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Donald George Revie (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an English footballer and manager. He is best known for managing Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, winning the Football League First Division twice and the FA Cup once, before being the England national football team manager for three years.
A forward, he began his career with Leicester City in August 1944, before a £19,000 move to Hull City in November 1949. He was sold on to Manchester City in October 1951 for a fee of £25,000, where he became the main focus of the "Revie Plan" which saw him named as FWA Footballer of the Year in the 1954–55 season, after innovating the role of the first deep-lying centre forward in England. He won the FA Cup in 1956, having finished on the losing side in the 1955 final. He was bought by Sunderland for £22,000 in October 1956 before moving on to Leeds United in November 1958 for a £14,000 fee. In total, he scored 108 goals in 501 league and cup appearances in an 18-year professional career, also scoring four goals in six England appearances, as well as winning representative honours for the Football League XI and the England B team.
In March 1961, Revie was appointed player-manager of Leeds United, then a Second Division club that had never won a major trophy. Under Revie's management, Leeds became a major force in English football, winning the Second Division in the 1963–64 season, the First Division in the 1968–69 and 1973–74 seasons, the FA Cup in 1972, the EFL Cup in 1968, the FA Charity Shield in 1969, and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1968 and 1971. Additionally, Leeds were First Division runners-up five times, three times FA Cup runners-up and runners-up in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and the European Cup Winners' Cup. In July 1974, he accepted the job as the England manager. He had an unsuccessful three years in the role before quitting in highly controversial circumstances to take the management role with the United Arab Emirates. He later had spells in Middle Eastern club football with Al-Nasr and Al-Ahly.
As Leeds manager, he was criticised for his teams' physical and often negative approach, though the period was noted for its highly physical football across the country. His resignation as England manager fuelled criticism of him as money-obsessed, and unproved allegations of bribery and financial misconduct tarnished his reputation. He retired in 1984 but was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in May 1987, which led to his death two years later. He remains a highly popular figure in Leeds and has a stand named after him at Elland Road and a statue outside the ground.
Manager Johnny Duncan identified Revie as the player to build his team around for the 1947–48 and 1948–49 seasons, and though the Foxes fared poorly in the league they managed to reach the 1949 FA Cup final. Revie scored the opening goal of the semi-final victory over First Division champions Portsmouth, having been told pre-match that opposition goalkeeper Ernest Butler tended to palm the ball over the attacker's head before reclaiming possession Revie positioned himself to take advantage of the situation when teammate Jack Lee challenged Butler for the ball, leaving Revie with a simple conversion. However Revie suffered a nasal Bleeding caused by a burst vein one week before the final, and the condition became so severe it would threaten his life and see him miss his first chance to play at Wembley. He could only listen on the radio as Leicester lost 3–1 to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the final. Revie left Leicester after Duncan left the club, having already been dissatisfied with the club's lack of progress in the league.
Revie had improved his goal tally to 13 in the 1953–54 season, but only once the Revie Plan was implemented in the 1954–55 campaign were Manchester City able to fully make use of his abilities. The new tactic opened with a 5–0 defeat to Preston North End, but then Ken Barnes replaced John McTavish at inside-forward and the team clicked. Though the tactic was named after Revie, it had initially been introduced at the reserve team level by Johnny Williamson. However, Revie's superior passing talents meant Williamson was overlooked for the position at first team level. City's league title campaign fell away, but they went on to reach the 1955 FA Cup final at Wembley, where they were beaten 3–1 by Newcastle United; a first-half injury to Jimmy Meadows left City down to ten men and unable to compete effectively. At the end of the season, Revie was named as FWA Footballer of the Year.
McDowall fined Revie £27 for missing two weeks of training for a family holiday in Blackpool, which infuriated him as he had received permission from trainer Laurie Barnett and had promised to train whilst on holiday. McDowall dropped Revie for much of the 1955–56 season, preferring instead to play Bobby Johnstone. Revie played only one FA Cup match that season before being named in the team for the 1956 FA Cup final against Birmingham City, with Johnstone being moved to the wings. He provided the assist for Joe Hayes's opening goal and instructed Ken Barnes to deviate from the manager's instructions at half-time, with the result being a more dominant second half display and a 3–1 victory; Revie was named as Man of the Match. However the rift with his manager was not forgotten, and he was moved to right-half in the 1956–57 campaign, leaving him to seek a move away from Maine Road.
He was one of many signatories in a letter to The Times on 17 July 1958, opposing "the policy of apartheid" in international sport and defending "the principle of racial equality which is embodied in the Declaration of the Olympic Games".Brown and Hogsbjerg, Apartheid is not a game, 16
Leeds struggled in the 1961–62 season, as aside from Billy Bremner and Jack Charlton, his playing squad was filled with journeymen pros; he did though inherit a good coaching staff that included Les Cocker, Maurice Lindley and Syd Owen who would all spend many years with Revie at Leeds. He developed a youth policy at the club, notable graduates of which would be Eddie Gray, Norman Hunter, Peter Lorimer and Paul Reaney. He had a difficult task in persuading young players to join Leeds over more glamorous clubs. Still, he made sure he put in extra effort to make the youngsters feel happy at Leeds, and in one instance, drove to Scotland to talk to Bremner's girlfriend to successfully persuade her to encourage Bremner to stay at Leeds rather than return to Scotland to be with her. Revie played his last game in March 1962 before concentrating entirely on management.
After new investment at board level, Revie was able to spend £25,000 on Everton's Scotland international Bobby Collins, who he installed as captain. Other arrivals included former Manchester City teammate Billy McAdams, forward Ian Lawson and left-back Cliff Mason. He spent £53,000 to bring John Charles back from Juventus FC. Though he proved not to be as effective as during his first spell at Leeds, Revie was able to sell him on to Roma for a £17,000 profit within just a few months. Leeds pushed for promotion in 1962–63, but the harsh winter caused many postponements and a backlog of games at the end of the season proved too much for Leeds, who fell away to finish in fifth place.
United secured promotion as champions of the Second Division in the 1963–64 season, helped by the late signing of striker Alan Peacock from Middlesbrough for £53,000. However, the overly physical approach typified by captain Collins earned Leeds a reputation as "dirty" that would shadow the club throughout Revie's tenure as manager and continue to this day. Leeds adapted well to the First Division early in the 1964–65 campaign but caused controversy in Collins's return to Goodison Park as the game against Everton descended into a brawl. The referee ordered the players off the field after 35 minutes to prevent further violence. Leeds went on to maintain a strong title challenge, finishing second to rivals Manchester United on goal average after failing to beat Birmingham City on the last day of the season. They also reached the final of the FA Cup, losing 2–1 to Liverpool at Wembley after extra-time.
Revie felt he did not have to strengthen his squad for the 1965–66 campaign, and made no new signings. With Leeds in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup he showed his gamesmanship, sending his team out against Italian club Torino wearing unfamiliar numbers in an attempt to confuse the Italian club's tight man-marking system. However, Collins had his leg broken by Torino's Fabrizio Poletti, meaning Revie had to partner Giles and Bremner in central midfield and sign Huddersfield Town winger Michael O'Grady for £30,000. Although Collins would be missed, the partnership of Giles and Bremner would prove highly effective. Leeds again finished second in the league, trailing Liverpool by six points. They reached the semi-finals of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, losing on aggregate to Spanish side Real Zaragoza despite Revie ordering the fire brigade to flood the pitch before the replay at Elland Road.
Leeds struggled at the start of the 1966–67 season, though despite winning just three of their opening eleven games, they finished in fourth place. They reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, losing 1–0 to Chelsea at Villa Park. They reached the final of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup against Yugoslavian side Dinamo Zagreb, but were unable to scout the opposition due to Syd Owen having his flight cancelled on him; Leeds lost 2–0 on aggregate and Revie was criticised for his negative tactics.
With his team coming close but failing to land a trophy, he brought in a Romani people to lift a curse he believed had been placed on Elland Road so that there would be no bad luck for the 1967–68 season. A more practical measure he took to increase United's fortunes was to nearly double the club's record transfer to buy Sheffield United centre-forward Mick Jones for £100,000, who would replace the frequently injured Peacock as the main striker. Soon after the purchase, Leeds recorded a 7–0 victory over Chelsea, though ironically, Jones was not on the score sheet. Revie's first trophy would be the EFL Cup, as they eliminated Luton Town, Bury, Sunderland, Stoke City and Derby County to reach the final against Arsenal; Terry Cooper scored the only goal of what was a dour and tense final as Revie told his players to "shut up shop" and defend their 1–0 lead. This success did not immediately translate into league and FA Cup success, however, as they finished in fourth place and were beaten in the FA Cup semi-finals by Everton. They instead reached a second successive Inter-Cities Fairs Cup final, beating Spora (Luxembourg), FK Partizan (Yugoslavia), Hibernian (Scotland), Rangers (Scotland), and Dundee (Scotland) to reach the final against Hungary club Ferencvárosi. Leeds won the first leg 1–0 and a month later defended their lead with a 0–0 draw in Budapest, by which time Jimmy Greenhoff, a substitute in the first leg, had been sold to Birmingham City.
Having found success in domestic and European cup competitions, Revie focused exclusively on the league for the 1968–69 campaign. They went the rest of the season unbeaten in the league following a 5–1 defeat to Burnley at Turf Moor on 19 October, and secured the title with a 0–0 draw with challengers Liverpool at Anfield; after the game Revie led his team back out onto the pitch to applaud the Liverpool supporters, who in turn applauded the Leeds team. His team set several records: most points (67), most wins (27), fewest defeats (2), and most home points (39); a still-unbroken club record is their 34 match unbeaten run that extended into the following season.
Revie strengthened his front line by breaking the British transfer record with a £165,000 purchase of Allan Clarke from Leicester City, who would partner Mick Jones up front. This allowed him to sell O'Grady to Wolverhampton Wanderers for £80,000 and move Lorimer to a more attacking role. He targeted the treble in 1969–70 and came close to achieving his aim only to fail on all three fronts in a congested close season, finishing second in the league to Everton, losing the 1970 FA Cup final to Chelsea (after a replay), and exiting the European Cup with a semi-final defeat to Celtic in front of a competition record crowd of 136,505 at Hampden Park.
Rejecting a £100,000 four-year contract offer to manage Birmingham City, Revie elected to remain at Leeds and stick with the same squad for the 1970–71 campaign. Leeds and Arsenal soon pulled away from the rest of the pack, though it would be the Gunners who would claim the league title, finishing one point ahead of Leeds after the latter lost to West Bromwich Albion following a controversial offside goal in front of the Match of the Day television cameras late in the season. United were embarrassed in the FA Cup, being knocked out by Fourth Division side Colchester United in a famous "giant-killing". Leeds again found success in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup though, beating Sarpsborg FK (Norway), Dynamo Dresden (East Germany), Sparta Prague (Czechoslovakia), Vitória (Portugal) and Liverpool to reach the final against Juventus. They drew 2–2 at the Stadio Olimpico di Torino before claiming the trophy on away goals after a 1–1 draw at Elland Road.
The previous season's defeat to West Bromwich Albion led to Revie criticising referee Ray Tinkler. As punishment, Leeds were forced to play their first four home games of the 1971–72 season at a neutral venue; they played at Huddersfield's Leeds Road and boasted four wins and two draws from the opening seven matches. Leeds played good football, particularly winning praise for their 7–0 and 6–1 wins over Southampton and Nottingham Forest respectively, but again could only finish as runners-up after a late collapse and final day defeat at Wolves, allowing Derby County to claim the title by a single point. Revie had attempted to strengthen his squad before the final run-in with a £177,000 bid for Asa Hartford, but the deal was cancelled by the medical team who spotted a heart defect in the attacker's medical records. United reached the 1972 FA Cup final after beating Bristol Rovers, Liverpool, Cardiff City, Tottenham Hotspur and Birmingham City, and lifted the trophy after a 1–0 victory over Arsenal in the final.
Looking for a successor to Jack Charlton, early in the 1972–73 season, he signed Gordon McQueen from St Mirren for £30,000. He also spent £100,000 on defender Trevor Cherry and £35,000 on centre-half Roy Ellam, both from Huddersfield Town, and started playing young Scottish forward Joe Jordan more regularly. Leeds again came close to a Treble, but their league title campaign tailed off and they finished third, some seven points behind champions Liverpool. They did reach the 1973 FA Cup final to face Second Division Sunderland, but despite manager turned pundit Brian Clough's remark that "there is no way Sunderland can beat Leeds", United lost 1–0. Leeds also reached the final of the European Cup Winners' Cup against Italian club A.C. Milan at the Kaftanzoglio Stadium, where they were beaten 1–0. The match saw a controversial refereeing performance from Christos Michas, which eventually saw Norman Hunter get sent off after he reacted badly to being consistently fouled by pushing Gianni Rivera to the ground. In 2009, Yorkshire and the Humber MEP Richard Corbett unsuccessfully petitioned the European Parliament to reverse the result of the match over allegations that Michas accepted a bribe from the Italian side.
Revie was offered a five-year £100,000 contract (plus £50,000 signing-on fee) by Everton in the summer, but remained with Leeds after the move broke down due to a new law introduced in Parliament that prevented wage rises to curb inflation. He chose to continue with largely the same line-up for the 1973–74 season. He told his squad that the aim for the season would be to go unbeaten throughout the campaign. Though Leeds failed to achieve this as they lost three successive games in February/March, they did secure the title with a five-point lead over Liverpool. Completely focused on the league, and finally accepting that he was asking too much of his players to try and win every competition he played weakened teams to allow an early exit from the UEFA Cup. He chose to take the job of England national football team manager ahead of leading a European Cup challenge at Leeds and breaking up the aging team he had stuck with for many years, and though he was well loved at the club he was not popular with the Leeds boardroom members, who appointed Brian Clough, a fierce critic of Revie, as his successor. Despite lasting just 44 days in the job, Clough spent more in transfer fees than Revie had in his 13 years at the club.
For UEFA Euro 1976, England were drawn in a tough qualification group including Czechoslovakia, Portugal and Cyprus, with only the winner progressing to the finals. England began the campaign well with a 3–0 victory over Czechoslovakia at Wembley, Mick Channon and Colin Bell scoring the goals. However, a 0–0 home draw with Portugal was a minor setback, despite Malcolm Macdonald scoring all the goals in a 5–0 win over Cyprus following a morale-boosting 2–0 friendly win over 1974 FIFA World Cup champions West Germany. Kevin Keegan scored the only goal of the game at the Tsirion Stadium to secure maximum points in Cyprus and leave England in a strong position going into the two tough final group games in Czechoslovakia and Portugal. Though only drawing with Wales and Northern Ireland, a 5–1 victory over Scotland secured England the 1974–75 British Home Championship title and left England in confident mood for the crucial qualifying games. However, despite Channon opening the scoring, they fell to a 2–1 defeat to the Czechoslovakians in Bratislava after playing with what was for Revie uncharacteristic attacking tactics. A 1–1 draw in Lisbon then allowed Czechoslovakia to clinch the group with a win over Cyprus. Czechoslovakia then went on to win the whole tournament. Revie was criticised for his constant changing of players during the qualifying group, particularly his decision to drop captains Emlyn Hughes and Alan Ball from his squad entirely, his mistrust of flair players like Charlie George and Alan Hudson, and his willingness to play players out of position.
With England unseeded, Revie was handed opponents for qualifying for the 1978 World Cup of Italy, Finland and Luxembourg. Only the winner would progress to the finals. Just before the campaign began, England suffered a 2–1 defeat to Scotland to finish second in the 1975–76 British Home Championship. England made heavy work of both Finland and Luxembourg, winning 4–1 away and 2–1 at home against the Finns and 5–0 at home and 2–0 away against the Luxembourgers. The failure to inflict heavier defeats on these sides was ultimately the reason why Italy qualified for the finals on goal difference alone. England fell to a 2–0 defeat in Rome, where Revie was criticised for his previously untested back four selection of Emlyn Hughes, Dave Clement, Roy McFarland, and Mick Mills; he also played Trevor Brooking out of position and surprised many by selecting Stan Bowles ahead of Stuart Pearson. Sensing that he was disliked by FA chairman Sir Harold Thompson, and with further criticism coming his way after England could only finish third in the 1976–77 British Home Championship, Revie began to look for a way out. He missed a friendly with Brazil in Rio de Janeiro for what he claimed was a scouting assignment on the Italians, when in fact he had travelled to Dubai for contract negotiations with the United Arab Emirates. Revie asked for his contract with England to be cancelled but the FA refused although they offered Revie their full support despite having already approached Bobby Robson to replace him. The game with Brazil ended in a 0–0 draw, and their tour of South America concluded with draws with Argentina and Uruguay. On 12 July 1977, Revie revealed in an exclusive to the Daily Mail that he was quitting the England job to become manager of the UAE. The FA suspended Revie from football for ten years on a charge of bringing the game into disrepute; Revie contested his suspension in a lawsuit against the FA, and the court overturned the suspension after ruling that the FA had overreached its powers.
When Revie departed, England were three points behind Italy in the qualification group, with two matches remaining, including an encounter with the Italians at Wembley. Revie's replacement Ron Greenwood led the national team to victory in both remaining matches. England thus finished level with the Italians on points but behind them on goal difference. Since only the winner of the group qualified for the finals, England missed their second consecutive World Cup tournament.
He published an autobiography, Soccer's Happy Wanderer, in 1955. He was appointed an OBE for his services to football. The Mighty Mighty Whites – The Definitive history of Leeds United – Review of 1969/70 – Part 2 Treble heartbreak (1969–70) themightyleeds.co.uk. Retrieved 3 April 2011 In April 1974, shortly before departing from Leeds for the England job, Revie was a special guest on the TV guest show This Is Your Life. Revie was an active Freemasonry attending Leodiensis Lodge No. 4029 based at Westbourne House in Otley from 1965 until his death.
In a survey of leading football writers, historians and academics by Total Sport magazine, Revie's Leeds United was voted one of the 50 greatest football teams of all time. James Corbett of the Guardian wrote that Revie "had been the most innovative manager of his generation" and "not until Arsène Wenger would a manager exert such a profound influence on his club - and the English game as a whole".
One of Revie's most notable critics was Brian Clough, who initially gave some degree of praise to Leeds following the 1969–70 season in which Clough managed Derby County to fourth place, commenting that "they have made the season". However, Clough's attitude soon changed as the competition between their clubs intensified, and in subsequent seasons he would use his newspaper columns to attack Revie and Leeds. A particular example of this was in August 1973 in which he branded the Leeds players "cheats" and called for the club to be relegated to the Second Division on disciplinary grounds, though Clough would surprisingly succeed Revie as Leeds manager in 1974 in an ill-fated tenure that lasted only 44 days. In 2009, Revie was portrayed by Colm Meaney in the film The Damned United, which focused on Clough's reign as manager of Leeds United.
Additionally, Bob Stokoe would later claim that while managing Bury on Good Friday 1962, Revie had offered him a bribe of £500 to "go easy" on his Leeds side who were at the time struggling against relegation to the Third Division and that he had become enraged when Revie responded to his refusal to accept the bribe by asking "in that case, may I speak to your players?".Hardy, Lance. Stokoe, Sunderland and '73: The Story of the Greatest FA Cup Final Shock of All Time. Orion, 2010, page 10. Alan Ball also alleged that Revie made an illegal approach for him, and despite pocketing the £300 bribe, he signed for Everton instead of Leeds; both men were charged with bringing the game into disrepute. The allegations of corruption earned him the nickname of "Don Readies". Though Joseph Cantley lifted the FA's ten-year ban on Revie, during his conclusion of the case the judge said that Revie "lacked candour", was "greedy" and "prickly", focused on "imagined wrongs" and his resignation as England manager showed a "sensational, outrageous example of disloyalty, breach of trust, discourtesy and selfishness".
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| Leeds United | March 1961 | July 1974 | |
| England | July 1974 | 11 July 1977 | |
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