Bill Gates (footballer)
English footballer (1944–2023)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William Lazenby Gates (8 May 1944 – 21 October 2023) was an English professional footballer who played as a central defender.
Full name
William Lazenby Gates[1]
Date of birth
8 May 1944
Place of birth
Ferryhill, England
Date of death
21 October 2023 (aged 79)
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Lazenby Gates[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 8 May 1944 | ||
| Place of birth | Ferryhill, England | ||
| Date of death | 21 October 2023 (aged 79) | ||
| Position | Central defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Middlesbrough | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1961–1974 | Middlesbrough | 283 | (12) |
| 1974–1975 | Spennymoor United | ||
| Total | 283+ | (12+) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Career
Born in Ferryhill, Gates played for Middlesbrough.[1] He later played for Spennymoor United.[2] He retired aged 30 after suffering from migraines, and later qualified as an accountant before opening a series of sports shops.[3] He inspired a charity campaign related to footballers with dementia after heading footballs, for which his wife, Dr Judith Gates, launched the "Head for Change" and "Head Safe Football" charities.[3][4][5] A documentary about Gates called The Billion Pound Game was released shortly after his death.[3][4]
