Former England and Manchester United defensive midfielder Nobby Stiles, who has, for our money, the greatest name ever, has fallen on hard times and is looking to auction off his 1966 World Cup winners medal, along with other memorabilia from his career.
The 68-year-old recently suffered a stroke, and is hoping to leave the proceeds from the sales—estimated at $470,000—to his family.
This is a sad turn of events, to be sure—Stiles wept as he made the announcement—but it doesn’t have to be that way: Wayne Rooney (or John Terry or Ashley Cole) could take these lemons and turn them into lemonade by stepping up and donating $500,000 to the English soccer icon.
That’s a drop in the bottomless bucket that is Rooney’s bank account, and it would be a boon to all involved: The priceless mementoes (also including the shirt Stiles swapped with Alan Ball after the ’66 final) would remain in Stiles’s family, where they belong, his heirs would be taken care of, and Rooney would gain some much needed positive press.
It’s a win-win.
Someone get us Rooney’s PR firm; they’re asleep at the switch.
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