Meet the team

Sports, especially football, have been my passion for as long as I can remember. I still remember the excitement of watching my first live game during the 2002 World Cup and how I was introduced to Latvian football in 2003 ahead of the run to the EURO 2004. I still vividly remember where I was during the second leg of the match against Turkey. It was such a memorable time!

Since then, I’ve been promoting Latvian football in English through my social media account, which I’ve run for over six years. It has helped me make fantastic friends, but now I want to find new ways to highlight football in this part of the world because Baltic football is truly special and it needs recognition! The Rīga derby offers high-quality games, the Vilnius Žalgiris fans create an unbeatable atmosphere, and the Estonian league showcases their young talents. Baltic football has so much potential.

Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian football is special to me because of the level of authenticity that still permeates the game here. Being so close to players, coaches and the national team creates deeper emotional ties and being able to witness how clubs fight to survive or grow adds another layer of meaningfulness that you simply can’t get if following a club or a league from afar.

My journey with football has been on and off, it started with the 2002 World Cup and flourished as Latvia qualified for EURO 2004, before giving way to academic pursuits around 2009. Since returning to my native Latvia in 2019 and seeing the immense growth and transformation that domestic football had undergone during my decade of absence, I am more keen than ever to showcase the unique romance of football in Latvia, as well as in neighbouring Lithuania and Estonia!

A lifelong football fanatic, I grew up in rural mid-Wales, where I witnessed a struggling national team, before getting to see players like Aaron Ramsey and Gareth Bale make their debuts for Wales. My passion for football then followed me to Seoul, London, and Latvia, where I became a proud supporter of Valmiera FC.

I have experience in directing media campaigns and commercial content for some of the world’s largest media groups, including the BBC, CNN, The New York Times, News Corp, RTL, and the Financial Times. I’ve represented major brands such as Sonos, H&M, Ikea, the European Capital of Culture, and over 10 government ministries for which I won eight industry awards and served on the council for the PRCA. My latest venture is Codnity Creative, a cutting-edge agency that bridges business development and marketing with technology.

Sports have been at the centre of my life from an early age, and football unexpectedly became a central passion after I attended my first Riga derby, the atmosphere, emotion, and connection to the fans hooked me instantly. Since then, I haven’t missed a match, which led me to work with the Latvian Football Federation, creating content around FIFA qualifiers, national team camps, and matchdays.

As a Latvian Master of Sports in Rhythmic Gymnastics and former national team athlete, I developed discipline, teamwork, and an understanding of what makes sport inspiring. Before moving fully into football, I gained hands-on experience in social media and content creation as Deputy Head of Communications at the RSU Student Union, and later produced campaigns and digital content with the Latvian Olympic Committee, including content creation in preparation for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. I also represented Latvia as a European Young Olympic Ambassador at the Winter Youth Olympic Festival in Bakuriani and the Summer Youth Olympic Festival in Skopje, supporting youth engagement and producing content for national team.

Combining my love for football with my background in sports communications, I’m excited to share the stories, moments, and energy of Baltic football!

My passion for Lithuanian football has grown over the years and is now at its peak. Like many others, I first fell in love with international football, eagerly following every top team and player in Europe. However, my deep attachment to my hometown club, Vilniaus Žalgiris, always kept me closely connected to football in Lithuania.

I was always thrilled to go to the LFF Stadium to watch my favorite team play, regardless of the opponent or the weather. Attending matches of the Lithuanian national team was always a dream for me, with the most unforgettable experience being the 2019 match against Portugal, featuring Cristiano Ronaldo.

A few years ago, I became more curious about Lithuanian football and realized how important it is to stay engaged with the sport in my own country. I find promoting Baltic football, especially in English, incredibly exciting. It’s a fantastic way to introduce people around the world to a lesser-known side of international football. Everyone should take pride in their country, and promoting it through our passions is a wonderful way to do so.

Originally hailing from the North-East of England, football was inherently planted into my DNA from birth. After residing in Belgium for four-years as a student, I then made my way to Lithuania, where I swiftly fell head over heels for the down-to-earth and modest atmosphere of the A Lyga, having become increasingly disillusioned and frustrated by the intentional glitz and glamour of the English Premier League. Football is most certainly a work in progress in Lithuania, yet, it is also a diamond in the rough waiting to be uncovered!

I have completed a number of internships in the world of football, notably, at Czech football club, FK Dukla Praha, and German club, 1. FC Union Berlin and I am keen to develop, learn, and implement my knowledge into Baltic football itself, with the primary aim of positively contributing to football development, and interest within the Baltic states, particularly that of Lithuania, all the while gaining newfound skills!

I have previously worked as a football referee, a football news writer, and an expert on Lithuanian football. Besides my work at Baltic Football News, I am a freelance writer for a range of largest national sports publications. In addition to football, I am also a basketball and snooker enthusiast and play water polo, basketball, football and billiards in my free time. I started writing my sports blog back in 2016 in various languages for different markets, as well as starting projects on YouTube and on social media.

In 2024, I transitioned to being an independent sports journalist and freelance writer. I have studied international business and accounting in college and I speak five languages.

I have loved football since childhood, and though my playing days are long past, my passion for storytelling has only grown. I was always drawn to underdog narratives at the lower levels of the global pyramid, from ASEAN Championship qualifiers involving Brunei and Timor-Leste to Sheriff Tiraspol’s victory over Real Madrid.

That curiosity naturally led me back to domestic football. Supporting my hometown club, Dainava, brings regular uncertainty over whether the club will survive another year. Yet Lithuanian football is enjoying a genuine resurgence across all tiers, driven by ambitious sides like Žalgiris and Kauno Žalgiris, alongside consistent projects at Sūduva, Džiugas, Banga, TransINVEST, and Minija.

Joining Baltic Football News allows me to turn this passion for niche stories into clear, objective journalism. It offers the ideal platform to cover football across Lithuania and the wider Baltic region.

Back in the day, Latvian football didn’t really interest me. I remember laughing to myself, “Who even watches Latvian football?” But in the summer of 2021, seeing this club called RFS making a name for themselves in the UECL qualifiers, it slowly started to intrigue me. The return leg against KAA Gent in Riga became the first of many Latvian football club matches I’ve attended.

My passion for RFS and Latvian football blossomed as I started to attend Virslīga, lower division, and national team matches, which now totals to over 100+ games attended in a span of four years. My passion also transformed to social media, as since 2023, I’ve been consistently running the RFS Central account on Twitter. This eventually led to me working as a volunteer for the official social media accounts of FC RFS, which I’ve now been doing for a little over a year.

I like Baltic and, especially, Estonian football as it is close to home and local sports are usually the best ones to support. I have had a passion for football for as long as I remember, my first memory being of my father gifting me Kaka’s AC Milan shirt with number 22 on the back. My first vivid memory of global football is, of course, Zinedine Zidane’s infamous headbutt at the 2006 World Cup Final.

I started supporting my local club back in 2011, when I was a ball boy at a Pärnu Linnameeskond game. Ever since, I do my best to attend as many games as possible and, 14 years later, I have been a Pärnu JK Vaprus season ticket holder for the past 3 years. The club has a very special place in my heart and it fuels my passion for content creation: matchday vlogs and streams on Football Manager with the team.

To quote a well known Estonian football fan: “If you don’t support your own country’s football, no one else will do it for you.” We have already seen a rise in interest about football in the Baltic States and we are ready to take it to another level!

I am from South Yorkshire England and hold an upper second class honours degree in sports journalism from Huddersfield University, a programme accredited by Broadcast Journalism Council and known for interdisciplinarity, with focus on digital journalism. During my studies, I’ve even had the privilege to complete a placement with Sky Sports.

I am a huge supporter of my local club Barnsley FC. I have played football all my life and for my local club Barnsley from the age of 16 to 18. Whilst writing for Baltic Football News, I will be primarily focusing on Estonian football. My goal is to bring dedicated media attention to Baltic football, showcasing its tremendous potential to fans and executives worldwide. The leagues deserve recognition that matches their quality, and I’m committed to making that happen.

I am a former Professional Footballer who has transitioned into Coaching. Originally from the United Kingdom, I have been a resident of Latvia for approximately ten years. I hold UEFA coaching qualifications in both Outfield and Goalkeeping, having completed courses in England, Wales, Scotland, Latvia, and Finland.

My coaching career has included Professional roles in several countries, including Sweden, Uzbekistan, Cambodia, and Latvia. I have worked as a Head Coach, Assistant Coach, and Goalkeeper Coach, across Women’s, Youth, and Men’s Senior Football.

In Latvia, I have coached at several clubs, including Spartaks Jūrmala, Valmiera FC, and most recently FK Auda.