Lucas Radebe has recently been named an official Leeds United Foundation ambassador, and has wasted no time beginning his duties in his new role.
The former Leeds United captain is already an Ambassador for the club and, on many of his trips to the UK from his native South Africa, the Chief has supported the work of the club’s charity, visiting schools and programmes to spend time with those involved.
Following the official announcement of his new Foundation role, Radebe has continued to give his time to a number of the charity’s projects across the community. As part of Premier League Primary Stars, he visited Collingham Primary School to join a Year 5 session focused on ‘Overcoming Challenges’.
The children discussed some of the challenges they might face and took part in activities looking at how they could deal with them. Lucas also shared some of his own experiences, giving the pupils the chance to think about a challenge he had faced, how he responded and what he learned from it.
The pupils then created their own ‘Challenge Toolkit’, picking out different ways they could deal with obstacles, including resilience, trying something different, asking for help, learning from mistakes and believing in themselves.
Lucas has also visited the Foundation’s Premier League Kicks session at Halton Moor, where a regular group of young people have been attending for several years. The session gave the group the chance to meet the Leeds legend and hear about his experiences, with Lucas’ positive and friendly approach making the visit a memorable one for those involved.
Away from work with young people, Lucas has also spent time with attendees at the Foundation’s Corner Flag Café, reminiscing about his playing days and listening to their memories of following Leeds United.
He has also welcomed local families to Elland Road through the Premier League Fans Fund, with families from Hamara Healthy Living Centre enjoying a stadium tour before meeting Lucas for a Q&A. The former captain spoke about his career, including playing at two FIFA World Cups and leading the Whites, while the families will also receive tickets to attend a Leeds United match through the project.
Lucas has also supported the Foundation’s fundraising work, recently joining supporters in the Leeds United club shop as part of the Pennies initiative with Fanatics and helping to raise valuable funds for the club's charitable arm.
Speaking about his new role and the responsibilities it entails, Lucas commented: “I think we might take this for granted, because as footballers we always seem to be a bit greedy. But I think most of us as well, we do care about our communities, about our kids, and we do understand and appreciate the fans.”
Everyone at the club and Foundation would like to thank Lucas for his continued dedication to being involved in the community, and look forward to seeing him excel in his new role.
