Background (2013–2015) (back row) was founded in 2013, often collaborating on
football-related content.|alt=Nepenthez and Calfreezy hold video game controllers on a sofa with the Sidemen sitting behind them The
Sidemen was founded in 2013 as a
YouTube group creating
Grand Theft Auto Online content. The group frequently collaborated on real-life
association football content, as well as through the
FIFA video game franchise, and established a
content house. Prior to the first Sidemen Charity Match, five members of the group—all except KSI and Vikkstar123—participated in the inaugural
EE Wembley Cup on 8 August 2015 as part of
Sidemen United, a team that was established for the match; they lost 5–2 against
Spencer FC. The Wembley Cup was held annually for three more years without Sidemen United, although Sidemen members W2S, TBJZL and KSI participated in the 2017 edition as part of
Tekkers Town, who lost 6–1 to
Hashtag United.
St Mary's Stadium (2016) The inaugural Sidemen Charity Match was held at
St Mary's Stadium in
Southampton, on 3 June 2016, raising over for the
Saints Foundation. Over 600,000 people watched the livestream on YouTube—a record for
YouTube Gaming at the time—and 15,000 people attended the match;
The Valley (2017–2022) three times between 2017 and 2022. Three subsequent matches were held at
the Valley in
Charlton, London. The 2018 edition raised £65,747 for CACT and Young Minds. The YouTube Allstars won the former match 2–0, After a four-year hiatus, the highly anticipated fourth match in 2022 raised over £1,000,000 for
CALM,
Teenage Cancer Trust, Rays of Sunshine and Miniminter's
M7 Education. New entrants included
MrBeast,
LazarBeam,
Noah Beck,
IShowSpeed,
Chunkz,
Niko Omilana and
GeorgeNotFound.
Billy Wingrove and
Mark Goldbridge acted as
managers, with former
Premier League and
FIFA referee
Mark Clattenburg officiating. Sidemen FC emerged victorious 8–7. the home stadium of Behzinga's supported team
West Ham United. Sidemen FC defended the title with a 8–5 victory over the YouTube Allstars. Debutants included
Airrack,
xQc,
JiDion,
Kai Cenat,
AboFlah and
Jacksepticeye.
Max Fosh went
viral for his
yellow card incident, where he showed referee Clattenburg an
Uno "Reverse" playing card. KSI performed
Cristiano Ronaldo's trademark "
siuuu" celebration when he saved a penalty from IShowSpeed, a prominent Ronaldo fan. The match raised over £2.4 million for CALM, Teenage Cancer Trust, Rays of Sunshine and M7 Education—the same charities as in 2022.
Wembley Stadium (2025–2026) .|alt=Opening ceremony of the 2025 Sidemen Charity Match In November 2024, the Sidemen announced a sixth match would be held, later revealing it would take place on 8 March 2025 at
Wembley Stadium,
the largest stadium in the United Kingdom and the
17th-largest stadium in the world. The event sold out within three hours after ticket sales went live, drawing 90,000 spectators. The halftime show was performed by rapper
AJ Tracey, with KSI also performing "
Thick of It". The squad list featured
Mark Rober,
Logan Paul,
CarryMinati and
Jynxzi. In a reiteration of his skit from the 2023 edition, Fosh responded to another yellow card from Clattenburg by putting it in a pocket-sized
paper shredder. The match raised over million for
BBC's
Children in Need (50%), Sidemen's Bright Side (43%) and M7 Education (7%), and drew in over eight million live viewers. On the 14 December 2025, it was announced that the Charity Match would return for a seventh instalment in 2026. The match was played on 18 April 2026, with the YouTube Allstars defending their victory, following a 10–10 draw and a 4–1 win in the subsequent penalty shoot-out. In a first for the event, three members of the Sidemen—KSI, Miniminter and Behzinga—played on the YouTube Allstars. Fosh was initially not invited to participate in the match, but was asked by Miniminter via a voice note sent six days before the match to join after Spanish YouTuber
El Rubius, who was announced to join the YouTube Allstars in the Sidemen Charity Match draft held the previous month, dropped out of the match, with Fosh having only that time to come up with and prepare the card burning skit. Multi-platinum rapper
Tinie Tempah performed the halftime show. == Match results ==