A sports student got to fulfil his lifetime ambition by playing a football match at Wembley.
DJ Messenger, 17, from Tendring in Essex, is on a sports coaching pathway at Suffolk New College.
He got the opportunity to play at the home of football after working there in hospitality at a variety of recent matches.
He was ‘given the nod’ after having his name pulled out of the hat during a ballot involving people who work at Wembley.
(DJ has helped out at a variety of England games and worked at the most recent FA Cup Final for Max Promotions).
On playing at Wembley, he said: “My manager was Glenn Hoddle. I played for 20 minutes. I didn’t score. I didn’t get enough game time. But it was amazing.”
DJ also got to go to the Wimbledon tennis championships working in hospitality two years running – helping clients and taking them to their seats. Whilst there he saw David and Romeo Beckham, Andrew Garfield, Roger Federer, Carlos Alcaraz, Hugh Bonneville and he got to meet royalty, bumping into Mike and Zara Tindall.
And he has played host to the general public at matches played at Chelsea.
Although he has aspirations to eventually become a sports coach, he has seen a positive impact in his life since working at such high-profile events in hospitality.
He said: “It has helped with my confidence, it has improved my communication skills, and this helps with my coaching and refereeing. Being at these events is an absolute pleasure.”
His tutor from Suffolk New College is Ben Norfolk. Ben said: “DJ is gaining transferable skills that he can apply to his future career in sports – whilst also getting to experience the atmosphere of big games in massive stadiums. These experiences will only help him in the future.”