Paul Elliott has paid tribute to The FA ahead of the organisation's 150th anniversary in 2013.
The 'Kick It Out' trustee and former Chelsea defender was present at the 20th anniversary celebrations of Charlton Athletic Race & Equality (CARE) project at the Valley on Saturday.
And Elliott is looking forward to continuing working alongside The FA over the coming year and beyond to try and combat any issues of inclusivity across the sport and in society in general.
Elliott told FATV: "150 years is wonderful and the longevity has been a real success story for The FA.
"Compared to what it was and where it is now, and with the challenges moving forward, it's evolved in a wonderful, constructive and positive way.
"When we talk about the word 'leadership' that has been spot on the money from The FA and I'm delighted to be involved in that celebration."
The FA's Adrian Bevington was a guest speaker at the event, prior to Charlton's Championship match with Middlesbrough, and believes that the organisation can lead the game forward against any sort of discrimination.
"I think it's very important at this time for The FA to be showing leadership, but also to set out very clearly the importance of inclusivity across all areas of society and whether that's racial or sexual, discrimination has to be fought against and we remain firmly committed to that," he said.
"There are still challenges that we are well aware of, but together as a whole industry, we can overcome these and take the game forward for the benefit of the whole of society."
Elliott was certainly impressed by what he saw and heard from all of the speakers, including Kick It Out Chairman Lord Herman Ouseley and officials from the CARE project.
He added: "It's been fantastic, very illuminating and the contributions and speakers have all been spot-on,
"Adrian Bevington of The FA spoke about the ringing endorsement and commitment of The FA to inclusion and diversity and a very wonderful overview of The FA's position on it, which is first class for a governing body.
"All of us collectively have been part of the success and we've all got to work collectively and collaboratively to focus on the solutions."
Watch the full FATV exclusive video from the event in the Media Gallery above.
