Kunle Dada-Luke’s Journey in Football
Dada-Luke showed up to Pacific FC in Spring 2021 ready to redeem himself and prove his talent again on the soccer pitch. It had been a rough period of time for the winger/full-back after he returned from a spell in Europe. Last season however reminded everyone of the immense talents Dada-Luke possesses, and the environment he learned in under Pa-Modou Kah and Jamar Dixon ultimately reinforced the 22-year-old’s understanding that it doesn’t matter how you look, if you have a dream and the drive to accomplish it, you can achieve your goals.
The journey begins
“I started playing soccer when I was really young, about two years old,” says Dada-Luke, “it was in a local house league, the club was called West Toronto.”
Growing up, Dada-Luke played soccer, basketball and ran track. It was soccer eventually that took over as his one passion in sport.
“Other than soccer, I played basketball as well as track. Track was more for school, and I did get scouted, but I never really took off with it. So when I was about 13, I decided to focus on soccer as my one sport. It was a tough decision. But I ultimately fell in love with the game of soccer more than the others. So I went with that.”
After dedicating his time to soccer, Dada-Luke quickly realized he could stand out on the pitch and in a moment understood this could be his career.
“I was about 15, I saw myself being a little bit above average. My family saw something in me before but it took some time for it to really hit me. It was a moment during a game that I felt it. I just felt ‘wow, this was kind of easy’! It really changed my perspective.”
Dada-Luke was with West Toronto Soccer Club for a majority of his development as a kid before being noticed by the big club in town.
“I played with West Toronto for maybe 10 years before I got scouted to the all-star team. Then I played there for about three, four years before I got scouted to the rep team in the same organization.”
“From there, I got scouted to go try out for TFC at an open tryout and I made the team. I spent quite a few years with TFC before moving on to Denmark.”
The experience with TFC taught Dada-Luke a lot about being a professional and set him up well for his time in Europe and his current set up with Pacific FC.
“It was really good to get a professional standpoint on how things were run in an academy and what they expect from you. I really enjoyed my time with TFC, they taught me the basics; my conditioning, what to expect off the pitch, what the steps I need to take to become a pro. Everything from the football aspect and off the pitch, it was amazing.”
Canada, Europe and Back
Dada-Luke made the daunting move to Europe in 2019 when he had the chance to go on trial with FC Helsingør of Denmark.
“It was a big change of scenery. Everything there was more fast-paced, more technical, more sharp but they don’t really focus on the little things, they expected you to know everything and perform. It’s more about organization and game plan over there.”
It was a big shift on the pitch for Dada-Luke, who was 19 at the time, but the shift in culture was actually a helpful experience for the now-22-year-old as well.
“Living over there was perfect for me, it was a nice quiet town, nothing too crazy. It was a small place where you see the same people every day. It was a nice little place to get away from it all because I’m from Toronto. Obviously it’s louder and more updated (in Toronto), but over there it was more quiet and peaceful. It was a good spot.”
After a season in Europe, Dada-Luke moved back to Canada, originally with Atletico Ottawa before moving to the Island to join Pacific. The move to Pacific was an opportunity for the former Canada youth international to recapture the magic he knew he could produce on the pitch.
“My expectations when I moved here were to put myself back on the map because I fell off a little bit on the soccer aspect. So when Pa came to me with this opportunity, it was a chance for me to revive my career and have people notice me again. And that’s exactly what happened: I got a little buzz around my name, teams started seeing me as a threat and the fans started to love me. So I think that’s only going to push me forward for this season to be even better.”
“It doesn’t matter how you look, if you have a dream, it’s attainable”
Dada-Luke says he didn’t have many Black coaches or leaders while growing up so watching Pa-Modou Kah and Jamar Dixon lead the team to the Canadian Premier League title last season was impactful for him.
“It was amazing to see. Seeing how hard both people worked to achieve this goal that we all had during the season, it was memorable for all of us. Just sharing the pitch with them, how hard we worked to get there and seeing that picture of them, that’s when we realize all our hard work paid off. It doesn’t matter what happens, if you follow the game plan then you’re destined for greatness. So it was a special moment just seeing that and witnessing it live.”
“And I didn’t have any Black coaches really teaching me about the game when I was growing up. Pa was my first Black coach and it meant a lot to me. Seeing how far he’s come and just knowing anything’s possible. It doesn’t matter how you look, if you have a dream, and you’re good enough, it’s attainable.”
Having Kah as his first Black soccer coach, Dada-Luke knows the coaching infrastructure needs to improve in Canada and sees that happening.
“It should definitely change. There’s always gonna be room for improvement, you just have to give it time. I think with time you’re gonna see it, and seeing Pa win the championship with Pacific will open doors.”
Black History Month
“It’s my everyday life. I don’t think we should see Black History Month as just for February. We shouldn’t just celebrate one month a year, we should celebrate life in general.”
“It’s an everyday thing for me, and I think other people see it the same way, it’s regular life for all of us. It’s nothing special, everybody goes through ups and downs. I just feel like it’s not something we should celebrate one time a year, it’s all year round.”
