Jan Budtz's unique career after non traditional journey

He didn’t play a professional game until he was 26 years old – during which he saved two penalties – spent only four years at a full-time level of the game and has since made hundreds of appearances at various steps of non-league.

Before he started, he was a part of the Royal Danish Air Force which included parachuting out of planes, and worked as a social worker in a residential home. And, since finishing in senior football, he has spent many years helping young people develop both in football and life in general across South Yorkshire and Liverpool.

It’s a quite a story for the goalkeeping Great Dane who spent three months on loan with Wolves in the first season under Mick McCarthy back in the first months of 2007.

Oh yes. And, as England and Denmark prepare to lock horns in the European Championships in Frankfurt late this afternoon, the last time they did so, in the semi-finals back in 2021, Budtz was there. At Wembley.

“I didn’t have a ticket originally, but because of the Covid restrictions, all the Danish residents in the UK were given the chance to buy a couple,” he recalls. “I was in the Danish section with my eldest son Drew – he was supporting England with me Denmark – and, in what was a tight game, it was England who got the win.

“And now? Denmark have England in the group, and as a Danish guy living over here, I have to go through all of that again.

“I know that if England win, I’m not going to hear the last of it for weeks!”

Some friendly if lively banter around this evening’s game is all in a day’s work for the now 45-year-old, whose life experiences leave him pretty much ready for anything.

Budtz is one of those affable and articulate personalities who both loved his time in football, but has perspective from a humble grounding and additional experiences which continue to shape his attitude and approach.

“Football has always been such a privilege and I absolutely love it,” he explains. “But it’s also been nice to do something else, and while I don’t call it the ‘real world’ because I think that sounds offensive, working a nine to five and night shifts has definitely given me a sense of perspective away from football.

“I still love talking about when I played professionally, and it was a privilege to be involved, but I have found it just as rewarding to be able to give back during other parts of my life.”

Life for Budtz began in the Danish town of Hillerod, just under 20 miles north west of Copenhagen, and, growing up, a football was never too far away.

With twin brother Ole and a friend, whether in the garden, on the street, even in their house, it was about playing football. And Budtz was the one of the trio who was gently nudged towards playing in goal.

But then – and this is where Budtz’s footballing pathway took a very different turn – he didn’t kick a ball in anger between the ages of 15 and 20.

He completed his education at high school and, at 18, as with all young Danes, came the obligation to pursue a form of national service.

The selection process for different roles included a health assessment and, ‘drawing a number out of a tumbler’, which, if low enough, meant you were compelled to join the army.

“My brother drew a low number, so he had to go in and, given we pretty much always stuck together, I volunteered myself to join him,” says Budtz. “I had initially wanted to join the police and nearly got in there but when it came to national service, I ended up in the parachute regiment of the Royal Danish Air Force.

“I absolutely loved it, we were jumping out of planes and doing stuff which was pretty amazing.

“It gave me so much and prepared me for life in a different way to anything else I had experienced and areas like the discipline and time management were skills I took into my professional career afterwards.”

Budtz enjoyed life in the Air Force to such an extent that he signed up for an additional six months after his first year, after which his bags were packed and he was all set to be stationed abroad until the government suddenly withdrew the funding and his whole battalion was disbanded.

From there though, he didn’t rest on his laurels, and landed employment as a social worker, working in a home where vulnerable teenagers or young adults who had been rejected by the social system were given one final chance to try and turn their lives around.

For Budtz it was most definitely an ‘eye opener’ – but, equally, another opportunity to learn more about himself and how to build positive relationships with people from so many different backgrounds and cultures.

“I had never experienced anything like that in my life either before or after,” he explains. “It was a challenge, at times very tough, but when you were able to build a bond and help the young people return to a more positive family life at home, or get themselves into education, it was also incredibly rewarding.

“I think I have always been lucky to have a fairly mature attitude but all those different experiences helped me to gel with players and managers when I finally made my breakthrough.”

And so then, and only then, came the football.

Budtz, who had been the reserve keeper for several years with FC Nordsjaelland in Denmark, impressed in a game watched by a scout from Doncaster and did even better – saving two penalties – in a behind-closed-doors trial for Rovers against Newcastle after which he was offered a two-year contract.

His eventual introduction – also involving penalties – was very much worth the wait.

The Manchester City of 19 years ago was not the Manchester City of today, but they still boasted plenty of top Premier League names as they headed to Doncaster’s Belle Vue Stadium for a second round tie in the Carling Cup.

With the game locked goalless after 90 minutes, England striker and now Wolves Academy coach Darius Vassell put City in front from the spot on 95 minutes and then, after Budtz came off the bench to replace Andy Warrington, later Molineux midfielder Michael McIndoe dragged Doncaster level.

The tie went to penalties and Budtz, 15 minutes into his professional career, saved from Antoine Sibierski and Richard Dunne after Vassell’s effort had struck the crossbar. Doncaster won the shootout 3-0, their first ever victory over top-flight opposition. Cometh the hour, cometh the Jan!

“It still feels like a blur as I had only been in the country about three months and what happened that night didn’t sink in until a few weeks after,” says Budtz. “I turned up for training the next morning not thinking too much of it and then saw myself in all the papers including a spread in The Sun calling me ‘the next Peter Schmeichel’.”

Budtz didn’t feature in a 3-0 win against Villa in a later round but was back in the nets and saved another shootout penalty from Alexander Hleb only for Doncaster to be edged out by Arsenal, Robin Van Persie et al, in the quarter-finals.

So where do Wolves fit into the rarely mundane and often remarkable Jan Budtz story?

Having fallen down the pecking order at Doncaster, initially after breaking his hand, he was given the opportunity to move up a division in joining Wolves on loan in the Championship, as cover for Matt Murray following injuries to Michael Oakes and Carl Ikeme.

“It was a move which didn’t take much thinking about, that’s for sure,” Budtz recalls. “There were some great guys there at the time – people like Matt and Karl Henry, Neill Collins and Jody Craddock – and everyone was so friendly.

“Mick (McCarthy) was such a great man manager and also very good technically and tactically, he was someone who was such a good character who could have a laugh and a joke but you certainly knew when it was time to be serious and had to work hard.”

In terms of minutes, when replacing the injured Murray at half-time against Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough, it wasn’t quite the same glorious introduction that Budtz had enjoyed on his Doncaster bow.

“My first touch was picking the ball out of the net,” he laughs.

Wolves hit back in that particular game to draw 2-2 thanks to a late Andy Keogh equaliser, and, in total, Budtz would make four appearances in what was a free-scoring team, his starts comprising another 2-2 share of the spoils away at Crystal Palace and a 3-1 home win against Hull. A 100 per cent win ratio on Waterloo Road!

Ultimately the maximum length of Budtz’s loan meant he would have had to return to Doncaster prior to Wolves’ play-off campaign, when Murray’s broken shoulder on the eve of the first leg saw Wayne Hennessey, fresh from his record-breaking loan at Stockport, make the first of his 166 Wolves appearances.

In the event he was called back for two final Doncaster appearances before moving on, after which he would appear 44 times for Hartlepool, and three for Oldham, before moving into non-league circles which included featuring in the FA Cup and reaching the semi-finals of the FA Trophy.

Even now, at 45 years old, he made several appearances for Rossington Main last season and may well do so again next season – there are even other clubs interested in his services!

But alongside continuing to play part-time, has arrived this new career, reigniting the community ethos of his social work and national service, a desire to ‘give back’ which has pretty much topped and tailed his time out in the goalmouth.

He first got involved with Doncaster’s Foundation, the club’s community arm, more than 10 years ago, via Liam Scully, now CEO at Lincoln City who was then a community coach with Rovers.

Budtz worked on the club’s Kicks project, supporting local youngsters by providing them with activities and a focus, as well as managing their NCS (National Citizen Scheme) programme, which included taking hundreds of young people away on residentials to develop their skills and experiences.

Three years ago, he them moved across to become head of operations overseeing Doncaster’s development centre running sessions attended by around 350 to 400 young people in total, including HAF – Holiday Activity and Food Programmes – which provide not just football but also dinner and lunch to help those who have been affected by cost of living challenges.

Aside from that, Budtz also owns the North Liverpool franchise for the Kixx football academy which was launched by his former non-league manager Ben Hunter, and aims to offer a fun introduction and experience of the game for children aged from 18 months to ten years old.

“I have always enjoyed working with young people especially as I think there are a lot who don’t get the opportunities that they deserve, through no fault of their own,” he insists. “Whatever you can do to help them, to make life a little bit better or put a smile on their faces, I am always up for that, and it doesn’t seem like a job.”

Budtz is also still involved with the Wolves Allstars team having turned out for them in charity games at Molineux, and as a Dane who has mainly been a Rover, his time as a fully-fledged Wolf may have been brief.

But his impact on the lives of so many others further afield has been immeasurable.