.jpg) Matthews with Blackpool, lifting his 1953 FA Cup final winner's medal to the sky, so that his deceased father could see it[1] | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stanley Matthews[2] | ||
| Date of birth | 1 February 1915[3] | ||
| Place of birth | Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England[4] | ||
| Date of death | 23 February 2000 (aged 85)[3] | ||
| Place of death | Newcastle-under-Lyme, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Outside right | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1930–1932 | Stoke City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1932–1947 | Stoke City | 259 | (51) |
| 1947–1961 | Blackpool | 379 | (17) |
| 1961 | → Toronto City (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 1961–1965 | Stoke City | 59 | (3) |
| 1965 | → Toronto City (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| Total | 717 | (71) | |
| International career | |||
| 1929 | England Schoolboys | 1 | (0) |
| 1934–1956 | The Football League XI | 13 | (2) |
| 1934–1957 | England | 54 | (11) |
| 1947–1965 | United Kingdom | 3 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1967–1968 | Port Vale | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Sir Stanley Matthews CBE (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English footballer who played as an outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the British game and one of the greatest players of all time,[5] he is the only player to have been knighted while still playing football, as well as being the first winner of both the European Footballer of the Year and the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year awards. His nicknames included "The Wizard of Dribble" and "The Magician".[6]
Matthews kept fit enough to play at the top level until he was 50. He was also the oldest player to play in England's top football division (50 years and 5 days) and the oldest to represent the country (42 years and 104 days). He was an inaugural inductee to the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002 to honour his contribution to the English game.[7]
Matthews spent 19 years with Stoke City, playing for the Potters from 1932 to 1947 and again from 1961 to 1965. He helped Stoke to the Second Division title in 1932–33 and 1962–63. Between his two spells at Stoke, he spent 14 years with Blackpool, where, after being on the losing side in the 1948 and 1951 FA Cup finals, he helped Blackpool to win the cup with a formidable personal performance in the "Matthews final" of 1953. In 1956, he was named the winner of the inaugural Ballon d'Or, a prize given to the best European footballer each year. Between 1934 and 1957, he won 54 caps for England, playing in the FIFA World Cup in 1950 and 1954, and winning nine British Home Championship titles.
Following an unsuccessful stint as Port Vale's general manager between 1965 and 1968, he travelled around the world, coaching enthusiastic amateurs. His experiences included coaching in South Africa, where despite the harsh apartheid laws of the time he established an all-black team in 1975 in Soweto known as "Stan's Men".
- ^ Matthews 2000, p. 433
- ^ "Stanley Matthews". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- ^ a b Matthews 2000, p. Introduction
- ^ Matthews 2000, p. 607
- ^ "The 50 greatest footballers of all time". 90min. 13 May 2019. Archived from the original on 26 April 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
The Wizard of Dribblewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "The Fans Vote Dennis Bergkamp into the National Football Museum Hall of Fame 2007". nationalfootballmuseum.com. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 16 June 2009.