Newly-promoted Leeds United could gain more supporters in Sierra Leone after a scheme was launched for the club’s fans to send football shirts to the country. A Leeds fan carried out an informal survey of people wearing football shirts in the country’s capital and did not see a single one from his team.
Ben Whitelaw recently moved to the West African country and hopes fellow supporters will donate used shirts. “I am interested in sharing my love for Leeds,” he said. Whitelaw, a freelance journalist, moved to Freetown in March with his partner Dr Olivia Farrant, who is an infectious diseases doctor.
Spotting Leeds shirts was “a project to keep me busy. I kept a note on my phone of football shirts I saw,” Whitelaw said. “I wear my Leeds shirt in the city and I expected to see a couple of others, so I want to bring Leeds to Freetown.”
The top three teams spotted were:
- Manchester United – 117
- Arsenal – 106
- Barcelona – 92
In all Whitelaw listed 591 people wearing shirts from 51 different teams or countries, including Argentina, At letico Madrid, Marseille, Poland and Swindon Town.
Nobody he saw was wearing a Leeds United shirt.
By Ophaniel Gooding