Jack Grealish donates £10,000 to Everton fan with kidney cancer

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 30 Oct, 11:28 · Archive

Jack Grealish donated £10,000 to the fundraising campaign of an Everton supporter with aggressive kidney cancer.

Jack Grealish has donated £10,000 to the fundraising campaign of Leon Skapars, 36, an Everton supporter fighting aggressive stage four kidney cancer. Skapars was diagnosed in March 2025 and underwent surgery to remove his right kidney. The cancer returned three months later and spread, and he has been given one to three years to live. He has been placed on palliative care by the NHS.

Skapars is a father of three from Southport. His family, including his wife Crystal Duffy, 31, and children aged 11, four and three, began fundraising to access treatments and clinical trials not available through the NHS. The family said they were stunned by Grealish's donation. Crystal told the Liverpool Echo she refreshed the fundraising page three times to confirm it was genuine. 'When I finally told him, his whole face just lit up. We hugged and smiled at each other, and then we both just burst into tears,' she said.

Fans on social media praised Grealish for the gesture, with some noting he has made similar charitable donations before. One commenter wrote that Grealish 'never advertises what he does either it's always others that tell his story of just what a good lad he is'.

How it is being reported

• Jack Grealish gesture makes family 'burst into tears' hours before Everton punishmentJack Grealish's donation to a fundraiser for an Everton fan fighting aggressive stage four kidney cancer made the family burst into tearsMirror Sport · 30 Oct, 11:05
• 'Absolute gent' Jack Grealish lauded by Everton fans after donating £10,000 to father-of-three, 35, amid cancer battleJack Grealish has been praised by fans after donating £10,000 to the fundraising campaign of an Everton supporter suffering aggressive kidney cancer.Daily Mail Sport · 29 Oct, 14:05

In this story: Jack Grealish · Leon Skapars · Everton · Southport

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