoxou and Kate Evans.
The artwork will be sold at auction to raise money for the Jeff Astle Foundation, a charity focusing on awareness and education around dementia in sport.
The organisation was set up by Dawn Astle in 2015 in honour of her father, Baggies legend Jeff, who died in 2002 aged 59.
Mr Astle was a hero of West Bromwich Albion during a captivating decade on the team from 1964 to 1974, with his 174 goals in 361 appearances making him one of the club’s highest goal-scorers.
His death from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a progressive and degenerative brain disease often found in individuals with a history of head injury and often as a result of multiple concussions, led his family to campaign for greater research into the impact of repetitive heading for footballers.
Dawn Astle was recently awarded an MBE for her work to support football players with dementia and dedicated the award to her late dad.
Talking about taking part in the campaign, Sir Geoff Hurst, who played for West Bromwich Albion in the 1970s, said: “Knowing Jeff as I did, and playing with him and meeting Dawn a few times, when I was asked to contribute to this I was very pleased to help – it has been quite fun.
“I haven’t kicked a ball at a canvas for about 40 years. There was a couple of times where I missed the target but let’s not tell anyone about that. It has been a joy today, a very important issue and I am pleased to have contributed to it.”
The auction will be held in two parts. Firstly, a selection of canvases is up for grabs on eBay in early 2025, with some pieces having become available from Thursday (February 6).
Others will then be sold before a live auction as part of the Jeff Astle Foundation’s 10-year anniversary event, held at Albion’s home The Hawthorns in April.
To view the pieces on eBay, visit ebay.co.uk/usr/makeanimpact-jeffastlefoundation.
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