Throughout the sport of football, you have all kinds of players. Most footballers have a really good season being at their highest quality and then move onto another club and not perform anywhere near their best. However, there are very few players who begin their journey from their current club’s academy and get to the first team and remain loyal. Marcus Rashford is one of those few players.
From ManU to England
Rashford was part of the Manchester United academy from the age of 7 and he has never looked back. Sixteen-year-old Rashford was training with the first team for united before making his professional debut in the Europa league on the 25th February 2016. He scored in his debut match! Although he was not as experienced as his teammates, he clearly had the right attitude towards his game, he knew he wasn’t the best player in the team if anything he was extremely nervous about his debut match. He knew that was only chance to show off his talent and he did exactly that. Ever since his first game, he has progressed more and more scoring on his Premier league debut 3 days later and then became the youngest Manchester United player to score in a Manchester derby.
By the end of his first full season, Rashford secured third place in the 2017 Golden Boy award which proved that hard work and the right mindset can get recognised literally anywhere!
At the age of 23, he has secured his position as a first-team striker for both, Manchester United and the England national team. It goes to show how much training and commitment he has put into his sport from such a young age and to achieve what he has in such a short time is incredible!
Marcus Rashford has used his suffering and turned it into a mission! Few people have the drive to give back at such speed.
Not just any footballer, Rashford is a National hero
There is more to Marcus Rashford than just being an extraordinary footballer. He is a generous and compassionate human being who started a campaign to end food poverty in March 2020. This campaign not only allowed him to voice his opinion but also take action to help those in need.
Many footballers get paid in millions but aren’t as generous as Marcus. Campaigning for food poverty was his chance to show that no family should be struggling to provide food for their young children. The reason behind this charity was due to his background. Rashford’s early childhood was full of struggles and his family especially when his mother had struggled to put food on the table.
During the first lockdown in March 2020, Marcus became an ambassador for ‘FareShare’. He became aware of FareShare, when they launched an appeal for COVID19 asking for volunteers and that was when Rashford took part in the process. During his early years, he had to rely on breakfast clubs, free school meals and food banks because his mother struggled to feed all her children. As soon as he paired with FareShare, Marcus made several financial donations to ensure that those younger children and struggling families were able to eat 3 meals every day. Since Rashford partnered with FareShare, his support has been life changing for many families.
- He helped to raise enough money to provide 12.3 million meals for children and families who could have gone without.
- He campaigned to raise awareness about the lack of basic nourishment for children in the UK which eventually went viral in the news
- He also launched and drove the Child Food Poverty Taskforce which included more than 15 organizations that FareShare founded. These organizations came together to support the national food strategy in which they would share statistics and stories of those affected by child hunger in the UK.
- He influenced government policy to end child hunger
- Marcus used the power of Twitter with the #MakeTheUTurn campaign that pressurized the government to continue ‘Free School Meals’ throughout lockdown so that families wouldn’t struggle to provide 3 meals a day for their young
- In the winter of 2020, Rashford and the government came up with a ‘winter package’ that supported vulnerable children from going hungry during winter until easter 2021. This campaign has not only provided basic nourishment for the children but also eased the pressure on single-parent families in this uncertain time.
As a result of his hard work and resilience in providing food to those who need it the most, he was eventually awarded with an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire). His determination to give back has impacted children’s lives all around the country. There isn’t anyone who deserves the MBE more!
After all his hard work on and off the football field, Marcus Rashford has shown to a lot of people what hard work and determination can do to anyone, no matter the background. In a short number of years, he has worked his way up the ranks to become an inspiration to young children and to everyone else because all it came down to was resilience after being turned down by the government on several occasions.
Rashford showed how much it meant for him to put a smile on those children’s faces. They needed to smile more than anything even if it was only for a meal to eat. Rashford has provided that to millions of families. He has a very bright future ahead of him that will definitely bring him success in and out of football.
He has redefined success for me. It’s not always about your medals, cups, and money but how much of it you give back!
About the Author
Keiran Sharp is an enthusiastic football player and future sports psychologist. He will be pursuing sports psychology at university in 2022.
Growing up I had always been interested in sports, in particular football. I trained as a footballer for most of my life. I don’t see football as just a game, I see it as a distraction from everything around me. I have seen how sport can impact the world in various ways and I want to understand how it can potentially change lives. I am inspired to explore what athletes do ‘behind the scenes to reach new heights. As a future sports psychologist, I am keen to find the deeper meaning of different sports