Lucy Bronze makes big donation to GB Deaf Football | OneFootball

Lucy Bronze in England action (Kevin Hodgson /SPP)

Lucy Bronze has become the latest high-profile footballer to donate to the GB Deaf Football squad.

They are hoping to compete at the forthcoming summer Deaflympics in Tokyo between Saturday, 15th November and Wednesday, 26th November. The Deaflympics were first held in Paris 1924, and were the first international sporting event for athletes with a disability. They are the longest-running multi-sport event in the world after the Olympic Games.

Because the GB Deaf Football squad operates across the country, they struggle to get support from each nation’s governing body. Deafness is also not classed as what is termed a “qualifying disability” for the Paralympics so they are excluded from several big funding streams. That means that every time they plan to attend a tournament, they undertake huge fundraising activities.

And the Lionesses legend has helped them out this time round as they look to cover the costs of kit, travel, accommodation and more.

She talked about the donation in an interview with the BBC, when she revealed: “The GB deaf football team will go to the Deaflympics in November and they were struggling to raise money, so I gave them £10,000 for their training kit and I got them the nutrition and extra stuff.”

Asked why she had done that, she replied: ” Because I got that opportunity, so why shouldn’t they? Just because they are not in a mainstream limelight to be able to get the sponsors – they can’t afford to do it.”

GB Deaf Football’s previous fundraising efforts

With GB Deaf Football needing to raise money regularly, many footballers have supported them previously.

Famously, Jack Butland – then at Stoke City – donated £5,000 to the GB women’s deaf football team in 2015 to help them attend the Deaf World Cup the following year.

His donation was matched a few months later by the James Milner Foundation, which covered a shortfall and meant the squad had enough money to make it to the tournament.

The squad were aiming to raise £10,000 then, which they were intending to match with their own fundraising efforts. If the crowdfunding exceeded their targets, it gave the squad more space and opportunity to focus on their pre-tournament training and preparation rather than the finances.

Bronze backed that fundraising effort then, along with several fellow Lionesses including Leah Williamson, Casey Stoney, Fran Kirby, Jo Potter and Jade Moore, and Wales star Jess Fishlock.

And their faith paid off as the squad came third in Italy.