Chris Bart-Williams

Christopher Gerald Bart-Williams (16 June 1974 – 24 July 2023) was a football coach and professional player. Born in Sierra Leone, he represented England internationally.

As a player, he was a defender and midfielder and notably played in the Premier League for Sheffield Wednesday, Nottingham Forest and Charlton Athletic. He also played in the Football League for Leyton Orient and Ipswich Town, in Cyprus with APOEL and in Malta with Marsaxlokk. Born in Sierra Leone, He was capped by England at youth level and went on to play for England under-21s and was called up to train with the senior squad although he never won a full England cap.

Following retirement, Bart-Williams moved into coaching in the United States and notably worked as assistant coach of Women's Premier Soccer League side SoccerPlus Connecticut.

Early life
Born in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Bart-Williams grew up in North London and attended The School of St. David's and St Katharine's in Hornsey.

Early career
Bart-Williams began his professional career at the age of 16 with Leyton Orient and scored on his debut, a 4–0 win against Tranmere Rovers on 2 February 1991. He made 36 league appearances with the club and scored twice.

Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday showed interest in him and subsequently bought him for £275,000 in November 1991, the year they won promotion to the Football League First Division and were also winners of the Football League Cup.

Once with Sheffield Wednesday, Bart-Williams was immediately given a first-team place. He began his career playing as an attacking midfielder. On 12 April 1993, he scored a hat-trick against Southampton in a 5–2 win.

Bart-Williams played for Wednesday as a substitute in the 1993 FA Cup Final replacing Chris Waddle in the first game and Roland Nilsson towards the end of the replay.

Bart-Williams also helped the Owls reach the Football League Cup semi-finals in the 1993–94 season and also appeared in their short-lived UEFA Cup campaign (the club's first European run since the 1960s) the previous season.

Nottingham Forest
After four years, he moved to Nottingham Forest for the sum of £2.5 million. Bart-Williams had a successful spell with Forest, and even though he played as a defensive midfielder he managed to score 35 goals, even being the club's top scorer in the 2000–01 season, and was often clinical from free kicks and penalties.

During a game in 2000, Forest tried to experiment with their formation by playing 3–5–2 and played Bart-Williams as a sweeper. This experiment turned out to be a successful one as Nottingham Forest won 5–0 against Burnley, with Bart-Williams scoring twice.

In 2001, Forest found themselves in financial difficulties and had to sell their better players. Bart-Williams turned down moves to Southampton and Birmingham City.

Later career
In December 2001, Bart-Williams left Forest, signing for Charlton Athletic, initially on a short-term contract. In May 2002, he signed a new two-year deal at the club. Bart-Williams had 20 appearances and two goals.

After spending two seasons with Charlton, Bart-Williams moved to Ipswich Town, initially on loan in September 2003, and then permanently for the rest of the 2003–04 season. He was released at the end of the season and decided to move away from English football.

Next for Bart-Williams was a move to APOEL in Cyprus in September 2004. He had been linked with a return to Nottingham Forest, although the rumour was denied by Forest.

After unsuccessful attempts to lure Paul Gascoigne to the club, on 6 August 2005 Maltese team Marsaxlokk signed Bart-Williams. But he managed only eight appearances and was sent home only two months into his three-year contract.

Coaching career
After retiring from professional play, Bart-Williams moved to the United States to coach alongside former U.S. women's national soccer team head coach Tony DiCicco. He served as an assistant for the Boston Breakers, a team in the WPSL. He also was head coach of their reserve squads under the SoccerPlus Connecticut club. Bart-Williams joined the Quinnipiac University men's soccer programme as an assistant coach, helping to lead them to a 2013 MAAC championship and the first round of the NCAA soccer tournament. He also served as an assistant coach for the Quinnipiac University men's soccer team for six years.

Bart-Williams ran an international soccer training and college recruiting service, CBW Soccer Elite, placing talented student-athletes in American college soccer programmes. Bart-Williams was also a consultant to Charlotte Soccer Academy's U.S. Soccer Development Academy programme and was the head of Gulliver Schools' boys' soccer programme in Miami, Florida.

In February 2022, Dade County F.C. announced he had been appointed as head coach to oversee all their football programmes.

Death
Bart-Williams died on 24 July 2023, at the age of 49. He had been working and living in the United States. His death came on the same day as his former Sheffield Wednesday manager Trevor Francis.

Honours

 * Sheffield Wednesday
 * FA Cup runner-up: 1992–93


 * Nottingham Forest
 * Football League First Division: 1997–98


 * England U19
 * FIFA World Youth Championship third place: 1993


 * Individual
 * Nottingham Forest Player of the Year: 2000–01
 * PFA Fans' Player of the Year: 2000–01 First Division