Reports broke early Monday afternoon that Murray had passed away after a battle with illness.

The 71-year-old is a legend of Australian football, having spent decades on SBS promoting the game in the country. 

He retired in 2014 as host of The World Game, but still remained strongly involved in football.

Murray had also been voted into the Football Federation Australia Hall of Fame, as well as being made a Member of the Order of Australia for services to association football in 2006.

Tributes flow for football icon Les Murray

Born in Hungary as László Ürge, Murray and his family immigrated to Australia in 1957 under the Hungarian Refugee Assisted Scheme.

He began working as SBS as a subtitler in Hungarian, before moving into covering football years later. 

Murray covered the 1986 World Cup for SBS, and went on to cover ever FIFA World Cup since, including the 2014 World Cup in Brazil before retiring. 

He was the face of football in Australia for decades, and one of the best sports journalists and broadcasters in the country. 

Vale Les.