Dennis Sydney Viollet

About

English footballer who played for Manchester United, Stoke City and the England National Team during his career from 1949 to 1970. He is famous for being one of the "Busby Babes," the first team under the management of Matt Busby. He won his first full England cap in 1960 against Hungary. After retiring as a player, he went on to coach in the United States for various professional and school teams.

Before Fame

He joined Manchester United in September of 1949, playing his first game against Newcastle United FC in 1953. He was sold to Stoke City in 1962. 

Trivia

He was an inside forward. In 2010 he was inducted into the Washington, D.C. Soccer Hall of Fame. The Dennis Viollet Soccer Training Center was dedicated to him in 2006 and is located in Longwood, Florida. He survived the Munich air disaster when the plane flying him and his teammates back from Munich crashed, killing 21 people. He died in 1999 from cancer. 

Family Life

He was the youngest of three children, with two older sisters. At the age of 17 he married Barbara Mavis Southern. They had two sons and two daughters before their divorce in 1969. In June of that same year he married Helen B. Greeph with whom he stayed until his death. Their daughter, Rachel, became the British number one ranked tennis player in 1996. 

Associated With

Roger Byrne and Duncan Edwards were among his teammates who died in the Munich air disaster.