Hey There

Jono served in the Irish Guards and Royal Irish Regiment for eight years, initially following his father’s footsteps in his family Regiment.  Upon leaving the Army, Jono found it difficult to adjust to life as a civilian and found himself homeless and addicted to drugs and alcohol. Having now recovered, he has assembled a team of volunteers and aims to raise £250,000 for charity in support of homeless veterans.

Using the ‘beautiful game’ as a catalyst to help prevent other veterans falling into the same trap as he did, the Veterans World Cup will see teams from the four home nations compete against Germany, USA, Jamaica and Nepal. 

In order to raise the funds necessary to host this tournament, Jono has completed one of three planned walks, carrying weight and sleeping rough to raise awareness and funds for this cause. The first walk of 150 miles was from Bristol to Wellington Barracks, London and received some coverage from BBC Bristol and raised approximately £3k. The next walk is scheduled in September and is 250 miles, from Newquay to Wellington Barracks. With greater publicity, Jono hopes to raise £20k before embarking on a third walk the length of England, early in 2025. Other fundraising activities are being planned as we strive to raise the profile of the tournament.

It is hoped that the veterans World Cup will become a regular fixture in the sporting calendar.