Soccer Aid is returning to Manchester this year with a fantastic line-up of famous faces. Amongst the stars making their debut at the annual charity event on Sunday, June 11 at Manchester United's Old Trafford is I'm A Celebrity 2022 star Scarlette Douglas.
The TV presenter, who is well known for hosting Channel 4's A Place In The Sun, will be the first female celebrity who doesn’t come from a professional sporting background to ever take part in Soccer Aid. Scarlette will be walking out onto the pitch for the first time alongside Jack Wilshere, Joel Corry, Bugzy Malone, Karen Carney, Gary Cahill and her fellow campmate and Lioness Jill Scott.
Hosted by Dermot O’Leary and Alex Scott, the event raises money for UNICEF to help to disadvantaged children worldwide, and will see a whole host of celebrities and professional players go head-to-head in a 90-minute match in front of more than 74,000 fans.
As part of team England, captained by Queen of The Jungle 2022 Jill Scott, Scarlette said she was delighted to get the call up.
“I'm so excited to be doing it, it's going to be so much fun. I watch it every year so the fact that I'm now actually going to be on the pitch is mind blowing," the 35-year-old told the Manchester Evening News.
"When my agent messaged me about it, I kind of thought he was joking because it’s something I’ve always wanted to do, so when he asked if I was up for it I was like ‘yeah of course’, not actually expecting that I would now be in the kit.
"When he told me it was confirmed I remember just screaming down the phone and thinking ‘this is the best news ever’."
Scarlette is making Soccer Aid history as the first female to take part that isn't from a professional football background - and she admits to feeling the pressure.
"It’s huge, I'm making history to a certain degree and I feel like there is pressure on me now, but hopefully because people know that I’m not a professional, it does kind of ease it off a little bit," she admitted.
"It’s going to be one of those where I’ll be in the dressing room with these incredible talents and I’m like ‘why am I here?', but I’m here for the laughs and for the fun. I think my tactic is just going to be to cuddle people so they can’t actually run past me."
Despite not having any professional experience, Scarlette, whose brothers used to play football professionally, said her whole family is football-mad.
"I’ve never played to any high level at all but I do enjoy playing and watching football. I’m a big Arsenal fan, we’ve got season tickets so we’re there all the time," the presenter said.
"My mum and dad love football. My mum is probably one of the biggest fans I’ve ever met in my life. She's so passionate about the game."
Scarlette will be making her debut on the England team alongside fellow debutants including chart-topping DJ Joel Corry and Manchester-based rapper and actor Bugzy Malone. Paddy McGuinness will return to the England side but will play in goal for the first-time ever.
But the I'm A Celebrity 2022 contestant admits that although she's looking forward to playing with everybody on her team, naturally, she is most excited to play alongside her fellow campmate and Lioness Jill Scott.
Speaking of Jill, Scarlette said: "The thing I love so much about Jill is that she doesn’t even realise how much she’s changed the game. She’s just super humble and she’s going to be brilliant at it I just know it.
"When we were in the jungle she was just so optimistic, encouraging and supportive, and I can imagine her as captain being exactly that.
"I totally look up to Jill and I can't wait to get on the pitch with her and actually say I got to play with a lioness.
“I’ll be asking her for all the advice. Just get her tell me everything she has in that head of hers, all that knowledge, and I’ll try and take as much from her as possible.”
Talking about the importance of taking part in Soccer Aid, Scarlette said: "I've got nieces and nephews and I just love children, I want to do whatever I can to help them.
"Children weren’t asked to be brought into this world, they didn't make the decision to be here, so as adults we can help make a change and we have a right to make sure that kids have the best start in life and have a good life full stop.
"Taking part is important for me because it marries the two things that I love so much - football and children - so it’s the perfect fit really."
The Three Lions team have not won a Soccer Aid match since 2018, which was when the charity game was last played at Old Trafford.
Scarlette hopes that alongside her fellow teammates, including former Lioness Karen Carney, Chelsea’s Champions League winning defender Gary Cahill and Arsenal’s two-time FA Cup winning midfielder, Jack Wilshere, they'll be able to secure the win.
"I'm a competitive person 100 percent," she admitted. "I have two older brothers and I'm the youngest so I had to compete for attention as much as possible when I was younger. I have always done a lot of sports as well so that has made me more competitive and I absolutely hate losing so we have to win.
“The last four soccer aid games England lost so from here onwards there will be no more losing for England because I'm here now so we’re winning.
“I am confident that the rest of the team are going do very well for us to win and then because I'm in that team, that means I have also won.
"I’ve seen the line-up and we’ve got some brilliant players. We’ve got Jack Wilshere and he’s great and obviously Jermain Defoe as well and Paul Scholes who is an absolutely legend so yeah I think we've got this.”
The game will air live and exclusively on ITV, STV and ITVX.
Tickets to attend the game are on sale now via www.socceraid.org.uk/tickets with a family of four able to attend for just £60.
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