England’s Kobbie Mainoo Gifts World Cup Semifinal Tickets to Fan With Rare Dementia Diagnosis

Kobbie Mainoo hasn’t played a single minute at the World Cup. Not one. The Manchester United midfielder has been an unused substitute for all of England’s knockout games, watching from the bench while Thomas Tuchel turns to Reece James in midfield. But that hasn’t stopped the 21-year-old from doing something that matters a whole lot more than a stat sheet.

Mainoo reached out to a fan named Jordan Adams after reading his public plea for help getting tickets to Wednesday’s semifinal against Argentina. Adams, a 31-year-old from England, traveled to Atlanta on a whim with his brother Cian after Jude Bellingham’s goal punched England’s ticket. The problem was they didn’t have tickets.

But the backstory isn’t just about a fan chasing a game. It’s darker than that.

Jordan and Cian each have a 99.9 percent chance of developing frontotemporal dementia in their 40s. Their mother Geraldine was diagnosed with FTD in 2010 and died six years later at 52. The brothers have responded by running 33 marathons in 33 days and raising millions for dementia research. Jordan wrote on Instagram that he’s been living in the fast lane since learning his fate. “Eight years ago, I was told that I will start to die in my 40s from the same dementia I watched and helped care for my mom live with,” he wrote. So when England made the semis, he scraped together his last few dollars for flights and put out a call for help on social media. “If you’re gonna miss the bus, miss it running,” he said.

Mainoo saw it and wrote back in the comments: “I’ve got you brother.”

Then he DMed Jordan directly and offered him a ticket. Jordan later posted a video saying he was left “speechless” and called it “unbelievable” that an England player personally went out of his way to help.

This isn’t the first time Mainoo has quietly done something like this. Teammates and staff at United have described him as exceptionally grounded for someone who broke into the first team during a crisis season. After Ruben Amorim was fired and Michael Carrick took over at Old Trafford, one of the first things Carrick did was put Mainoo back in the starting XI. He responded by helping United finish third and return to the Champions League. Tuchel called him up for the World Cup squad but has yet to use him off the bench. Mainoo, along with striker Ivan Toney and late addition Trevoh Chalobah, are the only outfield players for England who haven’t seen game time.

None of that seemed to matter when he saw Jordan’s message.

England and Argentina kick off at 8 p.m. Eastern. Mainoo will probably be on the bench again. But Jordan Adams will be in the stands, watching a game he wasn’t supposed to see, because a 21-year-old midfielder who hasn’t played a second at this tournament decided his ticket was better off in someone else’s hands.