Luton George Kieshawn Shelton (11 November 1985 – 22 January 2021) was a Jamaican professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a striker or winger. At the time of his death, he was the top scorer for the Jamaican national football team with 35 goals. He is also the only men's football player to score four goals in his international debut (2004). He earned 75 caps for Jamaica, and played at three

CONCACAF Gold Cup The CONCACAF Gold Cup ( es, Copa de Oro de la CONCACAF, french: Coupe D'or CONCACAF) is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the continental champion of North Ameri ...

s. Shelton attended

Wolmer's Schools Wolmer's Schools in Kingston, Jamaica, consist of Wolmer's Pre-School, Wolmer's Preparatory School and two high schools: Wolmer's Trust High School For Girls and Wolmer's Trust High School for Boys. While acknowledged as separate institutions, ea ...

and began his career in the youth system of Harbour View. In his international club career, he was part of championship sides in the 2006 Svenska Cupen and the 2008 Norwegian Cup. He also played in the UK,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Club career

Harbour View

Shelton started his career in the Harbour View youth system before becoming a first regular by the age of 18. While at Harbour View he won the CFU Club Championship and the

National Premier League The National Premier League, also known for sponsorship purposes as the Red Stripe Premier League, is sanctioned by the Jamaican Football Federation as the top division for men's association football in Jamaica. Contested between 12 clubs, it ...

. He was also recognised as youth player of the year during his tenure.

Helsingborg

In August 2005 Shelton was due to move to

Football League Championship The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the En ...

club

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

after a successful pre-season trial. They attempted to sign Shelton, but a work permit was rejected, and in August 2006 he joined

Helsingborg Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...

for about £100,000. During the 2006 season, he scored nine goals in 19 games in the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

Allsvenskan Allsvenskan (; en, the All-Swedish, also known as Fotbollsallsvenskan, en, the Football All-Swedish) is a Swedish professional league for men's association football clubs. It was founded in 1924 and is the top tier of the Swedish football lea ...

, despite playing only irregularly due to repeated injuries. He scored a total of 17 goals in 28 competitive matches, including five goals in four Swedish Cup matches on the way to Helsingborg's victory in the competition. His 120th-minute equaliser against to-be league champions

Elfsborg Idrottsföreningen Elfsborg, more commonly known as IF Elfsborg or simply Elfsborg (), is a professional football club based in Borås, Sweden, and is affiliated to the Västergötlands Fotbollförbund. They play in the Allsvenskan and have spe ...

in the quarter-final, which Helsingborg won 5–3 after a penalty shootout (4–4 after extra time), and the 1–0 goal in the final against Gefle, were two of his highlights at the club.

Sheffield United

Despite being signed amidst much fanfare, Shelton did not make his full début until April 2007 in a 2–0 loss to

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...

. He made only three more appearances for the Blades in the Premiership that season as they unsuccessfully battled to avoid relegation. With the arrival of James Beattie and

Billy Sharp Billy Louis Sharp (born 5 February 1986) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker and captains club Sheffield United. He has also played for Rushden & Diamonds, Scunthorpe United, Southampton, Nottingham Forest, Readin ...

Bramall Lane Bramall Lane is a association football, football stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which is the home of Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United. The stadium was originally a cricket ground, built on a road named after the Bramal ...

during the close season he found games no more easy to come by under new manager

Bryan Robson Bryan Robson OBE (born 11 January 1957) is an English football manager and former player. He began his career with West Bromwich Albion in 1972, where he amassed over 200 appearances and was club captain before moving to Manchester United in ...

. Initially limited to cup appearances, he scored his first competitive goals for the club, netting twice in a 5–0

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

win over

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...

in September 2007. As the team struggled he began to see more first team action, but was unable to turn appearances into goals, scoring only twice more that season, against

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

and Colchester in the league. With the arrival of new manager

Kevin Blackwell Kevin Patrick Blackwell (born 21 December 1958) is an English former professional football goalkeeper who since retiring as a player has worked as a coach and a manager. He is currently the manager of Thai League 1 club Nakhon Ratchasima. Ear ...

Shelton was sidelined once more.

Vålerenga

On 24 July 2008, it was announced that Shelton had been sold to

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

side

Vålerenga Vålerenga () is a neighbourhood in the city of Oslo, Norway, belonging to the borough of Gamle Oslo. Vålerenga is located between the neighbourhoods of Gamlebyen, Jordal, Ensjø, Etterstad and Lodalen. Vålerenga is in particular known for it ...

, playing in the

Tippeligaen Eliteserien () is a Norwegian professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the Norwegian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion ...

, for around £1m (10m kr). His contract was to last to the end of the 2011 season. Shelton made his debut on 2 August, scoring his side's lone goal in a 1–1 game at home against

Fredrikstad FK Fredrikstad Fotballklubb (also known as Fredrikstad or FFK) is a Norwegian football club from the town of Fredrikstad. With nine league championships and eleven Norwegian Cup wins, FFK is one of the most successful clubs in Norwegian footbal ...

. He was considered an attacking player with a speed advantage: he was the fastest player to run a 40m sprint in the Tippeligaen. He played in the 2008 Norwegian Cup, and was one of their top scorers in the 2010

season with 12 goals. Shelton spent the 2009-2010 season on loan to the

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

side

Aalborg BK Aalborg Boldspilklub is a Danish sports club based in the city of Aalborg. The club is also known as AaB for short (cf. logo) or Aalborg BK. Through time the club has had branches in cricket, tennis, ice hockey, handball, and basketball, but cur ...

, playing 11 games. He was part of their squad for the 2008–09 UEFA Cup.

Karabükspor and Volga Nizhny Novgorod

On 4 August 2011, Shelton was transferred to Karabükspor. He played for two years, and chose to retain his jersey number 78 when he moved. In 2013, Shelton moved to FC Volga Nizhny Novgorod in Russia. The club suffered from financial issues during this period, and frequently missed payments to the players.

Harbour View return

In April 2015, Shelton went on trial with

MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

side

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 1995, as part of the Anschutz Corporation, la ...

. Shelton returned to Harbour View at the beginning of 2017, after being out of the game for two years with injury, scoring in his first match on his return. This match was his last before retirement.

International career

Shelton was capped at the U-17, U-20, U-23 and national levels for

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

. He scored his 25th goal for Jamaica vs Guadeloupe. He is the only man to score four goals on his international début. In June 2008 he scored five goals in two 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying games for Jamaica against the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

. Later the same month, he scored two goals as Jamaica won 7–0 and scored a hat-trick as Jamaica won 6–0. Shelton was also the top goal scorer in 2010 CONCACAF World Cup qualification matches with seven goals. On 31 January 2010, Shelton scored in a friendly match against Canada to equal Paul Young as Jamaica's all-time leading goalscorer with 28 goals. On 27 November 2010, Shelton became Jamaica's all-time leader scorer with 30 goals after scoring two goals versus Antigua. Jamaica shocked United States 2–1 on to seize the lead in their group in the semi-final round of 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying in the CONCACAF Zone. Goals from Rodolph Austin and Luton Shelton overcame Clint Dempsey's first-minute strike for the Americans as Jamaica posted their first victory over the US in 19 matches.

Personal life

Shelton had three children with his wife Bobbette. In 2018, it was announced that Shelton had

ALS Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most com ...

. He died from complications of the disease on 22 January 2021, aged 35.

Career statistics

International

Source:

Honours

Harbour View * CFU Club Championship: 2004 Helsingborg *

Svenska Cupen Svenska Cupen (, ''The Swedish Cup'') is a knockout cup competition in Swedish football and the main Swedish football cup. Svenska Cupen usually refers to the men's tournament, although a women's tournament is also held. Each year 96 teams compe ...

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

Vålerenga *

Norwegian Cup The Norwegian Football Cup ( no, Norgesmesterskapet i fotball for herrer) is the main knockout cup competition in Norwegian football. It is run by the Football Association of Norway and has been contested since 1902, making it the oldest football ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Aalborg BK *

Danish Cup The Danish Cup ( da, Landspokalturneringen; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official "knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955. The winner will quali ...

runner-up: 2008–09 Jamaica *

Caribbean Cup The Caribbean Cup was the championship tournament for national association football teams that are members of the Caribbean Football Union. The first competition, established by Shell and run by former England Cricket fast bowler Fred Rumsey, wa ...

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

References

External links

*
Profile
at SUFC.premiumtv.co.uk
AaB profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shelton, Luton 1985 births 2021 deaths Jamaican footballers Jamaica youth international footballers Jamaica international footballers Helsingborgs IF players Sheffield United F.C. players Vålerenga Fotball players AaB Fodbold players Harbour View F.C. players FC Volga Nizhny Novgorod players Allsvenskan players Premier League players English Football League players Danish Superliga players Eliteserien players Russian Premier League players Jamaican expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Sweden Expatriate footballers in England Expatriate footballers in Norway Expatriate footballers in Denmark Expatriate footballers in Russia Jamaican expatriate sportspeople in Norway Jamaican expatriate sportspeople in Sweden Jamaican expatriate sportspeople in England Association football forwards Sportspeople from Kingston, Jamaica 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup players Süper Lig players Neurological disease deaths in Jamaica Deaths from motor neuron disease

Club career

Harbour View

Helsingborg

Sheffield United

Vålerenga

Karabükspor and Volga Nizhny Novgorod

Harbour View return

International career

Personal life

Career statistics

International

Honours

See also

References

External links