Everton midfielder Jack Grealish donated £10,000 to a fundraiser supporting a fan with terminal kidney cancer, an act that left the family in "complete shock" and moved them to tears. The 31-year-old made the donation after learning about Toffees supporter Leon Skapars, 36, who has been given one to three years to live.
Fan's Cancer Battle
Skapars, a father of three from Southport, was diagnosed with kidney cancer in March 2025 and underwent major surgery to remove his right kidney. The cancer returned and spread three months later. He has since been told his condition is terminal and placed in palliative care on the NHS, leaving his family searching for treatment options that could give him more time with his wife, Crystal Duffy, 31, and their three children, Tony, 11, Leuin, four, and Warren, three.
To help access treatments and clinical trials not available through the NHS, the family and local community began fundraising. On Thursday, they discovered that Grealish, a former Manchester City midfielder, had donated £10,000 to the fundraiser.
Family's Reaction
Crystal told the Liverpool Echo: "We couldn't believe what we were seeing, I thought there was an error on the page so I refreshed it three times to then seen Jack Grealish's name and £10,000, I was in complete shock."
She added: "I ran downstairs to wake Leon, who was asleep. I was so overwhelmed I could barely get the words out. When I finally told him, his whole face just lit up. We hugged and smiled at each other, and then we both just burst into tears."
Crystal described the moment as giving the family hope, saying: "It wasn't just seeing £10,000 on a screen, it was suddenly feeling like we were a huge step closer to getting Leon the treatment we are desperately fighting for. In that moment, Jack gave our whole family something we desperately needed, hope."
Disciplinary Action
Grealish's gesture came hours before Everton left him out of their squad to face Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup due to a breach of club discipline. Asked about Grealish's absence after the game, David Moyes said: "It's something I don't really want to speak too much about. It's a club decision, so I support the decision. The club are the people you should go to if you're looking for more information."
