The Prime Minister had been leading the tributes to Kevin Keegan, Andy Burnham taking time out on a day when he was naming his new cabinet.
This followed the news on Monday that the Newcastle United and Liverpool legend had passed away.
Lifelong Everton fan and now Prime Minister, Andy Burnham via his personal social media – 20 July 2026:
“Devastated to hear Kevin Keegan has passed away. A true great for Liverpool, for Newcastle, for England, and for everyone who loves the game.
Rest in peace, King Kev.”
Kevin Keegan was something special and he touched so many people.
However, none more so than the fans of Newcastle United.
One of his many inspired moments was when he identified Les Ferdinand as the man who could help take Newcastle United to the next level.
Signed in summer 1995, Sir Les spent only two seasons on Tyneside but both campaigns saw Newcastle United finish runner-up in the Premier League, including the “So close” 1995/96 season.
Newcastle United have published this Les Ferdinand tribute to Kevin Keegan:
‘I’m quite stunned. I’d seen Kevin a few months ago at a dinner in Newcastle. Afterwards we spent a few hours together with John Beresford and some others just reminiscing, talking, having a laugh and a joke. It was probably only a few weeks later I heard about his cancer. A pal of mine saw him a few weeks ago with John Beresford again, and he was in good spirits. To hear the news today was a shock, and a sad day for football and everyone who knew him, loved him and spent time with him.
As a person, Kevin always had time for people. He made you feel like you were special. He had this knack – it didn’t matter who he spoke to, he made you feel like you were the only person in the room. As a player my time with him was too short – I only spent a year and a bit with him – but he was a special person and I got on really well with him.
There was one other icon that I always felt Kevin was similar to, and that was Muhammad Ali. He had that ability to make you feel like you were the most important person in the world when you spoke to him. Not everyone has that. Kevin Keegan had that. He was a special human being. Not just a footballer, not just a manager, but a special human being.
I know how important and what a figurehead he was for Newcastle United Football Club, and the North East region in general. But he was the first real superstar footballer I saw in my life. He did things footballers weren’t doing at the time and he was the first to do it all – (BBC TV show) Superstars and everything else. He was one of the first footballers I remember going abroad, winning the Ballon d’Or twice in Germany. We’d be doing him a disservice to not talk about him in wider football terms, not just in terms of this region.
It’s a real shame that our 1995/96 team didn’t win anything, because he set out to not only win, but to entertain while doing it. It was about enjoyment, going out and feeling free and expressing yourself, doing what made you happy. Sometimes you can forget that because of the trials and tribulations of life. But he tried to bring a lighter note to it, and got everyone to enjoy it. I think that showed in the brand of football we played.
Issue 86 – January 1996
Kevin used to say, ‘you’re one of the better dressers in the dressing room, Les’. I remember one day we were playing a game in the evening, and had been in to training in the morning at Maiden Castle. He called me in and said, ‘I think I’ve got it sussed – you’re going to be impressed with what I’m wearing tonight’. I used to joke with him, because he’d wear these Spanish-type bolero jackets and suit trousers and stuff.
We came in that night and he had a navy blue suit on, with a pale blue shirt and a tie. I looked at him and was nodding my head at him. He nodded at me, as if to say, ‘see what I mean? I’ve got it sussed today!’
And then Lee Clark went, ‘foul! Seven points away!’ So everyone looked down at Kevin’s shoes, and he had these patent shoes on that absolutely spoiled the whole outfit. Everyone fell about laughing! I remember the next day I went, ‘mate, I thought you had it all sussed, you were looking a million dollars… and then I looked down at your shoes!’ He went, ‘yeah, I went home and threw them on the fire!’
I’m feeling very sad today and I’m sure anyone who was ever in his presence will feel sad today. But that’s not how he’d want people to feel. He’d want people to celebrate his life rather than mourn it, because that’s the type of guy he was.’