Laurie Cunningham, First British Footballer to make it to Real Madrid

Source: CNN

Laurie Cunningham (8^th March 1956 – 15^th July 1989) was one of the very first black footballers to play for England.

At age 14, he was first spotted by Arsenal and signed a schoolboy contract. However, he was released in 1972 as his style of play didn’t suit the Gunners tactics. In 1974, he was picked up by Leyton Orient where he remained for three years. He had a major impact in the club and to commemorate his legacy, a statue was erected on 30^th November 2017 in Coronation Gardens, by Leyton Orient stadium with a blue plaque displaying “The first black footballer to play for England at senior level and the first British player to transfer to Real Madrid” followed by the quote "If I can get through this maybe it will lead to others getting a fair chance."

In Cunningham’s days, black professional footballers were still having bananas thrown at them and disgusting monkey noises made in their direction.

Source: Learie Brothers Ltd

In 1977, whilst playing for West Bromwich Albion, his career really took off. There he played alongside Cyrille Regis and Brendon Batson, coached by Ron Atkinson. The 3 black players became known as the Three Degrees, in reference to the American soul group of the same name. It was fitted to the trio as besides football, Laurie Cunningham was passionate about music and dancing. He grew up winning dance tournaments throughout South London’s many discos.

The Three Degrees Trio Cyrille Regis, Laurie Cunningham and Brendon Batson

Laurie Cunningham was a left winger, characterised by great speed and skill. He had an international career and played for English, French and Spanish clubs. He was the first British player to transfer to Real Madrid, in 1979, 24 years before David Beckham.

Unfortunately, Laurie Cunningham died in a tragic car accident, after a decade of playing for European teams, at the age of 33.