George Best was viewed as the original celebrity footballer but was as well known for his troubled personal life as for his success on the football field.
Born in east Belfast on May 22nd, 1946, Best became known as "the Fifth Beatle" in the 1960s thanks to his film-star looks, long hair and penchant for hanging out with celebrities.
George Best leaves court in February 2004. Pic: Reuters/Kieran Doherty
In his international footballing career with Northern Ireland between 1964 and 1973, he was capped 37 times and scored nine goals.
Between 1963 and 1974 with Manchester United, he made a total of 466 appearances and scored some 178 times, including 137 times in League matches. At his most dazzling, he scored six goals in one match against Northampton Town.
As a player, he was renowned for his stunning skill and dexterity and was also known for his ability to "get stuck in" and to take the hardest knocks of the beautiful game.
Best played on the winning Man United teams in the Football League Championships in 1965 and 1967 and in the European Cup of 1968. In that year, he was named European Footballer of the Year.
Shirts left outside Old Trafford. Pic: Phil Noble/PA
The soccer star was fired by Manchester United in 1974, however, when still just 27 years old, for his constant drinking and failure to turn up for matches and team training sessions.
He continued his career with a number of clubs, including Stockport, Fulham and Bournemouth and eventually retired in 1983.
Best was renowned for his marathon drinking sessions and was a notorious womaniser. Both took their toll on his personal relationships.
The soccer star's first marriage to Angie Janes, with whom he had a son, Callum, ended in 1978.
In 1984, he was sentenced to three months' imprisonment for drink driving and assaulting a police officer. Best's alcoholism took a huge toll on his health in the 1980s and 1990s, and he eventually had a liver transplant in 2002.
In 1995, Best had married Alex Pursey, some 26 years his junior, and promises to her and his family that he would give up drinking were consistently broken. He continued to appear in the tabloids after drunken escapades, and his marriage eventually broke up.
A fan's tribute outside Old Trafford. Pic: Alex Livesey/Getty Images
Alex announced that their marriage was over when she appeared on the reality TV show I'm a Celebrity - Get Me Out of Herelast year.
Best was convicted of another drunk driving offence last year and banned for 20 months.
During his two recent short spells in the intensive care unit of the Cromwell Hospital in London, it was clear that Best's health had deteriorated beyond help. He died this afternoon surrounded by family members and having been visited by many former footballing colleagues in his last days and hours.