William "Bill" Lansdowne, Sr. (born 9 November 1935) is an English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 former professional footballer who played as a midfielder

Midfielder

A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...

.

Career

Born in Shoreditch

Shoreditch

Shoreditch is an area of London within the London Borough of Hackney in England. It is a built-up part of the inner city immediately to the north of the City of London, located east-northeast of Charing Cross.-Etymology:...

, Lansdowne began his career in non-league football with Woodford Town

Woodford Town F.C.

Woodford Town F.C. was an English football club based in Woodford, Greater London.-History:The club was established in 1937, and were founder members of the Delphian League in 1951. In 1961 they switched to the Metropolitan League, before joining Division One of the Greater London League in 1967...

, before making his professional debut in the Football League

The Football League

The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...

 with West Ham United

West Ham United F.C.

West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...

, making 57 league appearances for them between 1956 and 1963. After retiring as a player, Lansdowne joined the coaching staff at West Ham United.

Personal life

His son Billy

Billy Lansdowne

William "Billy" Lansdowne, Jr. is an English former professional footballer who played as a striker. Active in both England and Sweden, Lansdowne scored 45 goals in 169 career league games.-Career:...

and grandson Billy III were also professional footballers.