“I started to discover other teams in the lower tiers (of English football), and one team that stood out to me was Sunderland”
Liam Kwon in his Sunderland AFC shirt at the New York City schools Spelling Bee competition.placeholder image
Liam Kwon in his Sunderland AFC shirt at the New York City schools Spelling Bee competition. | NYC Public Schools
The video even drew a response from the club with an SAFC representative responding to the X post with a social media response which said: “This is brilliant. Congratulations Liam”, followed by a love heart emoji.
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So just why was a little boy in New York - 3,300 miles away from Sunderland - wearing the red and white stripes of the Black Cats in a competition for US pupils on the other side of the Atlantic?
Well we’ve manged to track Liam down at his P.S. 032 The State Street School in the New York city to find out the story behind the video which went viral and how he came to support Sunderland.
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Liam said: “I grew up watching the English Premier League (EPL). It’s the top tier of English football, or soccer, but one day I started to discover other teams in the lower tiers, and one team that stood out to me was Sunderland.
“I thought that team was very interesting, and about two years later, they came back up into the EPL. I felt really happy for them, and that’s how I became a fan.”
When Liam received his Spelling Bee champion’s trophy he proudly wore the number 5 and the name Ballard on the back in recognition of Black Cats centre half Dan Ballard.
Liam added: “I generally like everyone, but I think I like Dan Ballard the most. He plays centre back.”
Liam is now going to represent New York City when he takes part in the national Spelling Bee Championship in Washington DC - and he will once again be wearing his Sunderland AFC strip to provide inspiration.
He said: “Sunderland has always had this fighting spirit. In the second tier last season, they fought all the way up after being relegated from the first tier, and then they fought their way back up to the EPL.
“I wanted to take that fighting spirit to the Spelling Bee so that I could feel inspired and motivated by them.
“I’m definitely going to wear my Sunderland shirt for the national finals.”
Liam’s school principal Mr Errico said: “I don’t blame Liam for wanting to wear his Sunderland shirt again - it definitely brought him good luck.
“Congratulations Liam and we wish you the best of luck in the next round. Continue to make us proud.”
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