 Kamara at a charity event in 2011 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Christopher Desmond Kamara[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1957-12-25)25 December 1957 (age 67)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Middlesbrough, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[2] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1974–1975 | Portsmouth | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1975–1977 | Portsmouth | 63 | (7) |
| 1977–1981 | Swindon Town | 147 | (21) |
| 1981 | Portsmouth | 11 | (0) |
| 1981–1985 | Brentford | 152 | (28) |
| 1985–1988 | Swindon Town | 86 | (6) |
| 1988–1990 | Stoke City | 60 | (5) |
| 1990–1991 | Leeds United | 20 | (1) |
| 1991–1993 | Luton Town | 49 | (0) |
| 1992–1993 | →Sheffield United (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| 1993 | →Middlesbrough (loan) | 5 | (0) |
| 1993–1994 | Sheffield United | 16 | (0) |
| 1994–1995 | Bradford City | 23 | (3) |
| 2012–2013 | Welshpool Town | 2 | (0) |
| Total | 643 | (71) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1995–1998 | Bradford City | ||
| 1998 | Stoke City | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Christopher KamaraMBE (born 25 December 1957) is an English former professionalfootballer and manager who worked as a presenter and football analyst atSky Sports from 1992 to 2022.
As a player, he was known as a tough-tacklingmidfielder. He joined theRoyal Navy at the age of 16, before being signed byPortsmouth in November 1974. He spent three years at the club before being sold on toSwindon Town for £14,000. He returned to Portsmouth in 1981 for a £50,000 fee but was transferred toBrentford in October 1981. He spent four years with the "Bees" before leaving the club after picking up a runners-up medal in theFootball League Trophy in1985.
Kamara re-signed with Swindon Town in August 1985 and helped the club to two successive promotions into theSecond Division. He moved on toStoke City in 1988, and a successful spell with the club won him a move toLeeds United in 1990. He helped the club to the Second Division title in 1989–90 but was injured for eight months before being sold toLuton Town for £150,000 in 1991. He had loan spells withPremier League clubsSheffield United andMiddlesbrough, before joining Sheffield United on a permanent basis in 1993. The following year he joinedBradford City as a player-coach.
Kamara was appointed Bradford City manager in November 1995 and took the club from a relegation scrap to promotion out of the Second Division via the play-offs in1996. He left the club in January 1998 and quickly took the reins at Stoke City, before he left the "Potters" in April 1998. From there he became a broadcaster with Sky Sports and has since appeared as a presenter on numerous other television programmes.
Kamara was born inMiddlesbrough,North Riding of Yorkshire, to a Sierra Leonean father, Alimamy Kindo "Albert" Kamara, and British national Irene Kamara, onChristmas Day in 1957.[3] Through his father he was eligible to play forSierra Leone, and was called up to play in the1994 African Cup of Nations, though he declined the offer.[4]
His father was a heavy gambler, leaving his mother Irene to occasionally plead for money from neighbours in order to provide food for Kamara and his brother George and sister Maria.[5] Being one of the few black families inPark End, the family suffered racist abuse.[6]
He remains a close friend ofMiddlesbrough chairmanSteve Gibson, with whom he grew up on the Park End council estate. He and Gibson regularly attended matches together.[7]
He joined theRoyal Navy at age 16, at the insistence of his father, himself a former naval mariner.[8] In doing so he missed the youth cup final for Middlesbrough Boys, though he went on to play for the Royal Navy's football team.[9] He was trained atHMSRaleigh atTorpoint[10] and later transferred toHMSVernon.[11]
Kamara's football career started when he was spotted playing for the Navy byPortsmouth managerIan St John, who signed him on apprentice wages in November 1974 after agreeing to pay the Navy a £200 buy-out fee.[11] Youth team coachRay Crawford told thePortsmouth News that Kamara was "weak in the air, his marking is wayward and he hasn't got much positional sense", but privately told Kamara that he had the potential to become a first team player.[11][12] He made his first team debut in August 1975 in a 2–0 defeat byLuton Town, winning his chance afterMick Mellows was struck down with a knee injury.[13] The next match he scored his first senior goal in a 4–1 loss toBolton Wanderers after being set up byBobby McGuinness.[14] He went on to play regular football atFratton Park in the1975–76 season as "Pompey" were relegated out of theSecond Division in last place. The club avoided relegation out of theThird Division by a single point in1976–77, after which new managerJimmy Dickinson sold Kamara to Third Division rivalsSwindon Town for £14,000.[15]
Upon joining Swindon he was sent death threats by Portsmouth supporters, and was given police escorts to theCounty Ground.[16] He scored on his debut againstSheffield Wednesday atHillsborough, but was frequently left out of the starting eleven by managerDanny Williams during the1977–78 campaign.[17] New bossBobby Smith took the "Robins" to within three points of promotion in1978–79, and then the semi-finals of theLeague Cup in1979–80.John Trollope replaced Smith as manager following a dismal start to the1980–81 campaign, and he sold Kamara back to Portsmouth for £50,000.[18]
He was re-signed to Portsmouth byFrank Burrows, who had previously coached Kamara at Swindon.[18] However, in October 1981 he was again transferred afterBrentford managerFred Callaghan agreed to a swap deal withDavid Crown going the other way.[19] Kamara was paired withTerry Hurlock in a highly committed central midfield partnership atGriffin Park.[20] He settled in well during the1981–82 campaign and scored a career best of eleven goals in the1982–83 season as Brentford posted two top ten finishes. The club then struggled to just one place above the Third Division relegation zone in1983–84 before rising to 13th place in1984–85. He won aFootball League Trophy runners-up medal in1985, playing atWembley in a 3–1 defeat toWigan Athletic.[1] He took the decision to leave the club in summer 1985 after he rejected managerFrank McLintock's offer of a new one-year contract on the same terms.[21]
Kamara re-joined Swindon Town in August 1985 for a fee of £12,500 despite suffering from a ruptured hamstring tendon.[22] Under the guidance ofLou Macari the "Robins" won promotion out of theFourth Division as champions in1985–86, though Kamara missed the first half of the campaign and only played 23 games.[22] He missed just four games of the1986–87 season as Swindon secured a second successive promotion by beatingGillingham in theplay-offs; Kamara missed the replay but played in the original home and away leg fixtures of the tie.[23] However, Kamara became the first English player to be convicted ofgrievous bodily harm for an on-pitch incident, after breakingShrewsbury Town playerJim Melrose's cheekbone with a punch straight after the final whistle of a game in the1987–88 season; he was fined £1,200.[24]
Kamara moved on again in the summer of 1988 after choosing to reject Swindon's offer of a one-year contract.[25] He instead joinedMick Mills atStoke City.[1] He was paired withPeter Beagrie in central midfield at theVictoria Ground.[26] He had a good1988–89 season, scoring five goals in 44 appearances and he won theplayer of the year award.[1] On 19 August 1989 he was involved in a challenge whereWest Ham United'sFrank McAvennie was stretchered off and required surgery on his ankle; McAvennie attempted to sue Kamara for damages but was unsuccessful.[27] Midway through the1989–90 season Mills was dismissed and replaced byAlan Ball, who promptly sold Kamara toLeeds United.[1] In joining Leeds he rejected the offer to joinBruce Rioch's Middlesbrough – his hometown club that was owned by childhood friend Steve Gibson.[28]
AtElland Road wereDavid Batty,Vinnie Jones,Gordon Strachan andGary Speed; the presence of these highly skilled midfielders meant that Kamara was frequently left on the bench by managerHoward Wilkinson.[29] Kamara helped Leeds win the Second Division title in1989–90 but appeared sparingly for the "Whites" in theFirst Division after finding himself injured with an Achilles tendon problem during the1990–91 campaign.[30] He left Leeds in November 1991 and they went on to win the First Division title.[31]
Kamara remained in the top flight by joiningDavid Pleat's Luton Town for a £150,000 fee after returning to full fitness.[32] The "Hatters" were relegated on the last day of the1991–92 season after letting slip a 1–0 lead overNotts County to lose the game 2–1.[33]
In October 1992, Kamara returned to the top flight, now called thePremier League, after joiningDave Bassett'sSheffield United on loan. During this time he had the opportunity to play for Sierra Leone, the country of his father, but declined to focus on getting back into the first team[34][35] Despite failing to nail down a regular first team place in the1992–93 season he made the move fromKenilworth Road toBramall Lane permanent.[35] Before joining United he finally joined his hometown club Middlesbrough, albeit on a one-month loan, in February 1993.[36] His spell atAyresome Park lasted just five games as managerLennie Lawrence could not afford to offer him a permanent contract.[36] The "Blades" were relegated at the end of the1993–94 campaign after slipping into the relegation zone on the final day of the season after a defeat byChelsea.[37]
Kamara signed withBradford City in summer 1994 after being offered a playing-coaching role by manager Lennie Lawrence.[38] The "Bantams" struggled in the1994–95 season, though Kamara was promoted to assistant manager in April 1995.[39]
In November 1995, Bradford City chairmanGeoffrey Richmond dismissed manager Lennie Lawrence and promoted Kamara from assistant manager to take Lawrence's place.[40] His goal was to keep the "Bantams" out of the relegation zone by the end of the1995–96 season.[41] However, the club went on a run of just three defeats in the final thirteen games to secure a place in the play-offs.[42] They turned round a 2–0 defeat atValley Parade in the first leg of the play-off semi-finals to beatSam Allardyce'sBlackpool atBloomfield Road.[43] Promotion was secured with a 2–0 victory over Notts County in theplay-off final with goals fromDes Hamilton andMark Stallard.[44]
He signed Australian goalkeeperMark Schwarzer from1. FC Kaiserslautern for £150,000, who proved to be a more than adequate replacement forGavin Ward, who was sold to Bolton Wanderers for £300,000.[45] He paid aclub record £550,000 forGordon Watson, who played just two games before being badly injured after a challenge fromHuddersfield Town defenderKevin Gray.[46] The1996–97 season saw Bradford narrowly escape relegation after a final day victory overQueens Park Rangers.[47]
In summer 1997, he brought inDarren Moore andRobbie Blake, whilst paying £50,000 forJamie Lawrence and another £50,000 forPeter Beagrie.[47] He also signed Brazilian strikerEdinho and formerEngland internationalChris Waddle on free transfers.[48] He remained at Valley Parade until he left the club in January 1998.[1] He and chairman Geoffrey Richmond had fallen out over Richmond's insistence on becoming heavily involved in the club's transfer policy.[49] He recommended his assistantPaul Jewell to be his successor, who went on to have his own highly successful spell as Bradford's manager.[50]
On 22 January 1998, he was appointed manager of one of his former clubs, Stoke City, and arrived with bold intentions at theBritannia Stadium stating that he would build a squad good enough to take the club into the Premier League.[1] However, with Stoke already in serious relegation trouble in1997–98, Kamara sold their only player of real value,Andy Griffin toNewcastle United.[1] He fell out with chief executive Jez Moxey over how to spend the proceeds of the sale; Moxey wantedMarco Gabbiadini but Kamara vetoed the deal.[51] He instead spent £350,000 onCoventry City strikerKyle Lightbourne.[52] In his 14 games in charge with the "Potters", only one was won and he was dismissed on 8 April 1998.[53] In Kamara's three months in charge, Stoke could not recover from their poor form and were relegated to the third tier.[1]
Kamara gave up on management after his time at Stoke City and instead worked as a pundit for a number of television and radio stations.[54] He won a regular slot onSoccer Extra withBrian Woolnough in 1999, and from there was asked byRob McCaffrey to contribute toSoccer Saturday onSky Sports.[54] There he was asked to attend a match on Saturday and appear over live video link providing brief updates on the match.[55] At the time this was an untried concept in the UK, and Kamara and his camera crew largely learned how to best present the format as they went along.[55] He quickly became well known on the programme for his highly excitable nature, propensity for comical gaffes, and tendency to come out with unusual sayings that baffled hostJeff Stelling and the other studio pundits, such as his observation that theTottenham players were "fighting like beavers" in their match againstArsenal.[56] In one of his more famous on-air gaffes, he failed to realise thatAnthony Vanden Borre had been sent off in the game he was watching between Portsmouth andBlackburn Rovers, instead thinking that he had been substituted.[57]
Kamara also began presenting the weekly Sky Sports showGoals on Sunday in August 2000, and provided additional commentary on some ofSky's televised matches.[58] He was also a regular guest onSoccer AM, interviewing players and managers at grounds around the country.[59]
Before the2010 FIFA World Cup, Kamara changed his name by deed poll to Chris Cabanga (Cabanga is a Zulu word meaning "to think" or "imagine") in response to aFacebook campaign supported by 20,000 people.[60][61][62]
In 2012, he made a special appearance forMid Wales Football League sideWelshpool Town, after his Sky Sports colleagueJeff Stelling mocked the strugglers following the club's 10–1 loss toWaterloo Rovers the previous week. Welshpool manager David Jones emailed Sky explaining how the club nearly folded, and Sky made amends by arranging for Kamara to play for them. He played the full 90 minutes, in midfield in a 6–1 defeat, assisting a goal with a corner.[63] On 28 March 2013, he appeared for a second time; more than 500 fans turned out to watch the game which Welshpool lost 4–1 toNewbridge-on-Wye in theSpar Mid Wales League.[64]
Kamara co-presented theITV seriesNinja Warrior UK alongsideBen Shephard andRochelle Humes. Thefirst series began airing in April 2015 and thesecond in January 2016. A third series ofNinja Warrior UK began in December 2016. In 2015, Kamara took part in ITV'sGive a Pet a Home series which worked alongside theRSPCA in Birmingham.[65]
In February 2016, Kamara appeared in an episode ofThe Great Sport Relief Bake Off[66] and in June 2016, he provided the commentary forSoccer Aid 2016 alongsideClive Tyldesley. Since February 2017, Kamara has provided commentary for the 'Ant vs. Dec' segment ofAnt & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway.
In 2021, Kamara played himself onTed Lasso, as a pundit on a fictional version ofSoccer Saturday, along with presenter Jeff Stelling.[67]
In April 2022, it was announced that Kamara would be leaving Sky Sports at the end of the 2021–22 football season after working onSoccer Saturday for 24 years.[68]
On 26 December 2024, Kamara made his first football broadcasting appearance since leaving Sky Sports, when he was part of the reporting team duringAmazon Prime's coverage of the boxing day Premier League fixtures (which was presented by former colleague Stelling).[69]
In September 2000,Chris Kamara's Street Soccer was released for thePlayStation, for which Kamara provided both commentary and some basic motion capture for player animation, with the concept of the game pre-dating theEA Sports'FIFA Street series. He was also a commentator for 2005'sThis Is Football, alongsidePeter Drury.
Kamara was formerly the chairman of the panel which chooses theFootball League Championship Manager of the Month award,[75] but left the role for the beginning of the2009–10 season.
Kamara was inducted into theShow Racism the Red Card Hall of Fame in 2004.[76] As a player, he suffered years of severe racial abuse.[77]
Since May 2010 Kamara has been a national ambassador forMarie Curie, fronting the Charity of the Season partnership with the Football League in 2010/2011. In December 2011 he received 'The Above & Beyond in Memory of Sir Bill Cotton award' for his contributions to the charity.[78] He and a team of Football League ambassadors, includingBrendan Rodgers,Aidy Boothroyd, and Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson, managed to raise £385,000 for the charity and to climb to the peak ofMount Kilimanjaro. Kamara became an Ambassador of theSpecial Olympics Great Britain Organisation in April 2011 after taking part in the Special Olympics Unity Cup as a celebrity partner before theGermany vArgentina quarter-final match inCape Town, during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.[79]
Kamara released a charity single entitledSing 4 England in 2012 asEngland's officially sanctioned tournament song forEuro 2012.[80]
In November 2019, he released his debut album,Here's to Christmas, which reached number 8 in the charts.[81] He released a second Christmas album,And a Happy New Year, on 27 November 2020.[82]
On 1 January 2023, he appeared as the character "Ghost" on the fourth series ofThe Masked Singer, singing "Save the Last Dance for Me". He was the first contestant to be unmasked and eliminated.[83]
In April 2010, Kamara publishedMr Unbelievable; the autobiography focuses on his football career and how it led to football punditry.[citation needed]
On 9 November 2023, Kamara's second autobiography titledKammy was published. In the book, Kamara recounts his tough upbringing, his time as a football player and time spent as a football manager.[citation needed]
Kamara married Anne on 29 May 1982; the couple have two sons.[84] They have resided inWakefield,West Yorkshire since 1990.[85]
In April 2021, Kamara was diagnosed with anunderactive thyroid, after experiencing "brain fog" during an interview onThe One Show.[86] In a September 2022 podcast interview withFootballJOE, he spoke of his struggle with speech problems before he was diagnosed in March 2022 withspeech apraxia.[87] In December 2022, he spoke of "suffering in silence" for 20 months before his underactive thyroid was diagnosed.[88] He announced in April 2021 that he would be stepping back from sports presenting,[89] but continued to work as a presenter. In 2022, he was the subject of anITV documentary,Lost for Words.[90]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other[A] | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Portsmouth | 1975–76 | Second Division | 24 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 4 |
| 1976–77 | Third Division | 39 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 4 | |
| Total | 63 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 68 | 8 | ||
| Swindon Town | 1977–78 | Third Division | 40 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 49 | 11 |
| 1978–79 | Third Division | 28 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 4 | |
| 1979–80 | Third Division | 34 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 46 | 6 | |
| 1980–81 | Third Division | 45 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 5 | |
| Total | 147 | 21 | 14 | 4 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 183 | 26 | ||
| Portsmouth | 1981–82 | Third Division | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| Brentford | 1981–82 | Third Division | 31 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 5 |
| 1982–83 | Third Division | 44 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 57 | 11 | |
| 1983–84 | Third Division | 38 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 46 | 7 | |
| 1984–85 | Third Division | 39 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 6[b] | 1 | 53 | 9 | |
| Total | 152 | 28 | 13 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 190 | 32 | ||
| Swindon Town | 1985–86 | Fourth Division | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 22 | 1 |
| 1986–87 | Third Division | 42 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 8[c] | 0 | 56 | 3 | |
| 1987–88 | Second Division | 25 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3[d] | 0 | 36 | 2 | |
| Total | 87 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 114 | 6 | ||
| Stoke City | 1988–89 | Second Division | 38 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1[d] | 0 | 44 | 5 |
| 1989–90 | Second Division | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[d] | 1 | 27 | 2 | |
| Total | 60 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 71 | 7 | ||
| Leeds United | 1989–90 | Second Division | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| 1990–91 | First Division | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
| 1991–92 | First Division | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 1 | ||
| Luton Town | 1991–92 | First Division | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 0 |
| 1992–93 | First Division | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[e] | 0 | 25 | 0 | |
| Total | 49 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 54 | 0 | ||
| Sheffield United (loan) | 1992–93 | Premier League | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Middlesbrough (loan) | 1992–93 | Premier League | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Sheffield United | 1993–94 | Premier League | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 |
| Bradford City | 1994–95 | Second Division | 23 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2[b] | 1 | 30 | 4 |
| Career total | 641 | 71 | 44 | 7 | 62 | 5 | 31 | 3 | 778 | 86 | ||
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Bradford City | 27 November 1995 | 6 January 1998 | 112 | 40 | 26 | 46 | 035.7 |
| Stoke City | 22 January 1998 | 8 April 1998 | 14 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 007.1 |
| Total[92] | 126 | 41 | 31 | 54 | 032.5 | ||
Brentford
Swindon Town
Leeds United
Individual
Bradford City
Kamara was appointedMember of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the2023 New Year Honours for services to association football, anti-racism and charity.[93]
He was awarded the Freedom of the City of Wakefield, atCounty Hall, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, on 15 May 2024.[94]
General
Specific
Speaking to ITV News ahead of a documentary about his condition, Kamara – known to millions by his nickname "Kammy" – said he wanted his experience to be a warning to other people. He said: "Initially I was in denial. I'm a dinosaur. I suffered in silence for about 20 months and in that time my thyroid gland became virtually non-existent, so that could be the reason for all my problems along the line, by just not going to see a doctor. Now not only have I got an underactive thyroid, the apraxia of speech has come on, my balance is no good, I'm really weak.'
Broadcaster Chris Kamara has announced he will leave Sky Sports at the end of the season after 24 years. The 64-year-old presenter and former Leeds United footballer recently revealed he'd developed a speech apraxia disorder alongside an existing thyroid issue. 'My long career at Sky Sports has never felt like work. I've spent 24 terrific years at Sky, and leave with the best of memories,' Kamara said in a statement. 'My time on Soccer AM, Goals on Sunday and, of course, on Soccer Saturday with Jeff has been - to coin a phrase - unbelievable. I've had the time of my life, and look forward to tuning in every Saturday as a fan.'
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