Gifted and kind The making of England star Declan Rice

Three years ago Declan Rice was the star guest at a Soho House event about effective leadership.

- Jacob Steinberg and David Hytner Kansas City

Tickets were in hot demand and Rice, who was due to play a European semi-final for West Ham two days later, could not understand why people were interested in what he had to say.

The audience was packed with marketing directors and CEOs, all eager to hear the midfielder speak. To Rice, it just seemed weird. What made him so special? The answer lay in his everyman appeal. It was because of his ability to form connections with everyone he comes across.

It was because Rice, who goes into the World Cup fresh from winning the Premier League with Arsenal, would be a leader in any setting. More than anything, it was because England’s new vice-captain is authentic, genuine and always ready to charm, no matter if the 27-year-old is speaking to a room of high-powered executives or heading back to his old school to spend an afternoon with a group of awestruck kids.

Perhaps this world-class footballer’s superpower is to be both normal and extraordinary. ‘‘He’s hardly changed,’’ Stephen Willmore, Rice’s old PE teacher, says. The stories are positive no matter who tells them. A seven-year-old Rice was part of Chelsea’s academy when he started at Grey Court School in Ham. There was no arrogance, though. Rice still captained the school football team. Harry Kane is not going anywhere any time soon but the expectation is that Rice will take over as England’s captain one day.

‘‘He never missed a game for us,’’ Willmore says. ‘‘If we had to change the kick-off times he would always want to play for the school and then go to training with Chelsea afterwards. He was a leader already. Even though he was so young he was hugely respected for the fact that he always wanted to play for the school team.