Jimmy Armfield has been awarded the prestigious Thomas Cook Sport Contribution to League Football Award, to be presented at the 2008 Football League Awards incorporating FourFourTwo's Top 50 Football League Players.

He will collect the award from Danny Talbot of Thomas Cook Sport at a gala dinner at The London Hilton, Park Lane on Sunday 2nd March 2008 in front of over 800 attendees from clubs, sponsors and the football industry.

On receiving his award, Jimmy said: "I've been in football for 54 years and throughout my playing career, of course, I only played in The Football League. I look upon this Contribution to League Football Award as a great honour, especially to be recognised for something I've enjoyed doing".

Jimmy spent the whole of his football playing career at Blackpool FC, usually in his favoured right-back position. Between 1954 and 1971 he played 627 games in all competitions. He spent a decade as the club's captain and was voted young player of the year in 1957.

Jimmy won 43 caps for England in an international career spanning seven years, 1959 - 1966, and captained his country on 15 occasions. He made his international debut in May 1959 against Brazil. He played in the 1962 World Cup in Chile and was voted as the best full-back in the tournament. He was included in the 1966 World Cup winning squad, but missed out on the tournament through injury.

He played his final game for Blackpool in May 1971.

Jimmy then became a manager, and his first post was with Bolton Wanderers steering them to the Division Three title in 1973, and then later with Leeds United, leading them to the European Cup final in 1975. Under Armfield, Leeds never finished outside the top ten in the League, qualified for the UEFA Cup, and reached FA and League Cup semi-finals.

After leaving Leeds, Jimmy left management behind and joined the Daily Express as a journalist, working with the paper from 1979-91. He is a consultant with the Football Association, and currently he is best known as a match summariser for BBC Radio Five Live, where he has worked since the 1978-79 season.

In 2000 he was awarded an OBE.

The 2008 Football League Awards will take place on Sunday 2nd March at the London Hilton Hotel. There will be a total of 19 winners awarded at the gala dinner, alongside the announcement of the FourFourTwo Top 50 Football League Players. The full list can be found in the April issue of FourFourTwo which is on sale on Monday 3rd March and for more details on the Top 50 visit www.FourFourTwo.com.

To find out more about The Football League Awards please visit www.footballleagueawards.com.

The Football League Awards show will be aired on Sky Sports 1 on Thursday 6th March at 8pm.

Thomas Cook Sport sponsored the Outstanding Contribution to League Football Award at the 2008 Football League Awards. As the UK's leading sports tour operator they partner with several teams and sporting bodies throughout football, providing travel and event services for both the supporters and players.