A Stoke City idol, the attacking midfielder was known for scoring the winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Chelsea at Wembley, which led his team to win the 1977 English League Cup.
Attacking midfielder George Eastham, who won the 1966 World Cup with the England team, died on Friday (20), aged 88. Idol of , the athlete became known for his social activism. The cause of death was not disclosed. In the statement, Stoke City were “immensely saddened” to lose a “club legend”, for which Eastham played for eight seasons. He was notable for scoring the winning goal in a 2-1 victory over , in , which led his team to winning the 1972 English League Cup. Eastham also made 19 appearances for the English national team, following the path set by his father, also George Eastham, although the last of those matches was before the World Cup.
Present in the champion squad, he waited 41 years to receive his medal, as FIFA decided in 2007 that they should also be distributed to athletes who did not take to the field in the tournament. After debuting alongside his father at a semi-professional club in Northern Ireland, Eastham defended and before being signed by Stoke City, where he was also a coach. Off the pitch, he became known for his role in ending the so-called “slavery rule”, whereby a club could refuse to allow a player to transfer even if his contract had ended.
After Newcastle tried to block his transfer to Arsenal, Eastham organized a campaign that changed retention and transfer regulations in favor of the players. Eastham finished his playing career in South Africa, where he was also a coach. He became a critic of apartheid, the racist system of segregation in force in the country at the time.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
Published by Matheus Lopes
