Jack Charlton 's wife and son have made fresh calls for the football legend to receive a posthumous knighthood.
The family said that the Northumberland -born icon deserves the honour to recognise the "team effort" of the England team who won the World Cup in 1966. Jack was famously one of the players who helped to bring home the historic win, but fellow teammates Sir Bobby Charlton - also his younger brother, of course - and Sir Geoff Hurst are the only two members to have been knighted since.
There have been many calls to give Jack a knighthood since his death aged 85 in July 2020, from his family as well as from Wansbeck's MP Ian Lavery. However, current rules around knighthoods do not allow for them to be given posthumously, The Mirror reports.
READ MORE: Hundreds turn out for unveiling of Jack Charlton statue in Northumberland hometown
Jack's widow Pat, 88, said: "I always thought he was a 'Sir'. It would be lovely if they could do it. The Irish made him an honorary citizen, they have been tremendous - it was like being made a Sir in Ireland."
His son Peter, 56, who lives in Ponteland, added: "It was a team effort. I think they should all have been given it. There were so many great players in that team, you can go through the whole line-up."
It comes after hundreds turned out for the unveiling of a new statue celebrating the local legend in his home town of Ashington. Pat gave an emotional speech at the event, saying that her husband "had come home at last".
Peter has previously shared his regret that his dad was not given a knighthood. "It is what it is, but the whole of ’66 – those who passed away and those still alive – should all have been given a knighthood, purely and simply because they have done something no other English team has ever done," he said.
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