(Reuters) – Former Sweden national team manager Janne Andersson will dedicate his time to delivering emergency aid to Ukraine with The Blue Light Foundation in Cooperation, Swedish media reports said.
Andersson led Sweden to the quarter-finals of the World Cup in 2018 but ended his seven-year reign as coach in November 2023 after the team failed to qualify for the European Championship in Germany.
He announced his retirement from coaching in April and will now use his time to support Ukrainians as they endure the fourth year of the Russian invasion.
“I have quit as a football coach and therefore have more time in my life. I want to use that time to do good things,” Andersson said in a press release as referenced by Swedish media.
“Driving emergency vehicles down to Ukraine as a volunteer…, and helping the Ukrainian people on the ground in that way, it feels really, really good,” the 62-year-old added.
The donated vehicles and equipment are part of a larger aid package, valued at approximately 30 million SEK ($3.05 million), with the handover set to take place in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv.
The Swedish Blue Light Foundation in Cooperation was formed in 2018 with the aim of using the funds raised to assist colleagues in the Police, Coast Guard, Customs, Rescue Services and Ambulance Care.
($1 = 9.8217 Swedish crowns)
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
