Scottish association football player and manager (1942–1997)
For other people named Billy Bremner, see Billy Bremner (disambiguation).
Billy Bremner
Bremner lining up for Scotland in 1971
Personal information
Full name
William John Bremner[1]
Date of birth
(1942-12-09)9 December 1942
Place of birth
Stirling, Scotland
Date of death
7 December 1997(1997-12-07) (aged 54)
Place of death
Clifton, Doncaster, England
Height
5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)[2]
Position(s)
Midfielder
Youth career
1959–1960
Leeds United
Senior career*
Years
Team
Apps
(Gls)
1960–1976
Leeds United
587
(91)
1976–1978
Hull City
61
(6)
1980–1982
Doncaster Rovers
5
(0)
Total
653
(97)
International career
Scotland Schoolboys
4
(0)
1963
Scotland XI[citation needed]
1
(0)
1964–1965[3]
Scotland U23
4
(1)
1964[4]
SFA trial v SFL
1
(0)
1965–1975
Scotland
54
(3)
Managerial career
1978–1985
Doncaster Rovers
1985–1988
Leeds United
1989–1991
Doncaster Rovers
*Club domestic league appearances and goals
William John Bremner (9 December 1942 – 7 December 1997) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager. Regarded as one of the game's great midfielders, he combined precision passing skills with tenacious tackling and physical stamina. He played for Leeds United from 1959 to 1976, serving as captain from 1965, in one of the most successful periods in the club's history.
At Leeds, Bremner won the First Division (1968–69 and 1973–74), Second Division (1963–64), Inter-Cities Fairs Cup (1968 and 1971), FA Cup (1972), League Cup (1968) and FA Charity Shield (1969). The club also finished second in numerous competitions, being runners-up five times in the English league and seven times in cup finals, including the 1975 European Cup. He was also named as the FWA Footballer of the Year in 1970 and was listed on the PFA Team of the Year in 1973–74. He has since been voted Leeds United's greatest player of all time and has a statue outside the south-east corner of their Elland Road stadium. He has also been included in the Football League 100 Legends and is a member of both the English Football Hall of Fame and Scottish Football Hall of Fame.
Bremner played for Hull City from 1976 to 1978, before being appointed player-manager at Doncaster Rovers in November 1978. He spent seven years as Doncaster manager, guiding the club to promotion out of the Fourth Division in 1980–81 and 1983–84, before he took on the manager's job at Leeds United in October 1985. He failed to gain promotion to the top flight and left the club in September 1988. He returned to Doncaster in July 1989, ending his second spell in charge in November 1991.
Bremner is on the Scotland national football team roll of honour for having won more than 50 caps for Scotland. He captained his country at the 1974 FIFA World Cup, where Scotland failed to advance from the group stage despite being unbeaten in the competition.
^A Record of Post-war Scottish League Players 1946/47 to 2017/18. 7. John Litster and Scottish Football Historian magazine. 2018.
^Sutcliffe 2011, p. 202
^Scotland U23 player Bremner, Billy, FitbaStats
^Ronnie McDevitt (2016). Scotland in the 60s: The Definitive Account of the Scottish National Football Side During the 1960s. Pitch Publishing. ISBN 9781785312458.[permanent dead link]
William John Bremner (9 December 1942 – 7 December 1997) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager. Regarded as one of the game's great midfielders...
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to its redevelopment The BillyBremner statue opposite the club shop at the south-east corner of the ground The BillyBremner statue opposite the club...
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Scotland most often, in 49 games. Four other players (George Young, BillyBremner, Darren Fletcher and Gary McAllister) have captained the team at least...
ways … Jimmy was a big admirer of BillyBremner … when we had to record "Back on the Chain Gang"—well, I knew that Billy and Robbie [McIntosh] were who Jimmy...
of his acquaintances (John Jorgenson, Jerry Donahue, Jeff Ross, and BillyBremner) who recorded the track under the name of "Candye Kane and the Super...
initially recruited Rockpile's BillyBremner and Big Country's Tony Butler to fill in a caretaker line-up of the band in 1982. Bremner played guitar and Butler...
opened the scoring for Liverpool, but the lead lasted just 2 minutes as BillyBremner scored the equaliser. In the 113th minute Ian St John headed the ball...
of pride and determination to beat Revie. They suffer injuries and BillyBremner sarcastically wishes Clough well for the semi-final. Juventus defeat...
moved to Leeds in 1963 where he played in midfield alongside captain BillyBremner. The duo formed a central midfield partnership which was one of the...
Love" – 2:29 "Dose of You" – 3:21 "Love So Fine" (Lowe, Dave Edmunds, BillyBremner, Terry Williams) – 3:52 "Cruel to Be Kind" – 3:31 "Cracking Up" – 2:59...
members of the band Rockpile: Edmunds, BillyBremner (who also wrote two of the album's songs under the pen name Billy Murray), Nick Lowe, and Terry Williams...
following year. After reforming with a caretaker line-up (Martin Chambers, BillyBremner, Tony Butler, and Jeremy Allom) for their next single, "Back on the...
Devil's Wedding The Hotelier Short film Awaydays Godden The Damned United BillyBremner Doghouse Vince Public Enemies Baby Face Nelson 2010 London Boulevard...
Road Stadium celebrating former manager Don Revie and team captain BillyBremner. Leeds West Indian Carnival is Western Europe's oldest West Indian Carnival...