From England’s Yorkshire County to Toronto’s borough of East York, Aidan Butterworth is a footballer for life.

As a young man he played for the England Schoolboys before cracking the line-up with Leeds United in the old First Division. Off the pitch, he was a successful marketing executive with Adidas, working with superstars like David Beckham.

Now, on Saturday mornings he leads the Toronto Walking Soccer Club (TWSC) through warm-ups and the occasional training session before joining the lads for weekly games.

His story starts with a passion for his hometown team.

“Leeds United was a big part of our family,” Butterworth said. They had season tickets for their hometown team during the 1973-74 championship season.

“It was an absolute pleasure as a kid to go along and see the greatest Leeds United side that there's ever been,” he said.

Though Butterworth played for England’s U15 and U18 teams, his best memories are of playing with his friends.

“When I was 16, I played for the county team in Yorkshire, it was the best fun I've ever had in football, with great people, some of which I’m still in contact with today,” he said.

He was recruited by 45 professional clubs and after finishing his A-Level studies he chose Leeds. Being a youth player with a Football League club in the 1970s was not a glamorous life.

“In those days, the apprentices had to clean the boots, clear all the professionals’ kit away, clean the toilets, and that sort of thing,” he recalled.

After being promoted to the first team, with a salary of 80 pounds per week, he had an immediate impact.

Butterworth scored in his first appearance as a starter, on Oct. 31, 1981, a week before his 20th birthday. He headed the ball past Nottingham Forest’s Peter Shilton who was also England’s goalkeeper.

Seven days later, he followed-up with his second goal, inspiring the Elland Road faithful to serenade Butterworth with a rousing chorus of Happy Birthday.

The daily grind of the professional game was an adjustment for him.

“You look around at all these great players, then you play with them, and they start banging and bashing you about a bit and you think, well, hold on, I'm not gonna take that,” he said. “It's quite a physical game and you’ve got to learn it.”

Described as a “terrier-like forward who never gave defenders a moment’s respite,” Butterworth went on to be the club’s top scorer in 1982-83 and was associated with Leeds for five years.

Coming from an academic family – his father was a university lecturer – he then earned a degree in Sport Sciences. He made a professional comeback at Doncaster Rovers while finishing his studies.

In his business career, Butterworth was the senior marketing communications manager of team sports at Adidas. He signed contracts and managed the company’s relationships with clubs like Arsenal, Liverpool, Newcastle and Rangers, as well as star players like Steven Gerrard, Paul Gascoigne and even the future husband of Posh Spice.

“I brought Beckham to Adidas when no one really knew him,” said Butterworth. “He was just an up and coming kid.”

Butterworth moved to Toronto in 2010 to be with his wife. Kim works in Nuclear Cardiology at Toronto Western Hospital.

“She's a Canadian through and through,” he said before describing her outstanding abilities in golf and baseball.

Following the double double of replacement surgeries – both hips and his right knee twice – he is finished with competitive matches but enjoys Saturday mornings on the pitch with the TWSC Loons.

“It's being part of something, and part of something pretty special, really,” Butterworth said before touting the club’s favourite field, in a park by Lake Ontario. “Everybody has a common interest and you can't get a better environment than Cherry Beach.”

The Toronto club uses a local rule that limits players to three touches on the ball at a time. Butterworth first learned to play that way at his training sessions in England.

“As a pro, it's entrenched in your mentality to do drills and shooting and then we finish off with the five-a-side and we just play two-touch, he said. “I've played with two or three touches, all my life.

“If you watch any professional game, you'll notice that almost all plays are with two or three touches.”

With the focus on passing, Butterworth sees a game where all players are involved.

“I think the great thing is, regardless of anyone's ability, you'll always pass the ball to them if they are in space,” he said. “It is not about winning; it's about being with good people.”