Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton has died at the age of 86.
The former England international – who won the World Cup with the Three Lions in 1966 and was regarded as one of the Red Devils’ greatest players of all time – passed away on Saturday morning.
Charlton had been diagnosed with dementia in November 2020, and his death means that Sir Geoff Hurst is the only surviving member of England’s 1966 World Cup-winning squad.
“It is with great sadness that we share the news that Sir Bobby passed peacefully in the early hours of Saturday morning. He was surrounded by his family,” a statement from Charlton’s family read.
Before making his first-team breakthrough with Man United in 1956, Charlton won three successive FA Youth Cups with the Red Devils, which preceded a glittering 17-year spell with the senior squad.
Forming a prominent member of the “Busby Babes”, Charlton won three First Division titles, one FA Cup, one European Cup and two Charity Shields at Old Trafford and was a survivor of the Munich Air Disaster in 1958, which claimed the lives of eight of his teammates and 15 others.
“Manchester United are in mourning following the passing of Sir Bobby Charlton, one of the greatest and most beloved players in the history of our club,” Man United said in a statement. “Sir Bobby was a hero to millions, not just in Manchester, or the United Kingdom, but wherever football is played around the world.
“He was admired as much for his sportsmanship and integrity as he was for his outstanding qualities as a footballer; Sir Bobby will always be remembered as a giant of the game.
“His unparalleled record of achievement, character and service will be forever etched in the history of Manchester United and English football; and his legacy will live on through the life-changing work of the Sir Bobby Charlton Foundation. The club’s heartfelt sympathies are with his wife Lady Norma, his daughters and grandchildren, and all who loved him.”
Only Ryan Giggs (963) has made more appearances for Man United than Charlton, who featured for the Red Devils on 758 occasions and scored 249 goals – a record which stood for over 40 years before being broken by Wayne Rooney in 2017.
Renowned for his versatility, passing accuracy and ball-striking abilities, Charlton scored three goals at the 1966 World Cup en route to international glory with England, and he received the Golden Ball as the player of the tournament.
That same year, Charlton won the Ballon d’Or, becoming only the second Man United player to collect the accolade after Denis Law in 1964, while only George Best (1968) and Cristiano Ronaldo (2008) have won the prize while representing the Red Devils since.
Charlton also collected the 1966 FWA Footballer of the Year prize, and following his exit from Old Trafford in 1973, the World Cup winner represented Preston North End and Irish outfit Waterford United before retiring in 1976.
Charlton returned to Man United as their sporting director in 1984 and spent 39 years in the role, during which time the Red Devils dominated the English football landscape under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Recipient of an OBE in 1969 and CBE in 1974, Charlton was knighted in Queen Elizabeth II’s 1994 Birthday Honours and recorded 49 goals in 106 caps for England, spending 47 years at the top of the Three Lions’ goalscoring charts before being usurped by Rooney.
