They shall grow not old , as we that are left grow old : . Age shall not weary them , nor the years condemn . At the going down of the sun and in the morning . We will remember them . ( Laurence Binyon 1869-1943 ) Nearly a century might have passed -- but the memory of one of the most famous football matches to have ever taken place remains as strong as ever . Some 98 years have elapsed since British and German troops on the front line emerged from their trenches on that fateful Christmas Day in 1914 . While the Germans lined their trenches with decorations and sang carols , the British responded by running onto no man 's land with a ball at their feet and a `` Christmas truce '' was born . The two sides , both enduring its first winter of combat , decided an impromptu football match would be one way to create some camaraderie . It is an event which is still fondly remembered today with the English Premier League 's Christmas Truce Tournament bringing the story to the next generation . The present . This weekend , teams from Belgium , France , Germany and England will take part in a competition to honor those who fell in the Great War . The tournament will see some of the best players under the age of 12 compete in the Flemish town of Ypres in Belgium , one of the areas to be decimated by fighting and bloodshed . Football made its own sacrifice to the Great War where more than 8,000 officers and men from the 17th and 23rd Middlesex perished at the Somme alone . The `` Footballers Battalion '' as it was known , included players from a whole host of clubs ranging from Chelsea and West Ham to Clapton Orient , now Leyton Orient . Read : Black pioneer 's battle against racism . Tottenham 's Walter Tull , the first black outfield player to star in the top flight and the first black infantry officer in the British Army , also lost his life . While such facts are hard to comprehend for most adults , these 12-year-old children are given an insight into a time where evil plagued the earth and some 20 million lost their lives . The plan . The Premier League has two objectives for the project -- player development and education . `` We got a fantastic reaction from the town of Ypres and the teams that took part in the 2011 tournament , '' said Ged Roddy , Director of Youth at the Premier League . `` We are expressing our commitment to the competition by doubling it in size this year . `` By the time of the 2014 commemorations we hope that the Premier League Christmas Truce Tournament will be recognized as an established cultural event . `` The Christmas Truce Tournament brings education to life . Our work in this area has already been highlighted by Ofsted when we got our 'Outstanding ' rating ; they recognized that Premier League clubs encourage open minds that accept and welcome other cultures . Read : A light through addiction 's 'dark days ' `` An important job for the Premier League Education Department is to help clubs develop more rounded young men . `` We are using the Christmas Truce Tournament to not only foster the development of closer relationships between European clubs but develop greater understanding of the importance of shared histories . '' This year , reigning champion Manchester United returns with West Bromwich Albion , while FC Schalke 04 and Borussia Moenchengladbach represent Germany . Anderlecht , Beerschot and Club Brugge provide Belgian representation with Valenciennes flying the flag for France . Poignant . For West Bromwich Albion , this tournament is rather poignant . Harold Bache , a former player at the club , died at Ypres and is commemorated on the Menin Gate along with 57,000 British and Commonwealth soldiers who were killed in the Ypres Salient of the First World War . On Friday night , West Brom 's players , including a child who attends the same school as Bache studied at , will lay a wreath at the Menin Gate along with players from Manchester United , West Brom , Anderlecht and Beerschot . That will be followed on the Saturday by a dinner , which will be attended by dignitaries from the British Legion , UK Government and Ypres . And after the games have been played and the final whistle blown , perhaps these children will have learned a lesson -- and a story to tell their children one day in the future .
Premier League to hold `` Christmas Truce '' tournament in memory of Great War . The event was held at the National Stadium on December 26 and 27 with a total attendance of over 50,000 people. FC Schalke 04 , Borussia Moenchengladbach , Manchester United all in attendance . Manchester United won the inaugural tournament in 2011 .