OJ Simpson has died of cancer at the age of 76.

Simpson was a running back for the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers from 1969 to 1979, before being acquitted of murder in a trial in the mid-1990s.

News of Simpson’s death was announced by his children on his X account.

“On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer,” read a statement.

“He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace. -The Simpson Family”

Simpson became one of the most notorious figures in American history when he was charged with the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman in 1994.

His trial was televised around the country and, although he was acquitted, he was later found liable for their deaths in a civil lawsuit and was ordered to pay £26.7million pounds to the victims of the families.

In 2017 he was released from prison after serving nine years of a 33-year sentence for armed robbery and kidnapping having been arrested in Las Vegas a decade earlier.