Micah Richards reveals he would not have been able to cover England's World Cup game live on the BBC after the death of his dad without Mark Chapman

Micah Richards has opened up on how his BBC colleague Mark Chapman helped him cope with the unexpected death of his father, Lincoln, on the day of England's semi-final against Argentina.

Richards, 38, was preparing to go on air with the broadcaster in Atlanta when he received a phone call from his brother informing him that Lincoln had died at the age of 66.

The former Manchester City defender went ahead with his punditry duties alongside Joe Hart and Wayne Rooney, aided by presenter Chapman.

He told The Sunday Times: 'On the day it happened my brother rang me, before the semi-final, and I’m going into it thinking how am I going to perform here? How am I going to act? I was on the phone to Chappers (Mark Chapman) for an hour. And he was saying, "Your dad would have wanted you to do it. This is what you’ve worked for since you’ve come into punditry."

'I didn’t want to tell Joe and Wayne, because I’ve known Joe since I was 17 and didn’t want to affect them, and Chappers said, "If in the first ten minutes you’re having a wobble let me know and we can just continue with the rest of the guys."

'If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t have got through it. One hundred per cent. And it was weird because when I’m on camera I’m sort of loud and obnoxious at times, but if you watch the footage I keep tapping my foot. I was just trying to hold it together.'

News of Richards' heartbreak only emerged after the broadcast, which was watched by 24 million people, when he shared an emotional post on social media.

He wrote: 'Not long before going on air today, I received the awful news that my father Lincoln had passed away.

'His death was unexpected, and he has left us all too soon. He was my greatest fan. He barely missed a game my entire life.

'He would take me wherever I needed to go when I was a kid and he was the proudest parent possible during my professional career.

'It was so rare for him to not be by my side.

'I know how much watching England World Cup games means to everyone at home, and how the experience bonds families together across the generations, like nothing else.

'I know, particularly as a proud old-school Yorkshireman, Dad would’ve wanted the show to go on this evening. And so it did.

'Thinking of my siblings and all my wider family today as we remember my father Lincoln, my hero and inspiration.'

Richards, whose middle name is Lincoln, has regularly praised the influence of his father – who came to the UK from St Kitts in the 1960s - on his career.

'I grew up in Chapeltown, a rough area of Leeds,' Richards said in 2007. 'There was all sorts of stuff – drugs and fighting. There is a point when you are 15 or 16 when you might want to get involved in it. There was definitely a temptation but I stayed grounded.

'I have been able to deal with all the stuff that has come my way. That's down to Dad. He's brought me up well. My Dad is a strong character. He is very principled. He's a Rastafarian. He has set standards for me.

'It's been great to have that sort of person behind me but at the same time I learned how to be my own man. Dad's always been here for me. He has missed only one game I have ever played in and that was my debut at Arsenal when I wasn't even been supposed to be in the squad.'

In 2023, Richards described his father as 'my rock and my hero' but said their relationship had changed after his dad and mother, Heather, separated. 

In his interview with the Sunday Times, Richards described how his retirement from playing football had left his father, who he described as having found 'a purpose' following his career and attending his games, taking 'a turn for the worse'.