Howard’s way
Jamaican-born, now resident in New York, Howard E. Wright travelled to Sacramento as a member of the volunteer referee team for the 2023 Homeless World Cup.
Football has been a part of the 68-year-old’s life from an early age, where it’s featured in various Guises.
“As far as getting into soccer itself, I started as a kid in Jamaica. Played in high school, went to college [and played at championship level] until I got injured. Then I joined the army in 1983 where I played and coached.”
Howard’s relationship with the beautiful game has been a true love affair as he explains, “When it comes to this game, I’m always there. In all aspects of it... I’ve actually lost girlfriends because of it!”
His journey to this year’s tournament began in the early 2010s, when he first became involved with Street Soccer USA (the event’s partner in the United States) and subsequently volunteered to officiate at this year’s tournament.
Not only was it the first time the event had been held in North America, it was also Howard’s first personal experience of the tournament, which impressed him with its emphasis on inclusion, fair play and sportsmanship. He also enjoyed the party atmosphere created by the music played in the stadium each day, as evidenced by the shapes he was caught throwing between games!
“When I hear the music, my feet have to move,” he laughs. “In the islands, when we practice, we have a rhythm going and we try to play along to it.”
Howard radiates a laid-back, friendly attitude to everyone he meets, appearing to take life in his stride; however his experiences playing and refereeing football have not always been so positive, explaining that his reasons for getting involved in officiating stem from his personal experiences of discrimination and negativity.
“Through my time here [in the USA], I’ve experienced a lot of racism”, he reflects, suddenly turning serious and shaking his head. “Discrimination brought me to become a coach and then eventually a referee.”
He feels particularly driven to prevent discrimination relative to cheating. “I am an Equal Opportunity Referee - an EOR. You bring the game into disrepute when you cheat and I’m not for that…when I'm on the pitch, I’m going to make sure I protect everyone.
“I totally believe in fair play in every way. Same thing in life… [it’s how] I live my life.”
The veteran outlines the difficulties he experienced when he left the services as his marriage broke down and he became disconnected from civilian life. “The only thing I had left was my disability [benefits].”
At his lowest point, Howard found himself living in his car for a period of time before moving into his mother’s basement until he could find an apartment. “I had nowhere to go…it sometimes bothers me thinking back.”
Howard doesn’t like to dwell on the negative and clearly feels it’s important for him to turn his own setbacks into something positive, using his experiences to help others, with his mission to ‘protect everyone’ extending beyond refereeing to his work in a courthouse in New York.
“I deliberately tried to work in family court because of what I went through [with his own children during the breakdown of his marriage], so no one would suffer the same experience.”
That desire to help and protect others he attributes to his early life growing up in Jamaica, as he explains: “I grew up in a family who were always helping others. My grandmother lived in the country and every type of transportation, bus or whatever, passed [by]. My grandmother always cooked, and there was always food for all the drivers coming through.”
Howard has made life-long friends through football, some from as far back as his college days over 40 years ago where his then coach was not only a huge influence on his love of football but also his life.
A few years back, when his old coach became unwell, Howard and one of his former teammates refused to let him suffer alone, visiting him regularly and making sure he had the care required until he sadly passed away. The referee felt he had a duty to support such an important person in his life, just as the coach supported him as a young man; “He was like our father, like family.”
Howard firmly believes in the power of football to bring people together to create a strong community and formed strong bonds with the refereeing team, players, coaches and other volunteers in Sacramento. So, would he get involved again?
“[The Homeless World Cup] teaches the world how to live. Every year, wherever it is, I want to be there.”
Images: Donnie Nicholson