Dominic Matteo began his search for his birth mother after he was diagnosed with a rare brain tumour that almost cost him his life.
Turning to ITV's Long Lost Family for help, viewers last night (June 5) saw an emotional reunion as he found his mum who told him that giving him up was the most "difficult decision" of her life.
In 2019, ten years after Dominic retired from football, he received his devastating diagnosis which forced him to undergo a seven hour operation.
The operation left him struggling to read and write and the brush with death made him realise how precious life it.
The footballer was put up for adoption when he was a baby, and speaking to the cameras, he said: "My future was very nearly taken away from me, and I got to a place where finding out about my birth mum just became more important".
Yet when the show revealed they had managed to track down his mother, fans saw the star overcome with emotion as wife Jess dropped him off for their first meeting.
Dominic, who currently lives in Halifax, continued: "I’m not sure I would have had this conversation before my illness. But it’s made me think completely differently about life.”
He had only recently shared that he was adopted with his children, commenting: "I kept it quiet because it’s very personal to me."
He was only told when he was seven, with his adoptive parents Albert and Marie explaining that he and his older brother were adopted.
Dominic admitted he struggled to take it in and initially was in denial.
As the programme showed his reunion, just before he went in to the hotel where they were meeting, he said: "I just want to see her and make sure she's alright."
His mother Margaret had no idea of her son's famous identity, despite regularly watching him play football and had even followed his battle with the brain tumour online.
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