Micah Richards, born on 24 June 1988 in Birmingham, England, is a retired professional footballer who played as a right-back for Manchester City.
Throughout his career, he has been recognized for his physicality, pace, and strength on the field.
Richards’ parents, siblings, and background story have significantly contributed to his success in football.
The charismatic football pundit often reflects on his family and upbringing and the challenges he faced while growing up.
Let us delve into the aspects of his life that shaped him.
He was born in England, and his father is from Saint Kitts and Nevis
Micah Richards’ father is Lincoln Richards, while his mother is Heather Richards. His father, a dreadlocked Rastafarian, moved to England from St Kitts in the 60s.
Micah Richards’ parents’ nationality is Saint Kitts and Nevis (father) and England (mother).
Lincoln Richards was an electrician. On the other hand, Micah Richards’ mother was a social services worker. His father always took him to play football, but he faced racial abuse on the touchline.
The football pundit recalls spending afternoons with his mother in the social services office where she worked and how much more peaceful it was there.
He has three siblings
Does Micah Richards have a brother? The former footballer has two brothers and one sister. His eldest brother’s name is Marlon Richards.
The football pundit revealed that Marlon Richards got in trouble with the cops for stealing cars. However, he turned his life around and has lived clean ever since.
On the other hand, Micah Richard’s sister is Rhonda Richards. However, the footballer has not revealed the name of his younger brother.
Nevertheless, his brothers were footballers and played for several non-league clubs in England.
Unfortunately, Micah’s brothers were not successful enough to play professional football. But the former Manchester City player has never fallen short of praising them.
He grew up in Chapeltown, a crime-ridden area
Richards grew up in the inner-city area of Birmingham, where he faced many challenges.
He grew up in Chapeltown, a Leeds district known for riots, violence, and racial tensions in the 1970s and 1980s.
The former footballer admits that he loved growing up in Chapeltown, but looking back as an adult, he recalls seeing things that were not right, including drugs and firearms changing hands.
He also witnessed someone being beaten with a hammer and the police arresting his cousin for no apparent reason.
According to Richards, everything you expected in a crime-ridden area was there then. Also, there was racism in Chapeltown, and he can recall police officers being openly racist towards him.
The football pundit credits his father for grounding him. His father ensured that he knew the difference between right and wrong. Speaking on Joe Hart’s YouTube series Gloved, Micah Richards stated:
“Coming from Chapeltown, my dad is my biggest inspiration for keeping me on the straight and narrow. I’ve got cousins who are in prison for bad things.
I’ll keep it real; I’m not going to shy away from anything. But I had something to be able to get me out of the environment I was in, and my dad wasn’t going to let me go down any other road apart from focus.”
He made his professional debut for Manchester City in 2005
Micah Richards began playing football when he was young and played for the Leeds United youth system as a striker. Unfortunately, the team released him when he was around eight years old.
After that, he represented Leeds Schools FA (Leeds City Boys). Richards later moved to play in either the center-back or right-back positions.
He later played for the Oldham Athletic youth system, eventually moving to Manchester City as a 14-year-old, with Oldham reputedly having a 20 percent sell-on clause.
The former footballer progressed through Manchester City’s Youth and Reserve Team ranks. Micah Richards made his professional debut for Manchester City in 2005, becoming the club’s youngest defender.
He soon established himself as a key player, making over 200 appearances for the club and helping them win the FA Cup in 2011.
Richards also had a successful international career, earning 13 caps for the England national team. He represented his country at the UEFA Euro 2012 tournament and was part of the squad that reached the quarter-finals.
The football pundit played for England at 18, becoming the youngest-ever defender to play for England. He was a first-team regular at City at 17, an FA Cup winner at 22, and a Premier League champion at 23.
Micah joined Aston Villa on a loan deal in 2015 before moving to Fiorentina permanently in 2017.
However, he struggled to establish himself in Italy and returned to England in 2019, joining Cardiff City on a short-term deal.
In 2020, Richards announced his retirement from professional football at 32. He has since pursued a career in media, working as a pundit for Sky Sports and BT Sport. He currently works for CBS Sports.
Besides football, Micah Richards has been an ambassador for several charities, including Kick It Out and Football For Change.
Furthermore, he has donated thousands of pounds to different charities in the UK.
