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{{Short description|English footballer and manager (1916–2001)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{Infobox football biography 
| name      = Stan Cullis
| image     = StanCullisStatue.jpg
| caption = Statue of Stan Cullis outside Wolves' [[Molineux Stadium]]
| fullname = Stanley Cullis
| birth_date = {{birth date|1916|10|25|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Ellesmere Port]], England
| death_date = {{death date and age|2001|2|28|1916|10|25|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Malvern, Worcestershire|Malvern]], England
| position = [[Defender (association football)#Centre-back|Centre half]]
| youthyears1 = 1930–1933 
| youthclubs1 = Ellesmere Port Wednesday 
| years1 = 1934–1947 
| clubs1 = [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] 
| caps1 = 152    
| goals1 = 2 
| years2 = 1943
| clubs2 = → [[Gillingham F.C.|Gillingham]] (wartime guest)
| nationalyears1 = 1937–1939
| nationalteam1 = [[England national football team|England]]
| nationalcaps1 = 12  
| nationalgoals1 = 0 
| manageryears1 = 1948–1964 
| manageryears2 = 1965–1970
| managerclubs1 = [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] 
| managerclubs2 = [[Birmingham City F.C.|Birmingham City]]
}}
'''Stanley Cullis''' (25 October 1916 – 28 February 2001) was an English professional [[Association football|footballer]] and [[Manager (football)|manager]], primarily for [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]].

During his term as manager between 1948 and 1964, Wolves became one of the strongest teams in the English game, winning the league title on three occasions, and playing a series of high-profile friendly matches against top European sides which acted as a precursor to the [[European Cup]].

==Playing career==
Cullis joined [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] as a teenager after a trial at [[Bolton Wanderers F.C.|Bolton Wanderers]], signing professionally within a week of his arrival. He quickly moved up through the youth and reserve ranks and made his senior debut on 16 February 1935 in a 2–3 defeat at [[Huddersfield Town A.F.C.|Huddersfield Town]]. He had to wait until the [[1936–37 in English football|1936–37]] season though before he became first choice, when he replaced [[Bill Morris (footballer, born 1913)|Bill Morris]], and swiftly became [[Captain (association football)|club captain]].

Cullis led the team to become one of the top teams in England, finishing runners-up in the league in [[1937–38 in English football|1937–38]] and [[1938–39 in English football|1938–39]]. In 1939 Wolves had the chance to win [[Double (association football)|The Double]], but with only 5 wins in the last 11 matches the team lost the championship by 5 points to [[Everton F.C.|Everton]]. They reached the [[1939 FA Cup Final|FA Cup Final]] but lost 4–1 to [[Portsmouth F.C.|Portsmouth]], thus becoming the third English club to finish as runners-up in both League and FA Cup.{{citation needed|date=August 2020}}

He won a call-up to the [[England national football team|England]] team and made his international debut on 23 October 1937 in a 5–1 success against [[Ireland national football team (1882-1950)|Ireland]]. Because of the outbreak of the war, he won only 12 full caps (once as captain), although he also played in 20 wartime internationals (10 as captain).

England played [[Germany national football team|Germany]] in [[Berlin]] on 14 May 1938. The England players were directed pre-match that on the pitch during the German national anthem, they should give a [[Hitler salute|Nazi salute]]. With similarities to [[Jack Kirby (English footballer)|Jack Kirby]] in 1934, Cullis refused. After Cullis responded, "Count me out",<ref name=chesh>[https://www.cheshire-live.co.uk/news/chester-cheshire-news/england-footballer-who-refused-nazi-20640172 "Stan Cullis: Cheshire's England football legend who refused to do Nazi salute in Germany", 3 April 2024, Cheshire Live]</ref> the only player to refuse, he was dropped from the team. His place went to [[Alf Young]] of Huddersfield. England won the match 6–3.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.expressandstar.com/sport/football/wolverhampton-wanderers-fc/2016/10/25/wolves-legend-stan-cullis-remembered-the-early-years/ |title=Wolves legend Stan Cullis remembered: The early years |newspaper=Express & Star |location=Wolverhampton |first=Tim |last=Spiers |date=25 October 2016 |access-date=12 August 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlbLHviSTPc |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/jlbLHviSTPc |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=England v. Germany Football Match in Berlin 1938|last=British Movietone|date=2 July 2015|via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

During the conflict, he served as a [[Physical Training Instructor|PT instructor]] in both Britain and Italy, and also managed 34 wartime appearances for Wolves in regional competitions, as well as guesting for [[Aldershot F.C.|Aldershot]], [[Fulham F.C.|Fulham]] and [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]]. Shortly after, he also managed briefly [[Fredrikstad FK|Fredrikstad]] in 1946.<ref>{{cite web|author=Øystein Holt |url=http://www.ffksupporter.net/artikler/historikk/1940-1949/krig_fred_streik_og_optimisme.php |title=Uoffisiell nettside for Fredrikstad Fotballklubb |publisher=ffksupporter.net |access-date=2012-11-13}}</ref>

When competitive football resumed in England in [[1946–47 in English football|1946–47]], Cullis played just one more season for Wolves, in which the club once again narrowly missed out on a first league title. He then announced his retirement as a result of injury and was appointed assistant to manager [[Ted Vizard]], after having made 171 appearances in total for the club.

==Management career==
In June 1948, aged just 31, Cullis became manager of Wolverhampton Wanderers and presided over the most successful era in the club's history. In his first season in charge, he became the youngest manager to win the [[FA Cup]] at [[Wembley Stadium (1923)|Wembley]] as Wolves beat [[Leicester City F.C.|Leicester City]] to win their first major trophy since 1908. Five years later Wolves overhauled local rivals [[West Bromwich Albion F.C.|West Bromwich Albion]] to win their [[1953–54 in English football|first league title]].

Cullis's team restored some pride to English football after the national team's thrashings at the hands of [[Hungary national football team|Hungary]] when they beat the star-studded [[Budapest Honvéd FC|Honvéd]] side in a [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. v Budapest Honvéd FC|1954 friendly]], and Cullis's comments that his team were "champions of the world" played a large part in the formation of European club competitions. They also played Moscow Spartak, Dynamo and Real Madrid (1957) in other floodlit friendlies.

Cullis led Wolves to two more league titles, in [[1957–58 in English football|1957–58]] and [[1958–59 in English football|1958–59]], and they narrowly missed the hat-trick in [[1959–60 in English football|1959–60]], losing by one point to [[Burnley F.C.|Burnley]], while also winning the FA Cup again in [[1960 FA Cup Final|1960]] to seal their position as one of the dominant teams of the era. The 1960s saw Wolves begin to struggle, and Cullis was surprisingly sacked in September 1964, declaring that he would not work in football again, despite offers from [[Toronto City]]<ref>{{cite news|title=Mr Cullis's Offer|agency=Reuter|newspaper=The Herald|location=Glasgow|access-date=12 March 2016|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kWNAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=naMMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2786%2C4655544|page=4}}</ref> and [[Juventus FC|Juventus]].

After a short spell working as a sales representative, he did return to the game as manager of [[Birmingham City F.C.|Birmingham City]] in December 1965, but could not reproduce the success he had enjoyed at Wolves. Cullis retired from football in March 1970, and took up a post with a travel agency in [[Malvern, Worcestershire|Malvern]], his adopted home town.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

==Later life==
Cullis died on 28 February 2001 at the age of 84.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1324533/Stan-Cullis.html |title=Stan Cullis |work=The Telegraph|date=2001-03-01 |access-date=2012-11-13 |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Brian Glanville |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/mar/01/guardianobituaries.football |title=Obituary: Stan Cullis &#124; Football |work=The Guardian|date= 1 March 2001|access-date=2012-11-13 |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Longmore |first=Andrew |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/back-when-stan-really-was-the-man-637495.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220524/https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/back-when-stan-really-was-the-man-637495.html |archive-date=24 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Back when Stan really was the man - News & Comment - Football |work=The Independent|date=2000-10-29 |access-date=2012-11-13 |location=London}}</ref>

Tributes to Cullis include the naming of a stand (the Stan Cullis Stand) at Wolves' [[Molineux Stadium]] and a statue of him outside it; in 2003 he was inducted into the [[English Football Hall of Fame]] in recognition of his impact as a manager.

==Bill Shankly tribute==
In his 1976 autobiography, [[Bill Shankly]] paid high tribute to Cullis, saying: "While Stan [Cullis] was volatile and outrageous in what he said, he never swore. And he could be as soft as mash. He would give you his last penny. Stan was 100 per cent Wolverhampton. His blood must have been of old gold. He would have died for Wolverhampton. Above all, Stan is a very clever man who could have been successful at anything. When he left Wolverhampton, I think his heart was broken and he thought the whole world had come down on top of him. All round, as a player, as a manager, and for general intelligence, it would be difficult to name anyone since the game began who could qualify to be in the same class as Stan Cullis."{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

==Honours==
Wolverhampton Wanderers (as player and manager)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.leaguemanagers.com/managers/stan-cullis/|title=Stan Cullis|publisher=League Managers Association|website=leaguemanagers.com|access-date=18 July 2016|archive-date=23 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150323054852/http://www.leaguemanagers.com/managers/stan-cullis/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*[[Football League First Division|First Division]]
**Champions: [[1953–54 Football League|1953–54]], [[1957–58 Football League|1957–58]], [[1958–59 Football League|1958–59]]
**Runners-up: [[1937–38 Football League|1937–38]], [[1938–39 Football League|1938–39]] [[1949–50 Football League|1949–50]], [[1954–55 Football League|1954–55]], [[1959–60 Football League|1959–60]]
**Third-place: [[1946–47 Football League|1946–47]], [[1952–53 Football League|1952–53]], [[1955–56 Football League|1955–56]], [[1960–61 Football League|1960–61]]
*[[FA Cup]]
**Winners: [[1949 FA Cup Final|1949]], [[1960 FA Cup Final|1960]]
**Runners-up: [[1939 FA Cup Final|1939]]
**Semi-finalists: 1951
*[[FA Community Shield|FA Charity Shield]]
**Winners: [[1959 FA Charity Shield|1959]]
**Shared: [[1949 FA Charity Shield|1949]] (with Portsmouth), [[1954 FA Charity Shield|1954]] (with West Bromwich Albion), [[1960 FA Charity Shield|1960]] (with Burnley)
**Runners-up: [[1958 FA Charity Shield|1958]]
*[[FA Youth Cup]]
**Winners: 1958
**Runners-up: 1953, 1954, 1962

==Wolverhampton Wanderers career statistics==

===Player===
{{Citation needed|date=July 2016}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan=3 | Club performance
! colspan=2 | League
! colspan=2 | Cup
! colspan=2 | Total
|-
! Season !! Club !! League
! Apps !! Goals
! Apps !! Goals
! Apps !! Goals
|-
|-
! colspan=3 | England
! colspan=2 | League
! colspan=2 | [[FA Cup]]
! colspan=2 | Total
|-
|[[1934–35 Football League|1934–35]]||rowspan="7"|[[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]]||rowspan="7"|[[Football League First Division|First Division]]||3||0||0||0||3||0
|-
|[[1935–36 Football League|1935–36]]||12||0||0||0||12||0
|-
|[[1936–37 Football League|1936–37]]||24||1||7||0||31||1
|-
|[[1937–38 Football League|1937–38]]||36||0||2||0||38||0
|-
|[[1938–39 Football League|1938–39]]||40||1||6||0||46||1
|-
|[[1939–40 Football League|1939–40]]||0||0||0||0||0||0
|-
|[[1946–47 Football League|1946–47]]||37||0||3||0||40||0
|-
|-
! colspan=3 | Career total
!152||2||18||0||170||2
|}

===Manager===
{{Citation needed|date=July 2016}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|-
!rowspan=2|Season
!colspan=9|League
!rowspan=2|[[FA Cup]]
!rowspan=2|[[FA Community Shield|FA Charity Shield]]
!rowspan=2|[[UEFA#Competitions|Europe]]
|-
!Division
!P
!W
!D
!L
!F
!A
!Pts
!Pos
|-
![[1948–49 in English football|1948–49]]
|rowspan=16|[[Football League First Division|First Division]]
|42
|17
|12
|13
|79
|66
|46
|6th
|bgcolor=Gold|'''[[1949 FA Cup Final|W]]'''
|
|
|-
![[1949–50 in English football|1949–50]]
|42
|20
|13
|9
|76
|49
|53
| style="background:Silver;"|2nd
|R5
|[[1949 FA Charity Shield|Shared]]
|
|-
![[1950–51 in English football|1950–51]]
|42
|15
|8
|19
|74
|61
|38
|14th
|SF
|
|
|-
![[1951–52 in English football|1951–52]]
|42
|12
|14
|16
|73
|73
|38
|16th
|R4
|
|
|-
![[1952–53 in English football|1952–53]]
|42
|19
|13
|10
|86
|63
|51
| style="background:Bronze;"|3rd
|R3
|
|
|-
![[1953–54 in English football|1953–54]]
|42
|25
|7
|10
|96
|56
|57
|bgcolor=Gold|'''1st'''
|R3
|
|
|-
![[1954–55 in English football|1954–55]]
|42
|19
|10
|13
|89
|70
|48
| style="background:Silver;"|2nd
|QF
|[[1954 FA Charity Shield|Shared]]
|
|-
![[1955–56 in English football|1955–56]]
|42
|20
|9
|13
|89
|65
|49
| style="background:Bronze;"|3rd
|R3
|
|
|-
![[1956–57 in English football|1956–57]]
|42
|20
|8
|14
|94
|70
|48
|6th
|R4
|
|
|-
![[1957–58 in English football|1957–58]]
|42
|28
|8
|6
|103
|47
|64
|bgcolor=Gold|'''1st'''
|QF
|
|
|-
![[1958–59 in English football|1958–59]]
|42
|28
|5
|9
|110
|49
|61
|bgcolor=Gold|'''1st'''
|R4
| style="background:Silver;"|[[1958 FA Charity Shield|R/U]]
|[[1958–59 European Cup|European Cup R2]]
|-
![[1959–60 in English football|1959–60]]
|42
|24
|6
|12
|106
|67
|54
| style="background:Silver;"|2nd
|bgcolor=Gold|'''[[1960 FA Cup Final|W]]'''
|bgcolor=Gold|'''[[1959 FA Charity Shield|W]]'''
|[[1959–60 European Cup|European Cup QF]]
|-
![[1960–61 in English football|1960–61]]
|42
|25
|7
|10
|103
|75
|57
| style="background:Bronze;"|3rd
|R3
|[[1960 FA Charity Shield|Shared]]
|[[1960–61 European Cup Winners' Cup|European Cup Winners' Cup SF]]
|-
![[1961–62 in English football|1961–62]]
|42
|13
|10
|19
|73
|86
|36
|18th
|R4
|
|
|-
![[1962–63 in English football|1962–63]]
|42
|20
|10
|12
|93
|65
|50
|5th
|R3
|
|
|-
![[1963–64 in English football|1963–64]]
|42
|12
|15
|15
|70
|80
|39
|16th
|R3
|
|
|}

== See also ==
* [[List of English football championship-winning managers]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070813024152/http://www.wolves.premiumtv.co.uk/page/GoldenOldies/0,,10307~65377,00.html Official Wolves profile]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070927230840/http://www.nationalfootballmuseum.com/pages/fame/Inductees/stancullis.htm English Hall of Fame Profile]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/wolverhampton_wanderers/1194178.stm BBC tributes report]

{{Navboxes
| title = Awards
| bg = gold
| fg = navy
| list1 = 
{{English Football First Tier League Championship winning managers}}
{{FA Cup winning managers}}
{{Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. Hall of Fame}}
{{English Football Hall of Fame}}
}}
{{Navboxes
| title = Managerial positions
| list1 = 
{{Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. managers}}
{{Birmingham City F.C. managers}}
}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cullis, Stan}}
[[Category:1916 births]]
[[Category:2001 deaths]]
[[Category:Aldershot F.C. wartime guest players]]
[[Category:Birmingham City F.C. managers]]
[[Category:British Army personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:English men's footballers]]
[[Category:England men's international footballers]]
[[Category:England men's wartime international footballers]]
[[Category:Liverpool F.C. wartime guest players]]
[[Category:Gillingham F.C. players]]
[[Category:English Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:English Football League players]]
[[Category:English Football League representative players]]
[[Category:English football managers]]
[[Category:Footballers from Cheshire]]
[[Category:Fredrikstad FK managers]]
[[Category:Men's association football defenders]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Cheshire]]
[[Category:Footballers from Ellesmere Port]]
[[Category:Royal Army Physical Training Corps soldiers]]
[[Category:Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. managers]]
[[Category:Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players]]