Former England and Manchester United defender, Rio Ferdinand, took the stage at the One Young World Summit in Belfast to candidly discuss how ballet classes played a pivotal role in shaping his footballing career. The football legend also criticised the UK government’s lack of support for youth services.
Ferdinand shared insights from his early years, stating, “When I was younger, I did ballet for days a week for four years.” This might come as a surprise to many, considering his background. “When I was asked which background I was from – and I was from a council estate in southeast London – to go and do ballet wasn’t really the done thing,” Ferdinand added.
Drawing a connection between ballet and football, he emphasized, “I wouldn’t have been so graceful on the pitch without ballet.”
While ballet moulded his athletic prowess, youth clubs provided Ferdinand with the guidance and support during his formative years. He lamented the glaring absence of these institutions today, commenting, “And you look at the youth clubs now…Where are the youth clubs? Where is the government? Where is the government’s money going when they’re impressionable young people who are being blamed for a lot of the negative things in the country.”
Ferdinand underscored the vulnerability of young people during the hours after school, pointing out the crucial time between 3.30pm to 7-8pm, when most parents are still at work, as a period when many youths feel lost.
Apart from his advocacy for better youth services, Ferdinand also spoke about his philanthropic endeavours with the Rio Ferdinand Foundation. “At the beginning, I was wanting to control everything… then I took a moment, and I stepped back a little bit and allowed other people to flourish in their roles, we’ve now got a great team behind what happens here at the Foundation,” he said.
The One Young World Summit, where Ferdinand made these remarks, is a global platform that brings together over 2,000 young leaders from more than 190 countries. The aim is to address the world’s most pressing challenges, ranging from the Food Crisis and the Climate Emergency to Peace and Reconciliation. Alongside Ferdinand, other notable figures such as Sir Bob Geldof, Halima Aden, and President Mary Robinson have joined the summit to inspire and guide the next generation of global leaders.
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