Benni McCarthy facts for kids
McCarthy warming up for West Ham United in 2010
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Benedict Saul McCarthy | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 12 November 1977 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Cape Town, South Africa | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Forward | |||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||
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Current team
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Kenya (manager) | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| Young Pirates | ||||||||||||||||
| Crusaders | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 1995–1997 | Seven Stars | 49 | (42) | |||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | → Cape Town Spurs (loan) | 7 | (3) | |||||||||||||
| 1997–1999 | Ajax | 36 | (20) | |||||||||||||
| 1999–2003 | Celta Vigo | 66 | (10) | |||||||||||||
| 2003–2006 | Porto | 85 | (46) | |||||||||||||
| 2006–2010 | Blackburn Rovers | 109 | (37) | |||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | West Ham United | 11 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2011–2013 | Orlando Pirates | 24 | (10) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 387 | (168) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| South Africa U23 | 13 | |||||||||||||||
| 1997–2012 | South Africa | 79 | (31) | |||||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | Cape Town City | |||||||||||||||
| 2020–2022 | AmaZulu | |||||||||||||||
| 2025– | Kenya | |||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||
Benedict Saul McCarthy (born 12 November 1977) is a famous South African football coach and former player. He played as a forward, which means he was a goal-scorer. McCarthy is the all-time top scorer for the South Africa national team with 31 goals. He is also the only South African player to have won the UEFA Champions League, which he did with Porto in the 2003–04 season.
McCarthy is currently the manager of the Kenya national team. Before this, he was a first-team coach at Premier League club Manchester United.
Contents
Early Life and Football Start
Benni McCarthy was born in Cape Town, South Africa. He grew up in an area called Hanover Park. His family includes his parents, Dudley and Dora, two brothers, and a sister. His older brother, Jerome McCarthy, was also a professional footballer.
Benni started playing football at a local team called Young Pirates. His uncles managed this team. Later, he joined a youth club called Crusaders. When he was 17, he signed with a first-division club named Seven Stars.
Club Career Highlights
Seven Stars and Ajax
McCarthy played for Seven Stars when he was 18. He scored 1 goal in 29 matches in his first season. The next season, he scored 12 goals in 20 matches. This impressive performance led to him joining Cape Town Spurs.
In 1997, after showing great skill at youth tournaments, he moved to Ajax in the Netherlands. He scored nine goals and helped Ajax win the league in his first season. After a good second season, he moved to the Spanish team Celta Vigo. This was a very expensive transfer for a South African player at the time.
Celta Vigo and Porto Success
Even though he was considered one of Africa's best players, McCarthy did not play regularly for Celta Vigo. After two difficult seasons, he was loaned to Porto in Portugal in 2001. There, he started scoring goals again.
At Porto, McCarthy played under the famous coach José Mourinho. He helped the team finish third in the league by scoring 12 goals in 11 matches. However, Porto could not afford to keep him at that time.
In 2002–03, McCarthy returned to Celta Vigo. He spent most of his time on the bench while Porto won several trophies, including the UEFA Cup. In 2003, Porto finally bought McCarthy permanently.
For the 2003–04 season, McCarthy was the top scorer in the Portuguese league with 20 goals. He also played a key role in Porto winning the UEFA Champions League. He scored two important goals against Manchester United in that competition.
Blackburn Rovers Journey
On 25 July 2006, McCarthy joined Blackburn Rovers in England. He signed a four-year contract. He scored on his home debut for Blackburn against Everton. He also scored in his first European match for the club.
In the 2006–07 season, McCarthy was the second-highest scorer in the Premier League with 18 goals. He scored 24 goals in all competitions that season. The next season, he faced injuries and competition from other strikers. Despite this, he scored 11 goals.
Overall, McCarthy scored 52 goals in 140 matches for Blackburn Rovers.
West Ham United and Orlando Pirates
On 1 February 2010, McCarthy moved to West Ham United. He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract. However, he struggled with injuries and did not score any goals for the club. He left West Ham in April 2011.
After leaving Europe, McCarthy signed with Orlando Pirates in South Africa on 2 August 2011. He scored on his debut for the team.
On 19 May 2012, McCarthy scored two goals to help Orlando Pirates win their second straight Premier League title. He finished the season with ten league goals. By winning the league with Orlando Pirates, McCarthy made history. He became the first South African footballer to win league titles with three different clubs on two different continents. He won titles with Ajax (Netherlands), Porto (Portugal), and Orlando Pirates (South Africa).
McCarthy retired from professional football on 6 June 2013, at the age of 35.
International Career for South Africa
McCarthy first played for the South Africa national team on 4 June 1997, against the Netherlands.
He was the joint top scorer at the 1998 African Cup of Nations. He scored seven goals, including four goals in just 13 minutes against Namibia. He was also named the best player of the tournament.
McCarthy was a key player for South Africa in the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France. He scored a goal against Denmark, which helped South Africa draw the game. He also played in the 2002 FIFA World Cup, where he scored against Spain.
McCarthy became the all-time leading goal scorer for South Africa. His goal in a 3–0 win against Paraguay in 2008 broke the previous record of 29 goals.
Before the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, McCarthy supported a campaign to ban guns from stadiums. He was not chosen for the final South African squad for the 2010 World Cup due to fitness concerns.
Managerial Career
Early Coaching Roles
In April 2015, McCarthy joined the coaching staff at Scottish club Hibernian. He helped coach the Under-20s team and assisted the first team.
In February 2015, he also had a short coaching experience at Sint-Truidense in Belgium. He became an assistant manager there in September 2015. He left Sint-Truiden in April 2016.
Cape Town City and AmaZulu
On 13 June 2017, McCarthy became the head coach of Cape Town City. He won his first trophy as a coach in 2018, guiding City to win the MTN 8 cup. He left the club in November 2019.
On 14 December 2020, McCarthy was named the new head coach of AmaZulu. He led the club to a second-place finish in the DStv Premiership, which was a record for AmaZulu. This success meant AmaZulu qualified for the 2021–22 CAF Champions League. McCarthy guided AmaZulu to the group stages of the Champions League before they exited the competition. He and AmaZulu parted ways on 25 March 2022.
Manchester United and Kenya
On 30 July 2022, McCarthy was appointed as a first-team coach at Manchester United. His contract with Manchester United ended on 27 June 2024. McCarthy decided not to renew his contract because he wanted to return to being a head coach.
On 3 March 2025, McCarthy was announced as the new head coach of the Kenya team.
Personal Life
In 2004, Benni McCarthy married Maria Santos from Spain. They had three daughters together: Minna, Mya, and Allegra. They separated in 2007. In May 2014, McCarthy married Scottish model Stacey Munro. They have a daughter, Lima Rose, born in 2012, and a son, Lio Romero, born in 2019.
Honours
Player
Ajax
- Eredivisie: 1997–98
- KNVB Cup: 1997–98, 1998–99
Celta Vigo
- UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2000
Porto
- Primeira Liga: 2003–04, 2005–06
- Taça de Portugal: 2005–06
- Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2003, 2004
- UEFA Champions League: 2003–04
- Intercontinental Cup: 2004
Orlando Pirates
- Premier League: 2011–12
- MTN 8: 2011
- Telkom Knockout: 2011
South Africa
- African Cup of Nations runner-up: 1998
- Afro-Asian Cup of Nations: 1997
- Reunification Cup: 2002
Individual
- African Cup of Nations Best Player: 1998
- African Cup of Nations Top Scorer: 1998 (shared with Hossam Hassan)
- African Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament: 1998
- African Goal of the Year: 2004
- Ajax Talent of the Year (Marco van Basten Award): 1997–98
- SJPF Player of the Month: January 2004, May 2004, October 2004
- Primeira Liga Top Scorer: 2003–04
- Taça de Portugal Top Scorer: 2005–06
Manager
Cape Town City
- MTN 8: 2018
Discography
Singles
- 1998: "Shibobo" by TKZee featuring Benni McCarthy
See also
In Spanish: Benni McCarthy para niños
