From Grassroots to Greatness

There is a particular light that lives on grassroots football pitches.

It flickers on just before dusk, hums above muddy touchlines and half-frozen training drills, and casts long shadows that stretch far beyond the white lines.

It is the light of beginnings – of first kicks, first tears and first triumphs – and is where almost every football story worth telling really starts.

For us, supporting these beginnings is not a branding exercise – it is essential.

Through the Greener Game initiative – delivered in partnership with England Football – E.ON Next is proud to be helping protect the places where football stars’ earliest memories of the beautiful game are made, all while ensuring grassroots clubs can survive, thrive and remain at the heart of their communities for generations to come.

To understand why that matters, you only have to listen to the players who once stood on the touchlines of grassroots clubs across Britain.

We recently had the privilege of sitting down with four of England’s biggest players to hear them share their memories of grassroots football, and open up about how it has the power to inspire and shape the next generation of football stars.

As the video of the chats show – which you can watch below – former England defender Joleon Lescott knows the grassroots terrain intimately.

He particularly remembers the rituals, the rules and quiet discipline that came before any sense of career or consequence.

“My first memory of grassroots was boots,” Joleon smiled. “I wasn’t allowed to play if my boots weren’t clean. My boots were clean. My room was a mess – but my boots were clean!”

That lesson – in care, pride and respect – is the kind players start to learn on community pitches.

And it is still echoed, years later, in the reflections of other England internationals who now perform under global spotlights, but whose foundations were laid in places far removed from packed stadiums.

As our video shows, former England player-turned coach Jeoleon sat down with three current England internationals to delve into their memories of grassroots – and the lessons it taught them.

He chatted to Djed Spence, whose grassroots club was Junior Elite FC in South London.

Also on the ‘Memories of Grassroots’ panel was Ollie Watkins, who came up from Newton Town, Devon and Buckland Athletic – and Jordan Henderson, who got his start at grassroots club Fulwell Juniors in Sunderland.

Jordan’s grassroots journey began at six years old – with confusion and overwhelming emotion as much as joy.

He said: “I started playing when I was maybe six. I can remember the first game – I think I ran off at half time crying.

“I didn't know what to do, but then after a few games I settled and enjoyed it straight away.”

What then followed once he’d “settled” was not just more hard-won lessons in football, but an education in people and the importance of diversity and mutual respect.

Joleon asked the three England players: “How important was the grassroots within your tight-knit community of the area that you lived in, and how diverse was that?”

Jordan replied: “It does bring communities together regardless of colour or background or anything, and I think it's a really good way of learning about stuff like that, when you're young.”

That quiet learning is one of grassroots football’s greatest gifts.

As Jordan says, players arrive to develop their skills on the pitch, but leave with teamwork, discipline and belonging stitched into them for life – whether they make it big or now.

“Back then, it was just about having fun, with your friend kicking the ball about and enjoying football,” Jordan reflected.

But he added: “Alongside that, without you realising, you inherit teamwork, skills, discipline.”

For Ollie Watkins, his grassroots memories are inseparable from the people who made his participation possible at all.

“My mum was working in the evenings – my parents had separated,” the 30-year-old striker said of the start of his journey to the top.

He added: “So I was always reliant on my best mate’s dad to give me a lift. Without him I probably wouldn’t have been able to make training.”

Grassroots football is full of those unseen acts of generosity – the extra car seat for a kid who needs to get to training, the late-night drive back from the pitch and the volunteer who unlocks the clubhouse in the rain.

“All the professionals that you see playing today have always had to start off from there,” Ollie added about grassroots clubs – before adding: “So just enjoy it.”

Djed remembers his start through moments of recognition and encouragement.

“There was always a ceremony at the end of the season,” he said. “And I always used to get Improved Player a lot.”

He added: “I think it’s great for kids to go somewhere, play for a club and just have fun – enjoy and learn and perfect your craft.”

Joleon nodded in recognition of that.

“That stuck with me,” he said. “The enjoyment of it – just that feeling of playing, regardless of what the outcome could be in terms of your career. Just the enjoyment is top.”

It is that feeling the Greener Game exists to protect.

Across England, grassroots clubs sit behind village halls, beside railway lines and on the outskirts of towns.

They are run by volunteers, sustained by community spirit – but E.ON Next is increasingly helping them overcome their energy challenges.

Floodlights, changing rooms and clubhouses – the infrastructure of memory, life lessons and success – are eye-wateringly expensive to maintain, and for many clubs the sums no longer add up.

The Greener Game responds to this with something both practical and powerful – support that works at ground level, just like grassroots clubs.

Through free energy audits, expert guidance and targeted investment in money-saving solutions such as solar panels, battery storage, LED lighting and insulation, we are helping clubs cut costs, reduce carbon emissions and reinvest savings back where they belong – on pitches, players and people.

More than 70 clubs have already received the Greener Game audits, with 400 more signed up as of this week.

Some are already saving up to 25% on their electricity bills.

Others are unlocking long-term stability in an era when simply keeping the lights on can feel like a daily battle.

What makes the Greener Game different is not just the technology, but the philosophy behind it.

Sustainability here is not abstract – it is tangible.

Every kilowatt-hour saved is another training session afforded, another youth team supported and another winter of warm changing rooms secured.

As Joleon puts it, grassroots football does far more than develop players.

He declared: “It develops referees, coaches and physios – it’s important we keep that going.”

We understand keeping grassroots going means protecting the places where football’s first memories are made – the demand for muddy boots to be cleaned, the tears when nervous youngsters first step on the pitch, the end-of-season award ceremonies and the lifts home from a mate’s dad or devoted mum.

Because long before there are England caps or Premier League debuts, there is a pitch under floodlights, a community gathered at the touchline, and a child learning – without realising it – who they might one day become.

Through the Greener Game, we are helping to make sure those lights stay on.

And in doing so, the scheme is safeguarding not just the future of grassroots football, but the memories – and dreams – that begin there.

Click here for information on how to join the Greener Game today and see how eligible club have the power to save money and energy.