I was tipped to play football for England until my mum got sick. Street football gave me hope again

Kevin Gonzalez Quintero’s earliest memories of playing football are in the cages outside his house. He recalls training with his dad, who had been a professional footballer in Colombia, before he joining the other kids in his neighbourhood for matches.

“I’ve got a lot to give back to the cages. It built me, not just as a player but character-wise as well. It just teaches you to have thick skin,” says 23-year-old Gonzalez Quintero, who is better known as Kego. 

Kego was on Crystal Palace’s books from the age of eight to 18. There was significant hype around him as a footballer from a young age, and it was looking like a guarantee that he would play for either England or Colombia. He played in the same England youth teams as Jude Bellingham, one of the Three Lions’ biggest stars. 

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“There’s a lot of players that are in the World Cup today that I’ve played with,” Kego says, adding that it sometimes “hurts” watching them play now and feeling like he should be there. 

Kego’s mother became seriously ill when he was 17 and he had to give up football to help care for her and to work to support his family. He had years out from the high level of football he had previously been playing and has struggled to get back in. 

But street football has been a constant throughout the difficult times – bringing him back to the game he loves. 

Kego has been part of The Last Stand since it launched in 2016, when he was 13.  

It is a movement which brings together the best young street footballers in London for vibrant tournaments. The most recent has seen players aged 18 to 26 hit the pitch with the winning team set to head to New York for a London vs NYC showdown on July 13.

Both a men’s team and a women’s team will be in New York for street football matches, which have been backed by New York Mayor’s Zohran Mamdani’s office. The Last Stand launched the UK’s first-ever women’s street football tournament in 2021. 

“Street football is the most accessible and sustainable form of football that you can see,” says Gundeep Anand, founder of The Last Stand. “You don’t need to put any infrastructure in place. You just play on existing grounds, as long as they’re safe. You don’t need special kits or special boots. You can play in your trainers.” 

In June, the tournament final was held under the Trellick Tower, the historic estate in Kensal Town, West London.

For the tournament, they fixed up the basketball courts to make them safe for the players and to leave a legacy behind so that residents can use it afterwards. 

“We started there 10 years ago and we’re able to come back and make the place better than it was before. That’s one of our things: leave the place better than we found it. It’s iconic. It’s home to a lot of artists. And for us, street football is about expression. You’re in a place where people can freely express themselves, and I think that’s the magic,” Anand says. 

There is an electric atmosphere at the tournaments. They have DJs playing music and free food for the players and audience (The Last Stand has a partnership with Nando’s). 

“You step into that space, and it feels like a street stadium,” Anand says. “It feels like FIFA Street. I think the magic is community coming together. It’s demonstrating that as human beings, when we come together, how much magic can happen?” 

Players have gone on to incredible things since they were part of The Last Stand. 

“Something I didn’t anticipate happening was players going on to become models for Nike, Puma, Adidas, their faces all over Oxford Street. They’re signing brand deals. They’re getting jobs,” Anand says. 

He helped one player secure a job as a runner and that young man went on to become a producer for Chelsea Football Club “flying in private jets with the players”. 

Another player had been in trouble with the police and was on bail when he found The Last Stand. “While he was working with us, we made sure we knew he was a changed man, but we had to demonstrate that to the judge,” Anand says. 

“We had opportunities to work with high-profile players and World Cup winners. It became a catalyst for change. It became a launchpad. We can’t handhold all the way, but we can kickstart your thing and the rest is up to you.” 

There was no funding initially, but it grew with “support of lots of people and players”. 

Anand had to convince people of his vision and remembers one of his closest mentors dismissing the idea as something that had “already been done”. “It has been done – but not by me,” Anand remembers telling him. 

“That’s what I try to tell a lot of the young people. What is your contribution to society? You’re unique. Everything you do is unique. Everything you touch is unique.”

Kego is one of the most successful talents from The Last Stand.  

“It means the world to me,” Kego says of the tournament, “especially with a person like Gundeep. He’s done a lot for the community and for me as well. I’m forever grateful to The Last Stand and I appreciate what they’ve done – not just for me but also my friends and people who aren’t my friends who have also been helped.” 

Street football has been there for him throughout the most painful times in his life. 

“Imagine your mum being sick and agents leaving you. You’re begging for opportunities. Imagine that every day for the past five years. It’s not easy. It’s very tough mentally. It can destroy a player. But I haven’t let it destroy me. I trust that God’s got a plan with my life. Life isn’t supposed to be easy. It teaches you to get up and carry on fighting each day,” Kego says. 

Last year, Kego landed a professional contract at Spanish fifth tier side UD Ibarra and was managed by Diego Maradona’s son. But the club folded soon after that. 

He still believes he can make it as a professional football player – but his hopes have been repeatedly dashed. 

“Even now, my mum’s been in the hospital. She’s been suffering a lot. It’s not easy. A lot of people think I can just turn up and train and perform the way I used to perform. But people don’t realise that as a young man, it can hurt you a lot, seeing the mum that raised you from young… you can get really emotional. 

“As a footballer, you need to be level-headed. So for me as a young man, to cope and push through is not easy. It’s all in the mind, but it’s been really tough.” 

The Last Stand has given him a chance to go back to enjoying football, being with his friends and playing in front of crowds. “It’s the feeling of being back home,” Kego says. 

Street football has helped Kego stay hopeful. “My dream is to be a professional football player, for my mum to be good again, and for me to play in a World Cup and win it.” 

He says he learnt to be “grateful in life” and not to “take anything for granted”. 

Anand says that he is proud that The Last Stand has been there for players like Kego over the last decade, and that it has given them self-belief and opportunity to thrive. 

“In those areas, life is hard. The people you come up against, it gives you a thick skin. Life is full of ups and downs. Everyone’s going to get set back, but the cages teach you to have that thick skin and it gives you a different attitude to life and outlook. It strengthens you and it breaks you, but it also builds you up stronger,” Anand says. 

“These people have that robustness and grit, not just in football but in life. People who have that grit are the people who others are like: ‘He’s world class. He’s extraordinary.’ But they don’t realise they come from those places.” 

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