Sir David Beckham today leads the star names calling for 1966 World Cup-winning captain Bobby Moore to be given a posthumous knighthood.
Beckham, the most recent member of the football family to be knighted, insisted it was only right for Moore to be recognised for his amazing contribution to the game.
‘Bobby led his England team to the height of sporting achievement when they won the World Cup,’ he said. ‘He was a giant of a man, an incredible leader and one of the finest players our country has produced.
‘I am delighted to join so many other great names to support calls for his contribution to be recognised with a knighthood.’
Sir Geoff Hurst, England’s hat-trick hero from the final, who received a knighthood in 1998 for services to football, agreed it was only fair his late friend and former team-mate was properly recognised for his significant contribution to football and to charity.
Ex-West Ham skipper Moore is considered one of the game’s greatest defenders, commended for his ‘immaculate’ behaviour on and off the pitch.
Sir David Beckham has joined the star names calling for Bobby Moore to be given a knighthood
A former England captain himself, Beckham was knighted himself by King Charles this month
A campaign to honour England’s World Cup-winning skipper Moore is rapidly gathering pace
More than £30million has been raised for the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research UK, set up by his widow, Stephanie, after his death from the disease in 1993 aged just 51, generating vital funds and increasing public awareness.
Now star names have backed a petition calling on the Government to find a way of posthumously marking Moore’s significant achievements — amid claims he was ‘let down by the authorities’ at the time.
Sir Geoff told Mail Sport: ‘If any of the two of us deserved a knighthood it would be the captain of the team. Yes, I scored the goals, but the captain of the great sides is always the significant figure.
‘You could argue he should get two knighthoods, one for football and one for his phenomenal charity efforts. I can’t think of anybody more deserving of a knighthood in football than Mooro.’
Sir Geoff added: ‘The treatment he received at the end of his career by the hierarchy was abysmal. He should have been looked after, put in a senior role within English football.’
Former Manchester United and England skipper Bryan Robson said it was ‘wrong’ Moore never received a knighthood.
‘Bobby never got the recognition he deserved for being the captain of the team that won the World Cup,’ he added.
‘Other players got a knighthood but I always thought Bobby deserved one. He was a gentleman and I’m all for supporting this campaign.’
Moore’s close friend Sir Geoff Hurst believes it is only fair for Moore to be properly recognised
Rugby World Cup-winning head coach and Mail Sport’s Sir Clive Woodward has also backed the campaign
Moore received an OBE (pictured) but was not knighted before his death from cancer in 1993
Former England midfielder Frank Lampard said: ‘I grew up with the stories of the great Bobby Moore being immaculate as a player and person. He and the ’66 boys were a huge inspiration to me.’
And former manager Harry Redknapp, who played alongside Moore at the Hammers, said: ‘He was a fantastic role model, a true gentleman and most of all the greatest ever England captain. He was a special person and a great pal. It is an injustice he has not been honoured with a knighthood which he truly deserved.’
The campaign has also been backed by huge names from outside of football. Mail Sport’s Sir Clive Woodward, who managed England’s 2003 Rugby World Cup win, said: ‘He (Moore) served as the example of what I expected from my captains. That he was never knighted is one of the most egregious oversights.
‘It is long overdue time to right that wrong for a gentleman who was class on and off the pitch.’
Former Football Focus host Dan Walker added: ‘There is a reason “Sir Bobby” rolls off the tongue and that’s because the vast majority of people think he is one already or believe he should be.
‘The lack of a knighthood might be a glaring anomaly but the good news is it’s really easy to remedy. Arise Sir Bobby.’
Rules dictate knighthood nominations must be scrutinised by the Honours Committee before recommendations are made to the Prime Minister, who then advises the Monarch. Knighthoods die with the recipient and cannot be granted posthumously.
However, author Martin Amis received a backdated award shortly after his death as the wheels were already in motion to grant him an honour before he died. It has prompted calls for the creation of a unique honour or equivalent award to recognise Moore.
Former Football Focus presenter Dan Walker has said ‘There is a reason “Sir Bobby” rolls off the tongue’
Knighthoods die with the recipient and cannot be granted posthumously (pictured: Moore with his arm around fellow England great Sir Bobby Charlton, who was knighted in 1994)
Moore is widely considered one of the greatest defenders in the history of the game
Graham Nickless, spokesman for the Honour Bobby Moore campaign, who helped set up the petition, said: ‘Having watched Bobby lead England to World Cup victory on a black-and-white telly in 1966, I am extremely proud to be playing a small part in trying to get our captain the highest honour this country can give him — and about time, too.
‘I believe this is the last chance we will have to right a wrong and I am confident the British public will want to support a petition that will strike home a powerful message to the FA hierarchy and parliamentarians alike.’
London-born Moore made his Three Lions debut in 1962 and was capped 108 times during an 11-year international career. He played much of his club football at West Ham before signing for Fulham.
He captained the Hammers to the 1964 FA Cup and the Cup Winners’ Cup the following year. Moore was known for wearing the No6 jersey, and received an OBE in 1967.
To sign the petition, visit www.change.org/p/official-honour-bobby-moore-petition
For more information about the Bobby Moore Fund, visit http://cruk.ink/4e8eKrp
