Origins: Djed Spence

England’s Djed Spence has spoken about his journey from grassroots football and growing up in south London to the pinnacle of the game in the first of our Origins series.

Ahead of the FIFA 2026 World Cup, we’re celebrating where every football journey truly began, from grassroots to the world stage.

And the Tottenham Hotspur defender epitomises that, having grown up in Peckham and Croydon where he honed his talent with two grassroots clubs.

From there, he embarked on a journey that took him from the academy ranks of Fulham to Middlesbrough, where he broke into the first-team before a loan spell with Nottingham Forest saw him help the Reds to promotion and seal a switch back to the capital with Spurs.

But Spence has never lost touch with his roots and where it all began, as he discusses fond memories of the landmarks and areas where he came of age.

"Whenever I've achieved something or done a special thing, it makes me think 'yeah, it's been a long journey' and I'm grateful for sure,” he said.

"Going to school, there was a lot of football in the cages at school. After school, there was football again and that's all I've ever done. Football was everything for me.

"Originally, I played for Peckham Town, and that was my first ever grassroots team. After that, I moved to Junior Elite.

“I've been in football since I was about six years old, but playing grassroots football - it definitely started from there.”

We’ll have more features with England players as part of our Origins series to come as we build up to this summer’s World Cup in North America.

In the meantime, if you’re inspired by Djed’s story, you can get started by finding a local grassroots club near to you.