Every player was Jeff: Former Indian expat student in UAE who died in UK bike crash celebrated with football tribute

Dubai: Friends of Jefferson Justin, a former Indian expat student in the UAE, who died in a bike crash in the UK last month, came together in Dubai to honour him through what they called a “perfect tribute” –a memorial football match that rekindled childhood memories and forged new bonds.

Jefferson, 27, who was born and raised in Sharjah, was cremated there on August 7 after UAE authorities allowed his grieving family to lay him to rest on humanitarian grounds, despite him not holding a UAE residence visa. The compassionate gesture was previously reported by Gulf News.

The graphic designer, who was fondly called Jeff, had a huge circle of friends, many of whom still live in the UAE.

The match, held at Dubai World Trade Centre on Thursday night, was attended by 20 friends and Jeff’s dear and near ones, including his parents Justin Pereira and Vincy, as managers, his younger brother Jonathan, as a player, and elder brother Juvin, as a supporter.

Every player, including Jonanthan, wore jerseys with Jefferson’s name across the back, a symbolic gesture initiated by Jeff’s friend Vishnu Venugopal, who came up with the idea of a memorial match to pay tributes to Jeff.

“We just wanted to do whatever we could to keep his memories alive,” said Vishnu, who flew down from Spain on hearing about Jeff’s tragic death.

He discussed the idea with Dinoop Suresh, another close friend of Jeff, and started looking for an indoor court and reconnecting with schoolmates who used to play football together.

When they zeroed in on Dubai Sports World at Dubai World Trade Centre, they were moved by the venue management’s generous gesture. Jeff’s friends were allowed to use an area for the winners’ celebration, equipped with a massive LED display screen, free of charge.

Paying attention to detail, the friends organised digital banners and physical rollups carrying the “ever-smiling” face of Jeff and details of the memorial match.

When it came to the team jersey, there were two colour variants, one in black and gold and the other in turquoise and black. However, both teams’ jerseys used a logo that Jeff had designed for his Instagram handle Zen Ride through which he used to vlog about his bike rides.

“There was no name for the two clubs. But we used his logo as the club badge for both teams’ jerseys,” said Dinoop.

Though the match was friendly, a custom trophy with Jefferson’s photo was created. “Whichever team won, we planned to gift the trophy to uncle and aunty,” Vishnu said, referring to Jeff’s parents.

“Eventually, we all posed with the trophy and gave it to them. It was never about winning. Everyone was a winner,” said Dinoop, a member of the winning team that wore the turquoise and black jersey.

Juvin delivered an emotional message at the end of the game. “I am sure Jeff is watching from above, smiling at all of us,” he said.

The event also served as a reunion of childhood friends, some of whom had not met in years. “We all felt that connection again. The match brought us back together. It felt like Jeff was with us. Some were common friends through Jeff. Through this match, we all became friends,” said Dinoop.

“Our love for the game had brought us together with Jeff. He was gone too soon, but he brought us together again through this match,” said Vishnu.

Dinoop said the friends also wanted Jeff’s parents to come out of the grief, even if just for a while, and feel surrounded by love and support.

"They are like mum and dad to us. We’ve always been very close to his family. We just wanted to do whatever we could to keep their spirits up. We didn’t want them to just sit on the bench and clap. Obviously, they couldn’t play, so we gave them responsibilities as team managers, and they happily took it up."

Jeff’s parents, who hail from the south Indian state of Kerala, on Saturday shared a heartfelt message on Facebook, expressing awe at the effort made by their son’s friends:

“Jefferson, our Chikku, has selected the right people as friends…During our current difficult time, they are always around us…We would like to call them our children.”

“Within a short period of time, they organised a friendly football match titled ‘Jefferson Memorial Trophy 2025’. Jerseys were designed and printed. It was amazing to see how proficient and emotional the 45-minute professional football match was. Hats off, dear children — you guys are truly amazing!”

The parents were aware of Jeff’s love for football only when he used to play on the open ground near their building during his childhood.

During his college days, he became interested in dance, photography, short movies, singing and rap music. “After moving to the UK for his postgraduate studies, he won second place in a rap battle at Coventry University in Leeds. After finding a job, his interests slowly changed to bike riding, GoPro video shooting, and traveling to other countries when he had long weekends or holidays. We were unaware of his ability as a football player until his friends recently revealed it.”

His friends remembered how Jeff would shift from defence to an inverted winger position to create scoring chances.

The friends had formed an informal “Jeff Memorial” chat group. The event has now inspired the group to consider hosting weekly kickabouts.

Meanwhile, Vishnu and Dinoop are even thinking of even organising the memorial match every year on Jefferson’s birthday in January. “It was for his birthday that we used to get together and celebrate every year. Now, we hope to do it in his memory,” said Dinoop.

“We feel like doing more for him. Nothing we do will ever feel enough. He had genuinely touched so many lives.”

Meanwhile, an investigation into the fatal accident that took place in Leeds, is ongoing, with results expected in the coming months.

Jeff had died on the spot after his motorbike crashed into a wall on Wellington Road while he was on the way back from work. He had secretly booked a flight to return home for good on September 17 just hours before the accident.