London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Oct 07, 2025

Dr Martens and Rushden and Diamonds founder Max Griggs dies

Dr Martens and Rushden and Diamonds founder Max Griggs dies

Max Griggs who founded the original Rushden and Diamonds FC and made his fortune with Dr Martens footwear has died.

Its successor club, AFC Rushden and Diamonds, said Mr Griggs passed away on Thursday.

Chairman Ralph Burditt said his colleagues were devastated by the news.

He said Mr Griggs regularly attended the Northamptonshire club's home games until the autumn lockdown and was a "pivotal person in the club's history".

"We wouldn't be here without him. Everyone in the local area linked to the members could only say what a wonderful, kind down-to-earth man he was," said Mr Burditt.

At Saturday's pre-season match against Cambridge City, players wore black armbands in respect.

Social media has seen an outpouring of tributes.

The director of Peterborough United, Barry Fry, said: "He was a wonderful man, a great man, what he did for Rushden and Diamonds.

"He gave the club to the fans - a great football man. He will be sadly missed. They don't make them like him anymore."


Max Griggs' business success was partly built by putting Dr Martens at the heart of Northampton Shoes and Boots, based in Wollaston.

In 1960, Mr Griggs and his brothers bought the UK patent rights to the Dr Martens boot with its air-cushioned sole, which became popular with several British youth cults.

Mr Griggs formed Rushden and Diamonds FC in 1992 by merging two neighbouring clubs, Rushden Town and Irthlingborough Diamonds, with the aim of getting the single, larger club into the Football League.

He was at the helm at Nene Park for 11 years and achieved that dream, before retiring as chairman in 2003.

Manager Brian Talbot celebrates a 1998 FA Cup victory over Doncaster at Nene Park with Max Griggs

Rushden and Diamonds FC folded in 2011, with the present day "phoenix" club AFC Rushden and Diamonds formed by a small group of supporters.

In 2014, Max Griggs and his son Stephen gave the club, the stadium and the 22 acres of land at Nene Park to the Supporters' Trust.

As well as £20m worth of assets, the Griggs Group also gave the trust a cash injection of £750,000.


AFC said it planned to further commemorate Mr Griggs' life at the Northampton Town friendly on 21 July.

The club currently plays in the Southern League Premier Division Central.

Max Griggs (left) and his son Stephen Griggs, at Nene Park, Irthlingborough in 2005
A pair of iconic Dr Marten boots
Mr Griggs' family have not yet commented on his death.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
×