Sports Poets Society

Getty Images -  Simply the Best: The Bermudian was  a  silky and pacy player whose skill won over the crowds. The inspirational Clyde Best on blazing a trail for Black players in England despite the abuse Clyde Best on battling racism as a pioneer in English game 15 Mar 2026 - THE OBSERVER / Sport Morgan Ofori “A universal player, one who transcends the modern tribal conversation around teams,” says executive film producer Dan Egan when asked why he chose to tell the story of Clyde Best, West Ham’s first Black player, whose undeniable impact extended far beyond the East End. The legacy of Best, now 75, a Bermudian forward who blazed a trail in the English top flight and US soccer, is the subject of a new documentary in London this month. A technically gifted and pacy player in his prime, Best’s career and role as a reference point is brilliantly illustrated by those who came after him. A number of “the firsts” look up to him: Howard Gayle, Liverpool’s first Black player, ...

ANDY HALL/THE GUARDIAN Clyde Best, now 75, left Bermuda at the age of 17 to join West Ham ‘I didn’t mind carrying the weight Clyde Best on the responsibility of being English football’s first black star  ‘My dad told me: “When you go to England,  you’re playing for those coming after you”’ Clyde Best on becoming English football’s first black superstar and playing with Bobby Moore at West Ham 13 Mar 2026 - The Guardian Jacob Steinberg ‘I did what I had to do,” Clyde Best says as he recalls leaving Bermuda at the age of 17 and travelling to England for a trial at West Ham. There was no fear, no thought of homesickness. Best saw opportunity. It was 1968 and, before setting off on his journey, the boy who would go on to be hailed as English football’s first black superstar received some unforgettable advice from his father, a naval officer who later worked as a deputy commissioner in Bermuda’s prison service. “My dad told me: ‘When you go to England, you’re not playing for yours...