Guru Nanak: Sikhs, soccer and spirituality in Gravesend, Kent.

Images: Sam Wainwright

You don’t have to be an expert on history to realise that Guru Nanak FC’s founders would have encountered some challenges along the way, when founding the team in 1965.

The history of Sikhs in the post-war Punjab was particularly turbulent and the fact that a team was set up in Gravesend, Kent by devotees of Guru Nanak suggests miles travelled both geographically and socially.

The sociology of Asian immigrants to the UK is still an emerging sphere, with many stories yet to be told but Guru Nanak FC do their talking on the football pitch in front of the largest Sikh Gudwara in Europe.

Guru Nanak have moved beyond a Sikh eleven and offer a multi-faith setup where anyone is free to play.

With multiple youth and adult sides, the men’s first team ply their trade in the Kent County Football League and with the temple backdrop, it’s not hard to contemplate that both football and spirituality is bigger than us as individuals.