Moore, Bobby

Bobby Moore, byname of Robert Frederick Chelsea Moore, (born April 12, 1941, Barking, Essex, Eng.—died Feb. 24, 1993, London), English football (soccer) player known as the "golden boy of English football" and captain of the national side that defeated West Germany 4–2 in the 1966 World Cup final at Wembley Stadium in London; it was England’s only World Cup championship and the high point of Moore’s 19-year, 1,000-game career.

Moore, an inspired defensive player, made his professional debut with West Ham United in 1958, and within months he was captain of the England Youth side. In 1964 he was named English Footballer of the Year after leading West Ham to the 1963–64 FA Cup championship, and the next year he guided the club to the European Cup Winners’ Cup title. In 1973, after 544 games with West Ham, he transferred to Fulham FC, where he played another 124 games before retiring in 1977. Moore played 18 games for England Youth and 8 for the Under-23s before joining the senior side in 1962 against Peru, the first of 108 games for the English national team (90 as captain).

He faced the darkest point in his career when he was falsely accused of stealing a diamond bracelet in Bogotá, Colombia, just days before the 1970 World Cup began in Mexico. Despite the bad publicity and personal strain, he played brilliantly in England’s hard-fought 1–0 group-match loss to Brazil. Moore made his last international appearance in 1974. After retiring from Fulham in 1977, he played briefly in the U.S. and managed the Oxford City club (1979–81) and Southend United (1983–86). Later he became a sports editor (1986–90) and radio commentator (1990–93). Moore was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1967.