London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 17, 2025

‘Footballing immortality’: Hurst and Lineker lead tributes to Cohen

‘Footballing immortality’: Hurst and Lineker lead tributes to Cohen

Tributes continue to pour in for George Cohen following his death at the age of 83.
Cohen was a key member and vice-captain of the England side that lifted their only World Cup to date on home soil back in 1966, playing every minute of the tournament as Sir Alf Ramsey’s first-choice at right-back after an injury to Jimmy Armfield.

Once described by the late, great George Best as the toughest full-back he had ever faced, and as England’s best full-back by Ramsey himself, Cohen earned a total of 37 senior international caps between 1964-67.

A one-club man with boyhood idols Fulham, he also played 459 times for his beloved Whites between 1956-69 - a mark bettered only by Johnny Haynes, Eddie Lowe and Les Barrett.

Cohen was forced to retire aged 29 due to a serious knee injury, moving into coaching with Fulham and England’s Under-23s team before embarking on a career in property development, and later battled bowel cancer and a tumour in his back, becoming a tireless campaigner and patron of the Bobby Moore Fund.

He was awarded an MBE in 2000 alongside fellow ‘66 winners Roger Hunt, Alan Ball, Ray Wilson and Nobby Stiles. He is honoured at Fulham with a statue outside Craven Cottage.

Cohen’s sad passing means there are now only two surviving members of England’s starting side from the 1966 World Cup final in Sir Bobby Charlton and hat-trick hero Sir Geoff Hurst, along with squad members George Eastham, Ian Callaghan and Terry Paine.


Hurst led the tributes to his friend and former team-mate on Friday, writing: “Very sad to hear my friend and England teammate George Cohen has died.

“Everyone, without exception, always said that George was such a lovely man. He will be sadly missed, my heartfelt thoughts are with George’s wife Daphne and his family.”

England plan to pay tribute to Cohen before their next home match, a Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine at Wembley on March 26.


“We are very sad to hear the news of George Cohen’s death today,” said Football Association (FA) chair Debbie Hewitt.

“George won 37 caps for England and was vice-captain of our World Cup winning team. We would like to pass on our deep condolences to George’s family and friends at this sad time.”


Gary Lineker tweeted: “Sorry to hear that George Cohen has died. Another of the heroes of the ‘66 World Cup winning team leaves us. He’ll always have footballing immortality. RIP George.”


In a sweeping tribute, Fulham called Cohen “one of our greatest ever players and gentlemen” and “quite simply, Fulham royalty”.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
×