Jan Budtz’s footballing journey was not exactly a traditional one.
He didn’t play a professional game until he was 26 years old – during which he saved two penalties – spent only four years at a full-time level of the game and has since made hundreds of appearances at various steps of non-league.
Before he started, he was a part of the Royal Danish Air Force which included parachuting out of planes, and also worked as a social worker in a residential home. And, since finishing in senior football, he has spent many years helping young people develop both in football and life in general across South Yorkshire and Liverpool.
It’s a quite a story for the goalkeeping Great Dane who spent three months on loan with Wolves in the first season under Mick McCarthy back in the first months of 2007.
Oh yes. And, as England and Denmark prepare to lock horns in the European Championships in Frankfurt late this afternoon, the last time they did so, in the semi-finals back in 2021, Budtz was there. At Wembley.
“I didn’t have a ticket originally, but because of the Covid restrictions, all the Danish residents in the UK were given the chance to buy a couple,” he recalls.
“So, four days before the game, I went online, secured a couple of tickets and myself and my eldest son Drew made the trip to Wembley.
“We were in the Danish section, although Drew was supporting England with me Denmark, and, in what was a tight game it was England who got the win.
“And now? Denmark have England in the group, and as a Danish guy living over here, I have to go through all of that again!
“I know that if England win, I’m not going to hear the last of it for weeks!”
Some friendly if lively banter around this evening’s game is all in a day’s work for the now 45-year-old, whose life experiences leave him pretty much ready for anything.
Budtz is one of those affable and articulate personalities who both loved his time in football, but has perspective from a humble grounding and additional experiences which continue to shape his attitude and approach.
“Football has always been such a privilege and I absolutely love it,” he explains.
“But it’s also been nice to do something else, and while I don’t call it the ‘real world’ because I think that sounds offensive, working a nine to five and night shifts has definitely given me a sense of perspective away from football.
“I still love talking about when I played professionally, and it was a privilege to be involved, but I have found it just as rewarding to be able to give back during other parts of my life.”
Life for Budtz began in the Danish town of Hillerod, just under 20 miles Northwest of Copenhagen, and, growing up, a football was never too far away.
With twin brother Ole and a friend, whether in the garden, on the street, even in their house, it was about playing football.
And Budtz, as with so many, became a goalkeeper by default!
“With three of us always playing football, someone had to go in goal, and that was me,” he reveals.
“I think that happens to a lot of kids, and then you find you actually quite enjoy it, and that’s the end of that!”
But then – and this is where Budtz’s footballing pathway took a very different turn – he didn’t kick a ball in anger between the ages of 15 and 20.
He completed his education at High School and, at 18, as with all young Danes, came the obligation to pursue a form of national service.
The selection process for different roles included a health assessment and, ‘drawing a number out of a tumbler’, which, if low enough, meant you were compelled to join the Army…
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