Denis Law CBE
Centre-Forward / Second Striker · Manchester United · Scotland
About Denis Law CBE
Denis Law — "The King" — is the only Scottish player to have won the Ballon d'Or (1964) and one of the finest instinctive strikers England's top flight has ever seen. He scored 237 goals for Manchester United, won two league titles, and was part of the 1968 European Cup-winning squad. He is one of a Holy Trinity — with George Best and Bobby Charlton (ENG) — immortalised by a statue at Old Trafford.
Denis Law CBE's story
Aberdeen's King
Law was born in Aberdeen (SCO) in 1940 — one of seven children in a working-class family. He joined Huddersfield Town as an apprentice. Eyesight so bad he required corrective glasses, he wore contact lenses — unusual in the 1960s — throughout his career. He overcame his physical limitations through extraordinary anticipation and instinct.
The United Years
Law signed for Manchester United in 1962 and immediately became the most dangerous striker in England. His 237 goals for United included spectacular overhead kicks, improvised first-time shots, and headers at full stretch. He is Manchester United's joint record scorer (with Wayne Rooney). His partnership with Bobby Charlton (ENG) and George Best was the most celebrated attacking trio in English football history.
The Backheel and Retirement
In April 1974, Law — then playing for Manchester City — scored a backheel goal against his former club United that relegated them to the Second Division. He walked off the pitch immediately after scoring, head down. He retired weeks later. United were promoted the following season. Law has called the goal "the worst moment of my career."
Did you know?
- 🥇 He is the only Scottish footballer to have won the Ballon d'Or — awarded in 1964 for his extraordinary performances for Manchester United during the most prolific years of his career.
- ⚽ His backheel goal for Manchester City against Manchester United in 1974 — which relegated United to the Second Division — caused him to walk off the pitch immediately. He called it "the worst moment of my career."
- 👨👩👧👦 Married Diana; they have four sons. He settled in Manchester and remains one of the most loved players in the city's history.
- 👁️ He wore contact lenses throughout his career — rare in the 1960s — to correct severe myopia. Without them, he could barely see across the pitch.
- 🏆 He scored 237 goals for Manchester United — the joint record with Wayne Rooney — including some of the most spectacular and acrobatic goals in the club's history.
- 🌟 Pelé named him in his personal world XI and said: "Denis Law is the most instinctive and dangerous striker I faced in Europe. When he was on the pitch, you could never fully relax."
- 📊 He scored 30 goals in 55 appearances for Scotland — the joint most in Scottish football history alongside Kenny Dalglish.
- 🤝 He and Bobby Charlton — lifelong friends despite being from different nations and different backgrounds — are considered the two most important players in Manchester United's pre-1970s history.
- 🎖️ He received a CBE for services to football. His autobiography is one of the best-regarded player memoirs in British football publishing.
Honours
- First Division x2: Manchester United (1965, 1967)
- FA Cup: Manchester United (1963)
- Ballon d'Or: 1964 — Scotland's only winner
- Old Trafford Trinity Statue: One of three in the Holy Trinity statue outside Old Trafford
- CBE: For services to football
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