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Sir Bobby Charlton and Eusébio to grace Soccerex European Forum

Soccerex

Two true legends of the game, Sir Bobby Charlton and Eusébio, will come together at the Soccerex European Forum in Manchester on 10-11 April.

The relationships between Manchester United, Benfica, Charlton and Eusébio were shaped during the 1960s when they were playing at the pinnacle of their careers, culminating in the 1966 World Cup semi-final and the 1968 European Cup final at Wembley. In a special 1-2-1 session moderated by Jeff Powell, Sir Bobby will discuss his amazing career at Manchester United and with England, his current role as an ambassador for the club and his view on European football. Joined on stage by Eusébio, the pair will relive those epic encounters in 1966 and especially in 1968, which saw Charlton score twice and Eusébio have a match-winning shot miraculously saved by United keeper Alex Stepney.

In the era of the Busby Babes and the aftermath of the tragic Munich Air Disaster, Charlton, arguably England’s greatest ever midfielder, became an international and national football legend. Part of the 1966 World Cup-winning team, he earned 106 caps and scored a national record 49 goals. An icon of Manchester United, he made a total of 758 appearances, scoring a club record 249 goals, winning one European Cup, three English League titles and one FA Cup.

Born in Mozambique, Eusébio is regarded as one of the finest strikers to have ever played the game and is hailed as Africa’s first great footballer. He joined Portuguese club S.L. Benfica in 1960, went on to make 715 appearances for the club, scoring an incredible 727 goals and winning 11 Primeira Liga titles. He earned 64 caps for his adopted nation of Portugal, scoring 41 goals and earning the Golden Boot at the 1966 World Cup as Portugal finished in third place.

Soccerex CEO Duncan Revie said:

“To welcome Sir Bobby and Eusébio to Manchester is a great honour for us. To have these two living legends on the same stage is a surreal moment and will be one of the most exciting and prestigious meetings in the history of Soccerex.”

The Soccerex European Forum is a two-day event which attracts over 1,600 delegates from the elite of Europe’s football industry to come together to debate, network and do business. This year’s agenda setting conference programme will tackle the key issues shaping European football, including fan engagement, media rights, match fixing, discrimination and addiction, life after football, social media and a selection of special 1-2-1s with Gianni Infantino, Alexey Sorokin, Sir John Madejski, Sir Bobby Charlton and Gary Neville.

(Soccerex Press Release)