Chris Kamara receives MBE from Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle

Chris Kamara, 65, who played for and managed the Bantams, was given an MBE for services to football, anti-racism and charity in King Charles III’s New Year’s Honours list.

He received his honour from the Prince of Wales at an official ceremony at Windsor Castle on Tuesday, March 7.

Chris Kamara receives his MBE from the Prince of Wales (Image: PA)

During the investiture ceremony, the footballer-turned-broadcaster was accompanied by his family members and he shared a joke with the Prince.

The Prince sent a tweet which had a nod to Mr Kamara not realising somebody had been sent off at a game he was covering for Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday, posting: "We’re off to Windsor Castle where there’s been an MBE, but for who @chris_kammy?"

It was great to chat footy & have a laugh with the Prince 👍👌🏽🎖️ https://t.co/5HxvKOHkbM

— Chris Kamara (@chris_kammy) March 7, 2023

Mr Kamara tweeted: "It was great to chat footy and have a laugh with the Prince."

Mr Kamara says Bradford will always have a special place in his heart after his spell at Valley Parade in the mid-1990s.

Chris Kamara during his time as Bradford City manager (Image: Newsquest)

He initially joined Bradford City as a player, making 23 appearances and scoring three goals during the 1994/95 season.

He was one of a number of football stars to receive their honours at the Castle today. Others included Liverpool star James Milner, former Manchester City player Mike Summerbee and Wales footballer Sophie Ingle.

Chris Kamara wears his MBE with pride following today's ceremony (Image: PA)

To celebrate his honour, the broadcaster, nicknamed Kammy, visited Bradford City Hall on March 3 to meet with the Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Martin Love, and the Lady Mayoress, Mrs Helen Love. The Lord Mayor wore a claret and amber-striped Bradford City club tie for the broadcaster’s visit.

The former Bradford City player and manager revealed that he has apraxia of speech (AOS), a disorder that affects the way a person connects speech messages from their brain to their mouth.

The Prince of Wales and Chris Kamara share a joke during the Bantams legend's MBE ceremony (Image: PA)

He was initially diagnosed in October 2021 and went public about his condition in March this year, as he was prompted to post an initial message on social media after viewers of Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday became concerned over his speech as he broadcasted from the League One clash between Rotherham United and Shrewsbury Town.

In more recent years he became best known for his work as a pundit and presenter on Sky Sports.

Chris Kamara reporting for Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday programme before kick off at Fulham’s Craven Cottage ground (Image: PA)

Kamara, who also presented Sky's Goals On Sunday programme, is well known to non-football lovers as a co-presenter of ITV's Ninja Warrior show.

Born in Middlesbrough of Sierra Leonean, English and Irish descent, Kamara served in the navy before joining Portsmouth for the first of two spells.

He played more than 200 games across two stints at Swindon, and also played for Brentford, Stoke, Leeds, Luton, Sheffield United, Middlesbrough and Bradford.