Jacob Brown was just 14 years old when he hit his first stumbling block in his pursuit of making it as a professional footballer. “I was at Sheffield Wednesday at a young age and was in their academy until I got released at 14.” Brown told LFE. “I found that very difficult and it made me fall out of love with football a bit. I went and played local Sunday football with my friends, forgot about trying to make it as a footballer a little and started to love it again.”
After reigniting his passion for the game through grassroots football, Brown signed for non-league side Guisley where he joined the youth team, and it didn’t take long until professional clubs began sniffing around again. “At the start of my U17 season I went to Guiseley where I experienced my first taste of football and education. I did my first year there and then ended up signing for Barnsley where I went and did the second year of my apprenticeship. I loved being an apprentice. I think for me the timing was perfect after being out of a professional club for so long after leaving Sheffield Wednesday. I had a real buzz when I went to Barnsley, and despite having to balance the pressures of both my football and education, I was just buzzing to be back at a professional team.”
Discussing the combination of football and education further, the Halifax born forward voiced the importance of young footballers taking their education seriously. “Being in that professional environment when you’re young is very different to the outside world because you might have to move away from home at a young age, so that’s where I think the importance of the LFE Life Skills and Personal Development workshops come into play. Getting your education in as well as your football is vital because if you do happen to not make a career out of football, you need to have something to pursue after that. I would definitely advise young players to explore other avenues because you don’t need to just focus on football, you can have interests in other things and find a balance.”
After completing his scholarship with Barnsley and subsequently earning a professional deal, the former LFE apprentice was loaned out to get his first taste of senior football. “After my scholarship, I transitioned from the Under 18s to the first team and was then loaned out to Chesterfield in League Two which was a real experience as it was my first proper taste of senior football. I was only nineteen and we got relegated so that was quite a difficult and negative time in one aspect, but on the other hand it was my first time playing football at a professional level, so it was definitely an experience that helped me.”
Reflecting more on that loan spell, Brown underlined just how crucial it is for young players to go out and gain those experiences in the lower leagues. “I think it’s so important for young players to go out and get experience in the lower leagues because youth football and even Under 23s is completely different to men’s football. If you’re at a club in the Premier League or in the EFL and you have to go down to non-league for example for some experience, you shouldn’t look at it as a step down, you should see it as progression. In my case I had played one game in the Championship and then went and played 15 games in League Two and that felt like a step up for me. The outcome wasn’t great in terms of being relegated, but I learnt so much and was able to understand the pressures of first team football and trying to get three points on a weekend.”
Upon his return to Barnsley, the then 19-year-old was given a chance in the first team. Following a good start to the season, Brown quickly became a constant in the Tykes’ promotion winning side in the 2018/19 campaign, finishing the season with 14 goal contributions in 32 games. “I went into the team and quickly solidified my position. I went onto get lots of goals and assists, my confidence was really high, and we got promoted. Being a part of team as an academy graduate was nice because the fans automatically have a soft spot for you. That season really set me up for the next move and stage of my career.”
Brown carried his promotion winning form into the Championship the following season and that sparked interest from other clubs. In the summer of 2020, he signed for Stoke City. “I went to Stoke, and I was really nervous when I joined because they’re a big club and they had some massive names in the squad at the time. I found it difficult at the start and a lot of that was down to it being the behind closed doors Covid season which meant there was no fans, and I thrive off the fans’ energy. In my second season the fans were back, and I did really well. It was probably my best season during my time there. I was voted the Player of the Season, and my confidence was really high again. I loved my time there.”
Brown’s biggest move to date would come following the conclusion of his third season with the Potters, signing for Luton Town who had just been promoted to the Premier League. “As a kid all I ever dreamed of was playing in the Premier League and to actually achieve that was amazing. When I sit back and look at my journey it’s crazy. To think I was released from an academy when I was 14, went back to playing Sunday league, signed for Barnsley, and then went onto play in all four of the top divisions in England, I’m super happy with that.”
Despite Luton’s maiden season in the top flight ending with the disappointment of relegation, Brown has fond memories of the 2023/24 campaign. When asked to recall his standout moments, he told LFE: “I automatically think of the goal against Palace as my favourite moment, my first in the Premier League. Also, our first win at Everton. The atmosphere at that game was probably the best that I’ve experienced and to get our first win there was great.”
However, despite the highs he experienced, the former Barnsley academy graduate opened up about the anguish of his season being cut short to injury, one that extinguished his hopes of making the Scotland squad for the Euros in Germany. “It was really difficult and heart-breaking to miss out on the chance to possibly go to the Euros with Scotland. However, the motivation now is to get back in there, play on the biggest stage and show what I can do.”
Luton Town are now back in the Championship and have endured a trickier start to the season than expected. Brown, however, is still confident that the Hatters can turn it around and enjoy a positive campaign. “It’s not been the best start, but the goal has to be to try and get promoted again. The Championship is really tough, but things can change quickly within a few results so that is the aim still.”
Away from the pitch, the Scotland international is a big advocate for those with a platform, specifically footballers, going the extra mile and helping those less fortunate. In his case, Brown has forged a strong relationship with a young fan named Jack Powell. “Jack has followed my whole journey from being at Barnsley. He was a mascot at one of our games and I carried him out because he has brittle bone disease. After that game I kept in touch with him and his mum and dad. Whenever I get the chance, I’ll always go and see him. His parents always send me photos of him watching the games with my shirt on, he’s my number one fan. When I left Barnsley to go to Stoke, he kind of transitioned from a Barnsley fan to a Stoke fan! He’s pretty much a Jacob Brown fan, and a fan of whatever team I play for. He’s such a nice lad.“
“It was Jack’s birthday not long ago and I wanted to do something for him. We invited him down to spend the day at the training ground and he absolutely loved it. I then wanted to try and raise some money for the team who look after him at the Sheffield Children’s Hospital as they don’t get loads of funding, and they do so much amazing work for kids like Jack. We managed to raise nearly £10,000 which was amazing. The support it received from Barnsley, Stoke and Luton fans was incredible, and fans of other teams further afield. Footballers have a really big platform, so we should always try and use it in a positive way.“
“Jack is such a massive fan of mine and I’m just a normal person. As a footballer, no matter where you are playing or who you are, there is always going to be someone who looks up to you, so I think all players should try and set a good example and use the platform that they have for positive things, whether that is charity work or taking time with fans.”
On top of his commendable charity work, Brown possesses a keen interest in personal development and further education. Helping the next generation of footballers in his post-sporting career is something that he wants to practice them for. “I’m currently enrolled on the PFA’s Football Psychology and Emotional Intelligence Leadership course, which is a post graduate certificate. I’ve also just been offered the chance to do a master’s degree at Staffordshire University in Sport and Exercise Psychology. I’m really passionate about this and when I stop playing, I want to help young players. I think me having those experiences, paired with the actual knowledge behind it, I can help give back to them as I know how difficult it can be in their position.”
Brown is confident the game is changing with regard to it’s views on players pursuing different interests away from the pitch and believes in doing so, a smoother transition into life after football can occur. It’s becoming normalised for players to have their career in football but to also pursue other interests whether that’s education, business, music, fashion, anything. Just look at Luther Wildin with his property business. It’s really important because whether you have a good, prolonged career or not, your career is going to end at some point, and you do need to be ready for that, so it’s better to start early and build those foundations for when you are transitioning out of the game. If you are a young player now, start looking at other ways of developing yourself as it’ll make that transition a lot easier and can only benefit you.
