A testimonial match, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, notably football (soccer) and especially in England, where a club puts on a match in honor of a player for service to the club. The striker (wearing red jersey) has run past the defender (in white jersey) and is about to take a shot at the goal, while the goalkeeper positions himself to stop the ball. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Religion...

By tradition, clubs typically grant testimonials to players upon reaching 10 years of service with a club, although they sometimes are given to players with less service as they approach retirement. These matches are always non-competitive. Typically, former greats for the club are invited to participate, either in the match itself or the surrounding festivities. For especially prominent players, some all-time greats of the game may be invited, or the opposition can be a national team. All proceeds from the match go to the player; depending on the country, the income may be tax-free to the player.

The practice started in the days when players, even those at top professional clubs, were paid far less well than they are today. Few players were able to live on their club wages, much less save for retirement. The testimonial was a charitable gesture by the club; as testimonials were typically very well-attended matches, the practice of giving the players the proceeds from the match often enabled the honorees either to retire or establish themselves in another line of work once they finished playing.

In recent years, testimonials have been less frequent, especially in the top levels of professional football, largely because today's top footballers are able to make enormous salaries—in some cases, over £50,000 (USD 95,000) weekly. Today's top-level players have far less need for the money from a testimonial than in the past. Also, because of changes in the structure of the professional game, players are far less likely to stay with one club for an extended period of time than in past decades. Finally, many fans are disinclined to come to testimonials for top professionals, since they are often perceived as giving a huge windfall to a player who most likely does not need the money.

Partly in response to this perception, testimonials in top-level football have increasingly become charitable affairs, where the player gives part or all of the proceeds to one or more charities. One notable example of a charitable testimonial was that of longtime Sunderland and Republic of Ireland star Niall Quinn in 2002. Quinn donated all of the nearly £1 million proceeds of a friendly at the Stadium of Light between Sunderland and the Republic to a charitable foundation he started; the money went to children's hospitals in Tyne and Wear, the Republic and India. Sunderland Association Football Club is a football club based in Sunderland, on Wearside in the North-East of England. ... Niall Quinn (born 6 October 1966 in Dublin) is an Irish international football player, now retired. ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Stadium of Light is a football stadium, the home of Sunderland football club, in north-east England. ... Tyne and Wear is one of six metropolitan counties in England, comprising the estuary areas of the rivers Tyne and Wear. ... The Republic of Ireland (Irish: Poblacht na hÉireann) is the official description of an independent state which covers approximately five-sixths of the island of Ireland, off the coast of north-west Europe. ...