Organ donation powers England to World Cup win

Football has come home for England's transplant football team, with an Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) staff member and transplant patients cared for by the Trust helping to secure World Cup glory.

England were crowned world champions in Frankfurt, Germany, after competing against teams from across the globe in a tournament celebrating life after transplantation and raising awareness of organ donation.

The seven-a-side team is managed by Daley Cross, a Renal and Transplant Youth Worker at the Churchill Hospital, and includes three players who receive kidney transplant care from the Trust.

England, already European and Home Nation champions, beat Spain 5-1 in the final. But, for Daley Cross, the victory was about much more than football.

He said: "I am just so unbelievably proud of this team. These are 16 true heroes who deserve every bit of recognition they can.

"While we enjoy the celebrations and remain on cloud nine, we must not forget the reason they are all here is due to organ donation. This is the real winner, and we hope this team can show the world the power of organ donation and raise awareness of its importance."

One of the players was striker Kevin Kyley, from Berkshire, who had a kidney transplant at the Churchill in 2009.

He said: "There’s something incredibly special about going from being on death's door, needing an organ transplant to survive, to standing on a football pitch as a world champion.

“To experience that moment with my team-mates, people who have all been given their own second chance at life, is something that’s difficult to put into words. The celebrations, the emotion, the pride and the feeling of sharing that moment together will stay with us forever.

“But behind every one of those stories is the incredible power of organ donation. Someone, somewhere, made a decision that gave us another chance. A chance to live, to play football, to represent our country, to make memories with our families and to experience moments we may never have believed were possible.

“Our success at the Transplant World Cup is more than a football achievement. It’s a celebration of life and a reminder of what organ donation can make possible.”

NHS Blood and Transplant is using Organ Donation Week (21-27 September) to encourage more people to register their organ donation decision and discuss it with their families. The appeal comes as more than 8,700 people across the UK are currently waiting for a transplant.

Also as part of Organ Donation Week, OUH shared the story of transplant recipient James Lawton, whose donor liver gave him a second chance at life and enabled him to compete at the World Transplant Games.

Each donor can potentially save up to nine lives. Visit the NHSBT organ donation website, call 0300 123 23 23, or use the NHS App to register an organ donation decision.