Merry Christmas: Jean-Marie Pfaff donates €5,000 for people in need this festive season

Former Belgian international goalkeeper Jean-Marie Pfaff has donated part of the proceeds from his museum in Beveren, Belgium, to a good cause, enabling 700 people in Belgium to enjoy a free Christmas meal.

This summer, 70-year-old Pfaff opened his pop-up museum "El Sympatico" in a former community hall in his home town. The response from fans was enormous, and to date several thousand people have visited the exhibition of countless artefacts and memorabilia from Pfaff's active career as a goalkeeper. These include original jerseys from Diego Maradona, Johann Cruyff and Cristiano Ronaldo. Belgium's Prince Laurent and Prime Minister Alexander de Croo have also paid a visit to the Pfaff Museum. A few days ago, it was announced that the museum will be extended until June 2024 due to its great success.

Shortly before the festive season, Jean-Marie Pfaff presented the mayor of Beveren with a cheque for €5,000, which will be used to organise free Christmas menus for 700 people.

"I grew up in Beveren myself and really wanted to give something back to the community here," Pfaff told the Gazet van Antwerpen. "That's why I'm now donating five thousand euros to the neighbourhood restaurant De Griel. From this, 700 people will receive a free Christmas meal. We have worked out how this will work in practice with the city, so that it will certainly reach the right people who would otherwise not get a festive meal at Christmas."