Malcolm Allison - After Football

After Football

In 2001 it was revealed by his son that Allison was suffering from alcoholism. In 2009 it was reported that Allison was suffering from dementia.

In January 2007 Crystal Palace fans organised a tribute to Allison, which they named 'Fedora Day'. Fans set up a campaign on www.cpfc.org, an unofficial forum dedicated to the club, to mark the 31st anniversary of the famous FA Cup run which Allison masterminded. The date chosen was that of the game against Preston North End in the 4th Round of the FA Cup on 27 January 2007. Fans sporting Allison's favoured Fedoras smoked cigars and drank champagne while cheering on their side. This generated major national press coverage. Crystal Palace – managed by Peter Taylor, a star of the 1976 side – were unable to match their predecessors and were knocked out of the cup 2–0.

Allison died in a nursing home on 14 October 2010 at the age of 83. He had six children. His funeral took place on 27 October and the cortege passed the City of Manchester Stadium on its way to a service at the Southern Cemetery. Around 300 people had gathered to pay their respects and a round of applause from the assembled crowd greeted the arrival of the cars. A sky-blue Manchester City scarf was draped over his coffin and next to it was an ice bucket containing a bottle of Moet et Chandon champagne.