Kenneth Butcher

{{Short description|Trinidadian footballer (1948–2025)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2026}} {{Infobox football biography |embed = |name = Kenneth Butcher |image = |image_size = |alt = |caption = |full_name = Kenneth Butcher |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1949|1|15|df=y}} |birth_place = [[Barataria, Trinidad and Tobago|Barataria]], [[San Juan–Laventille]], Trinidad and Tobago |death_date = |death_place = |height = |position = [[Midfielder]] | youthyears1 = | youthclubs1 = [[Belmont Secondary School (Trinidad and Tobago)|Belmont Secondary]] | years1 = 1968–1970 | clubs1 = [[Queen's Park F.C. (Trinidad and Tobago)|Queen's Park]] | caps1 = | goals1 = | totalcaps = | totalgoals = | nationalyears1 = 1968 | nationalteam1 = [[Trinidad and Tobago national football team|Trinidad and Tobago]] | nationalcaps1 = 3 | nationalgoals1 = 0 |medaltemplates= }}

'''Kenneth Butcher''' (born 15 January 1949) is a retired Trinidadian footballer. Nicknamed "The Smooth", he played as a [[midfielder]] for [[Queen's Park F.C. (Trinidad and Tobago)|Queen's Park]] throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s. He also represented his native [[Trinidad and Tobago national football team|Trinidad and Tobago]] for the [[1970 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)|1970 FIFA World Cup qualifiers]].

==International career== Butcher was first called up for [[Trinidad and Tobago national football team|Trinidad and Tobago]] on the second legged match against [[Guatemala national football team|Guatemala]] on 20 November 1968 during the [[1970 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)|1970 FIFA World Cup qualifiers]]. His other two matches were against [[Haiti national football team|Haiti]] on 23 and 25 November 1968 that resulted in an initial 4–0 defeat only to be followed with a 2–4 victory despite the Soca Warriors ultimately not qualifying for the [[1970 FIFA World Cup]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Player Profile - Kenneth Butcher|url=https://www.socawarriors.net/component/ttfootball/?view=playerprofile&id=64|website=Soca Warriors Online|access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>

==Later life== Since his retirement, Butcher had been serving as a National Technical Director until around the mid-2000s.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Villafana|first=Joel|date=20 June 2005|title=Kerry Noray deserves a national call up|url=https://www.socawarriors.net/league/1397-kerry-noray-deserves-a-national-call-up.html|website=Soca Warriors Online|access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref> He has also served as the Minister of Sport and currently works as a football analyst.<reF>{{Cite web|date=15 September 2025|title=Butcher: Yorke must resign if T&T is to have any chance of qualifying|url=https://www.guardian.co.tt/sports/butcher-yorke-must-resign-if-tt-is-to-have-any-chance-of-qualifying-6.2.2400580.ad26d4f7f6|website=[[Trinidad and Tobago Guardian]]|access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref> He has notably been a sharp critic of the current [[Trinidad and Tobago Football Association]]'s operations from their failures on the Soca Warriors being unable to qualify for both the [[2026 FIFA World Cup]] and the [[2027 FIFA Women's World Cup]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=20 April 2026|last=Aldred|first=Lennox|title=Kenneth Butcher Demands Total Shake-Up After Another World Cup Nightmare For Trinidad and Tobago|url=https://www.caribbeantoday.com/sections/sports/kenneth-butcher-demands-total-shake-up-after-another-world-cup-nightmare-for-trinidad-and-tobago|website=Carribean Today|access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>

==Personal life== Kenneth was born into the Butcher family with his international career being the first athlete from the family to achieve national attention with his brother [[Noel Butcher (footballer)|Noel]] also becoming a footballer in 1971. His sister Lyris also represented Trinidad internationally in field hockey in 1977. His son [[Nick Butcher]] has also represented the United States in field hockey at the [[Field hockey at the 1996 Summer Olympics|1966 Summer Olympics]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=26 June 2024|title=The Butcher Family of Trinidad and Tobago: A Legacy of Sporting Excellenece/Compiled by Rick Butcher|url=https://www.bigdrumnation.com/2024/07/20/the-butchers/|website=Big Drum Nation|access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>

==References== {{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Butcher, Kenneth}} [[Category:1949 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:People from San Juan–Laventille]] [[Category:Trinidad and Tobago men's footballers]] [[Category:Men's association football defenders]] [[Category:Trinidad and Tobago men's international footballers]] [[Category:Trinidad and Tobago football managers]] [[Category:Trinidad and Tobago national football team managers]] [[Category:20th-century Trinidad and Tobago sportsmen]]