Former Manchester City striker and chairman Francis Lee has died at the age of 79.
Lee, who scored 148 goals in 330 appearances for the club before spending four years as chairman in 1994, passed away in the early hours of Monday morning after a long battle with lung cancer.
Described as one of City’s all-time greats, Lee won the First Division, FA Cup, League Cup and a European Cup Winners’ Cup during eight years with the club. He also earned 27 England caps.
‘Franny passed away in the early hours of this morning after a long battle with cancer,’ City said in a statement.
‘His wife Gill and children Charlotte, Jonny and Nik say he will be sorely missed and would like to thank everyone for their kind words.
Francis Lee, the former Man City legend and chairman, has died at the age of 79
Lee was one of City’s most famous players, scoring 148 goals in 300 appearances for the club
City said they would pay further tributes to their former player and chairman over the coming days
‘Everyone at Manchester City would like to send their condolences to the friends and family of Francis at this very difficult time.
‘As a mark of respect, flags around the Etihad Stadium and City Football Academy are flying at half-mast.
‘More tributes will follow from the club in the coming days.’
Lee began his career at Bolton Wanderers before signing for City for a then record fee of of £60,000 in 1967. He later joined Derby County, helping the Rams win the league title in 1975.
He was the club’s top goalscorer for five consecutive seasons from 1969/70 to 1973/74, helping City to a number of trophies.
Lee went on to become a businessman once he retired in 1976 and was also involved in training horses. He was later chairman of City from 1994 to 1998 before being succeeded by David Bernstein.
Lee also won 27 caps for England during his career, scoring 10 goals in the process
‘All at Bolton Wanderers are saddened to learn of the passing of former forward, Francis Lee,’ Bolton said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
‘The thoughts of everyone at the club are with Francis’ family, friends and loved ones at this difficult time.’
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