The Frank Soo Google Doodle
Frank Soo was the first non-white player to have ever played for the England national football team and still is the only player of Asian descent to reach that level in England. However, his matches were during WWII so were not recognised as official caps. Frank played mainly at Stoke City, where he captained the late "Wizard of the Dribble", Sir Stanley Matthews but also spent time at Leicester City and Luton Town.
He also guested for clubs such as Chelsea, Newcastle, and Everton to name but a few. He played 9 times for England and today, 9th May, marks the first time he played for England in 1942 against Wales. In honour of that momentous occasion, The Frank Soo Foundation has partnered up with Google to create a Google Doodle.
You can see the Doodle below but to see the moving Doodle in action, please visit the Google home page/search page throughout 9th May. Designed by a Doodler at Google, the Doodle features old school boots, where the laces tie around the boots, and an iconic brown leather ball. In the football card, where the second "O" is in Google, you can see Frank smiling. Frank's nickname was "The Smiler", and if you look at some of his photos you can see why that is the case!
It is difficult to determine what number Frank played with as it was largely dependent on what team he was with at the time as well as what position he played in. However, his most common number was 6 and there is footage of him playing in an England kit with that number. This is the number that was selected for the rotating "g"/"6". The Frank Soo Foundation hopes to promote Frank’s story and support those who want to follow in this footsteps.
For more information, go to - www.thefranksoofoundation.org.uk