Ugo Ehiogu

Club

_Deceased Soccer

Position

Centre-Back

Nationality

England

Date of birth

1972-11-03

Birthplace

Hackney, London, England

Height

1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)

Ugochukwu Ehiogu (3 November 1972 – 21 April 2017) was an English professional football coach and player who played as a centre-back. After retiring, he became a record executive, jointly founding the successful record label, Dirty Hit. Ehiogu was the head coach of the Tottenham Hotspur Under-21s from 2014 until his death in 2017.

He played in the Premier League with lengthy spells at Aston Villa and Middlesbrough. He also played in the Football League for West Bromwich Albion, Leeds United and Sheffield United, as well as a spell in the Scottish Premier League with Rangers. He won two Football League Cups, with Aston Villa in 1996 and then with Middlesbrough in 2004.

Ehiogu was an England international, with a record of 4 caps and 1 goal. In 1993, playing for the England Under-21s, he became the first black player to captain an England team in a competitive match.

Ehiogu died on 21 April 2017 after suffering a cardiac arrest at Tottenham's training ground. In February 2026, the U16 Ugo Ehiogu Memorial Cup was held by the Tottenham Hotspur Academy in his honour.