Ryan Giggs is a professional football player, born on November 29, 1973 in Ely, Cardiff, Wales. He is the son of Danny Wilson, who was a well known Rugby League player and his younger brother Rhodri is also a winger like him and plays for Curzon Ashton as of 2008. Ryan Giggs is married to Stacey Cooke and has two children, a daughter, Liberty, and a son, Zach. In the football world, he is also known as “The Welsh Wizard”.
Ryan Giggs won his first international cap for the Wales national team in 1991 in a friendly game against West Germany and was made the captain of the national team in 2004. On May 30, 2007, Ryan Giggs announced his retirement from international football and made his last appearance in a Euro 2008 qualifier against the Czech Republic on June 2, 2007 and won the Man of the Match award for his spectacular performance in the match. During his international football career from 1991 to 2007, Ryan Giggs has won a total of 64 international caps and has scored 12 goals for the Wales national football team.
Ryan Giggs began his professional football career with the Manchester United’s youth team in 1987 and was promoted to the senior side a few years later. On March 2, 1991, he made his League debut for it in a game against Everton at Old Trafford as a substitute. He made his first full debut in an impressive manner by scoring his first goal, which also turned out to be the only goal of the match, against Manchester City. On April 12, 1992, Ryan Giggs was a member of the team that won the League Cup Final by defeating Nottingham Forest. He was also voted as the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Young Player of the Year at the end of the season. During the 1992-93 season, he was a regular in the side and was regarded as one of British football's most prodigious young players with exhilarating football skills and his goals were regularly nominated for Goal of the Season awards. Some of his memorable goals include those scored in the games against Queens Park Rangers in 1993, Tottenham in 1994, Everton in 1995, Coventry in 1996 and the “Wonder-goal” against Arsenal in the replay of the 1999 Football Association (FA) Cup semi-final. During this period, Ryan Giggs was a member of the team that won various titles, including Premier League in 1992-93, 1993-94, 1995-96, 1996-97, 1998-99, 1999-2000, 2000-01 and 2002-03 seasons, as well as the FA Cup in 1993-94, 1995-96, 1998-99 and 2003-04 seasons. He played a crucial role in Manchester United’s Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Champions League triumph in the 1998-99 season and the FA Community Shield triumph in 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997 and 2003. In 2003, Ryan Giggs was inducted into the Premiership Team of the Decade.
In May 2005, Ryan Giggs extended his tenure with Manchester United by signing a new two-year contract, which was later extended through to July 2008. In the same year, he was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame. During the 2005-06 season, he was a member of the squad that won the Football League Cup. Ryan Giggs added more silverware to his list by winning the Premier League title in the following season and the FA Community Shield in 2007 and 2008. On March 3, 2007, he made his 700th appearance in a match against Liverpool. In the same year, he was inducted into the into the PFA Team of the Century.
During the 2007-08 season, Ryan Giggs carried on his good form and led his side to victory in various tournaments, including the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League titles.
Ryan Giggs holds the record for scoring in 12 consecutive Champions League tournaments and also holds the British record for being the only player to have won 7 FA Community Shields. He has been selected for the PFA Team of the Year squad in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2001 and 2007. On December 11, 2007 Ryan Giggs was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by the Queen for services to football. On July 15, 2008, he was awarded an honorary degree (Master of Arts) from Salford University for contributions to football and charity work in developing countries.
As of 2008, Ryan Giggs has played 537 games for this side and has scored 101 goals to his credit.
