Rio Gavin Ferdinand was born 7 November 1978 in Peckham, London. Ferdinand is an English footballer of mixed St Lucian, Dominican and Anglo-Irish descent. He plays at centre-back for Manchester United in the Premier League and at the international level for the England national football team. He has achieved 65 caps for the English national team, while been selected for three FIFA World Cup squads. He began his career with West Ham United and was then transferred to Leeds United, 20 months before he joined Manchester United.