Karl Decker
Karl Decker (September 5, 1921 - September 27, 2005) was an Austrian footballer and football coach. He played most of his time for First Vienna FC as midfielder.
 Karl Decker – Memorial in Austria | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 5 September 1921 | ||
| Place of birth | Vienna, Austria | ||
| Date of death | 27 September 2005 (aged 84) | ||
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder/Inside forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1934 | Ottakringer SC | ||
| 1934–1937 | Schwarz-Weiß Wien | ||
| 1937 | Weiße Elf Penzing | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1937–1952 | First Vienna FC | 226 | (244) |
| 1952–1954 | SK Sturm Graz | 36 | (22) |
| 1954–1956 | FC Sochaux-Montbéliard | 37 | (15) |
| 1956–1958 | FC Grenchen | 1 | (0) |
| National team | |||
| 1942 | Germany | 8 | (8) |
| 1945–1952 | Austria | 25 | (19) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1951–1952 | First Vienna | ||
| 1952–1954 | Sturm Graz | ||
| 1956–1958 | FC Grenchen | ||
| 1958–1964 | Austria | ||
| 1964–1965 | Wiener Sport-Club | ||
| 1966–1968 | Wiener Sport-Club | ||
| 1968–1970 | SK Rapid Wien | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
Career
He started with minor clubs in Vienna and came to First Vienna FC in 1937. He played in this team until 1952. During the time Nazi Germany controlled Austria, he and his team were very successful.
Decker played eight times for the German national football team. After World War II, he played 25 matches for the Austrian team between 1945 and 1952.[1] In 1944 and 1950, he was the top scorer in the league. He also played for S.K. Sturm Graz (Austria), Sochaux (France) and FC Grenchen (Switzerland).
Coach
He was coach of Sturm Graz (1952–1954), FC Grenchen (1956–1958) and SK Rapid Wien (1968–1970). With Rapid, he reached the quarter finals of the European Champions Cup and won in the third round against Real Madrid. In the quarterfinals, they lost against Manchester United.[2]
Between 1958 and 1964, he was coach of the Austrian national football team. In this time, the team was very successful. They won against Scotland (4:1), USSR (3:1 and 1:0), Spain (3:0 in front of 90.726 visitors, the record crowd in Austria), Italy (2:1), England (3:1) and Hungary (2:1 and 2:1). They qualified for the 1962 FIFA World Cup in Chile but the ÖFB did not have enough money to send the team to the competition. The Decker era was one of the best for Austria's national football team.
References
- ↑ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Karl Decker". www.national-football-teams.com.
- ↑ "RapidArchiv - Offizielles Archiv des SK Rapid Wien". www.rapidarchiv.at. Retrieved 2023-11-05.