A heartwarming video showing a nine-year-old Sunderland fan getting surprised with tickets to Wembley went viral on Twitter - and was even shared by Match of the Day host Gary Lineker.
Footy-mad Jude Bryson kept telling his dad Peter how much he wanted to go to Wembley to see Sunderland AFC take on Wycombe Wanderers in the League One play-off final on Saturday. But dubious dad Peter didn't expect to get any for the match and instead promised they would watch it at home.
However, through the help of a friend, Peter managed to secure two tickets and kept it a secret. Peter woke Jude up at 5am on Saturday and surprised him with the tickets. In a now-viral video, Jude looks over the moon as he hugs his dad.
Read more: FIFA recognition for ‘special’ Sunderland supporters after Wembley triumph
Peter from Washington said he felt "awful" hiding it for so long but said it was worth it to see his amazing reaction. He said: "We decided not to tell him and keep it as a surprise but he kept saying how much he really wanted to go to Wembley so I felt really sorry for him. When the tickets came, I nearly told him but it was two days before the match so I thought we'll keep it a secret.
"The night before when I was putting him to bed he was saying: 'Dad can we make a den and have picky food for the football?' And I said 'Of course, we can', I felt awful! But when I woke him up at 5am and showed him the tickets he was over the moon.
"I've always wanted a son so we could support Sunderland together but for a while, he didn't like football! He has always supported Sunderland but it wasn't until two years ago that he really started to take an interest and now he's obsessed!"
And it's a good job the father-and-son duo managed to bag some tickets as Sunderland and Alex Neil ensured promotion back to the second tier with the Black Cats winning 2-0.
Peter said: "I have supported Sunderland for 42 years so I'm used to disappointment but he's only nine and if they lost he would have been absolutely heartbroken, I don't think he would have gotten over that. I'm so glad we won. He loved it, we had the absolute best day. He even slept in his Sunderland shirt!"
After sharing the sweet video on Twitter, Peter said they were overwhelmed with the number of comments and likes - even from Newcastle fans.
He said: "I just wrote an off-the-cuff tweet saying I can't wait to surprise my son with Wembley tickets and even that took off. I wasn't going to record his reaction initially but people were asking for a video and from there it just kicked off. Even Gary Lineker shared the video, we couldn't believe it and Jude was so happy. We just didn't expect it at all.
"Lots of different football fans were commenting on it and even Newcastle fans were which I was impressed with. I think they looked past football teams and just saw a family and how happy he was and we were so it really surprised us."
And how is Jude handling his newfound fame? Peter said: "He's absolutely loving it. On the coach back we got off for a break and someone came up to us and they recognised Jude. He was absolutely buzzing and said: 'Dad we're famous!'"
Peter also shared a sweet video of the pair of them enjoying the match with Jude waving his late grandad's scarf which he got at the 1973 FA Cup Final. Peter added: "I said that scarf has been to Wembley twice and both times we've won so he'll probably want to take it everywhere he goes!"
Read next:
