Felix Magath
Encyclopedia
Wolfgang-Felix Magath is a former German
football central midfielder and current manager of VfL Wolfsburg
.
, Magath started his career playing for local club Viktoria Aschaffenburg
. From 1974–76, he played for 1. FC Saarbrücken
, at that time in the second division
, before moving to Hamburger SV
in the top flight
.
He would spend the following ten seasons with Hamburg, and from his debut in 1976 to his retirement he scored 46 goals in 306 games in the first division.
In 1983, Magath led Hamburg to success in the European Cup
, scoring the single goal in the final
against Juventus FC
; in 1980–81, he netted a career-best (in the first division) 10 goals, helping his side to a runner-up league spot, as Hamburg also won the league in three years during that time.
He also represented the German national team
at many international events, including the 1982
and 1986
FIFA World Cup
s, helping Germany land in second place both times. Magath made his debut on 30 April 1977, in a 2–1 friendly win with Yugoslavia
, and went on to amass 43 caps
, with three goals.
After a stint at Eintracht Frankfurt
, his reputation in the German league grew with his performances as coach of VfB Stuttgart
. He was then appointed as manager of FC Bayern Munich
on 1 July 2004. In his first season, Magath was able to lead his team to victory in both the league and cup, completing the double, a feat which would be repeated in 2005–06, the first time ever in the competition's history.
However, after a slow start to the 2006–07 season, with the team mired in fourth place which would not qualify them for the Champions League, Magath was sacked on 31 January 2007. In June, he signed a contract at VfL Wolfsburg
, leading the Wolves to play in the 2008–09 UEFA Cup and the following season's Champions League, the latter as league champions for the first time.
On 7 August 2006, Magath revealed that the Puerto Rico Football Federation had approached him with an offer to assume the position of national team
director in preparation for the Caribbean
commonwealth's 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign
in South Africa
.
as both head coach and general manager
, starting on 1 July 2009.
On 16 March 2011 Magath was sacked by Schalke. Only 24 hours later, on 17 March, he once again signed with VfL Wolfsburg, whom he led to the national championship in 2009.
) or “Quälix”, a mash of his first name Felix and the German verb “quälen” (to torture).
|1974–75||rowspan="2"|1. FC Saarbrücken
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
||38||12||||||||||||
|-
|1975–76||38||17||||||||||||
|-
|1976–77||rowspan="10"|Hamburger SV
||rowspan="10"|German League
||30||1||||||||||||
|-
|1977–78||33||4||||||||||||
|-
|1978–79||21||4||||||||||||
|-
|1979–80||32||5||||||||||||
|-
|1980–81||33||10||||||||||||
|-
|1981–82||28||8||||||||||||
|-
|1982–83||34||4||||||||||||
|-
|1983–84||34||5||||||||||||
|-
|1984–85||32||3||||||||||||
|-
|1985–86||29||2||||||||||||
382||75||||||||||||
382||75||||||||||||
|1977||2||0
|-
|1978||0||0
|-
|1979||0||0
|-
|1980||6||1
|-
|1981||11||1
|-
|1982||5||0
|-
|1983||0||0
|-
|1984||2||0
|-
|1985||8||1
|-
|1986||9||0
|-
!Total||43||3
|}
soldier in the United States Army
stationed in Aschaffenburg and a German mother. Both were abandoned by his father in 1954, when he returned to his homeland. The adolescent Magath first heard from his father when he was 15 years old, after he wrote a letter to Puerto Rico. In 1999, he visited Puerto Rico and finally met his father. They established a relationship and started visiting each other twice a year ever since.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
football central midfielder and current manager of VfL Wolfsburg
VfL Wolfsburg
VfL Wolfsburg is a professional German association football club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, who play in the Bundesliga football competition. Wolfsburg have won the Bundesliga once in their history, in the 2008–09 season, and were DFB-Pokal runners-up in 1995. The current head coach is Felix...
.
Playing career
Born near AschaffenburgAschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
, Magath started his career playing for local club Viktoria Aschaffenburg
Viktoria Aschaffenburg
SV Viktoria 01 Aschaffenburg is a German football club based in Aschaffenburg, Bavaria.Even though Aschaffenburg is located in Bavaria, Viktoria Aschaffenburg historically played its football in the Hessenliga and the associated Hessian leagues, rather than the Fussball-Bayernliga , against clubs...
. From 1974–76, he played for 1. FC Saarbrücken
1. FC Saarbrücken
1. FC Saarbrücken is a German association football club based in the city of Saarbrücken, Saarland. The club began its existence as the football department of Turnverein Malstatt formed in 1903...
, at that time in the second division
2. Fußball-Bundesliga
- Changes in division set-up :* Number of clubs: currently 18. From 1974 to 1981 there were two conferences, each of 20 teams. In 1981–91 it had 20...
, before moving to Hamburger SV
Hamburger SV
Hamburger Sport-Verein, usually referred to as HSV in Germany and Hamburg in international parlance, is a German multi-sport club based in Hamburg, its largest branch being its football department...
in the top flight
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
.
He would spend the following ten seasons with Hamburg, and from his debut in 1976 to his retirement he scored 46 goals in 306 games in the first division.
In 1983, Magath led Hamburg to success in the European Cup
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
, scoring the single goal in the final
1983 European Cup Final
The 1983 European Cup Final was a football match held at the Olympic Stadium, Athens, on 25 May 1983, that saw Hamburg of Germany defeat Juventus of Italy 1–0. A single goal from Felix Magath eight minutes into the game was enough for Hamburg to claim their first European Cup title.-Match...
against Juventus FC
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...
; in 1980–81, he netted a career-best (in the first division) 10 goals, helping his side to a runner-up league spot, as Hamburg also won the league in three years during that time.
He also represented the German national team
Germany national football team
The Germany national football team is the football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association , which was founded in 1900....
at many international events, including the 1982
1982 FIFA World Cup
The 1982 FIFA World Cup, the 12th FIFA World Cup, was held in Spain from 13 June to 11 July. The tournament was won by Italy, after defeating West Germany 3–1 in the final.-Host selection:...
and 1986
1986 FIFA World Cup
The 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so and officially...
FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
s, helping Germany land in second place both times. Magath made his debut on 30 April 1977, in a 2–1 friendly win with Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia national football team
The Yugoslavia national football team represented the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in association football. It enjoyed a modicum of success in international competition. In 1992, during the Yugoslav wars, the team was suspended from international...
, and went on to amass 43 caps
Cap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
, with three goals.
Managing career
After retiring as a player, Magath began coaching in October 1995 for his former club Hamburg. He was sacked at the end of the 1996–97 season.After a stint at Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt is a German sports club, based in Frankfurt, Hesse that is best known for its association football club.- Club origins :...
, his reputation in the German league grew with his performances as coach of VfB Stuttgart
VfB Stuttgart
Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart, is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club is best known for its football team, which has participated in all but two Bundesliga seasons...
. He was then appointed as manager of FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich , is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional football team, which is the most successful football club in Germany, having won 22 national titles and 15 cups....
on 1 July 2004. In his first season, Magath was able to lead his team to victory in both the league and cup, completing the double, a feat which would be repeated in 2005–06, the first time ever in the competition's history.
However, after a slow start to the 2006–07 season, with the team mired in fourth place which would not qualify them for the Champions League, Magath was sacked on 31 January 2007. In June, he signed a contract at VfL Wolfsburg
VfL Wolfsburg
VfL Wolfsburg is a professional German association football club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, who play in the Bundesliga football competition. Wolfsburg have won the Bundesliga once in their history, in the 2008–09 season, and were DFB-Pokal runners-up in 1995. The current head coach is Felix...
, leading the Wolves to play in the 2008–09 UEFA Cup and the following season's Champions League, the latter as league champions for the first time.
On 7 August 2006, Magath revealed that the Puerto Rico Football Federation had approached him with an offer to assume the position of national team
Puerto Rico national football team
The Puerto Rico national football team is the national team of Puerto Rico and is controlled by Federación Puertorriqueña de Fútbol. Puerto Rico's national football team is a member of the Caribbean Football Union, part of the CONCACAF....
director in preparation for the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
commonwealth's 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign
2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)
The CONCACAF qualification stage for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa consisted of 35 national teams competing for the three berths given automatically to CONCACAF by FIFA. The United States, Mexico and Honduras qualified...
in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
"I have an offer from Puerto Rico, Magath told Focus magazine. The president of the Puerto Rico Football Federation asked me whether I could work as team director in the build-up to the 2010 World Cup."Magath went on to admit that he was tempted, although he ultimately turned it down. Before 2008–09 had ended, he agreed on a four-year contract with FC Schalke 04
FC Schalke 04
Fußball-Club Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04, commonly known as simply FC Schalke 04 or Schalke , is a German, association-football club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. Schalke has long been one of the most popular football teams in Germany, even though major...
as both head coach and general manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
, starting on 1 July 2009.
On 16 March 2011 Magath was sacked by Schalke. Only 24 hours later, on 17 March, he once again signed with VfL Wolfsburg, whom he led to the national championship in 2009.
Reputation
As a manager, Magath quickly gained respect and became notorious for his hard, grinding training methods, laying heavy emphasis on discipline, fitness and conditioning. Players gave him nicknames like “Saddam” (Saddam HusseinSaddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
) or “Quälix”, a mash of his first name Felix and the German verb “quälen” (to torture).
Club
|-|1974–75||rowspan="2"|1. FC Saarbrücken
1. FC Saarbrücken
1. FC Saarbrücken is a German association football club based in the city of Saarbrücken, Saarland. The club began its existence as the football department of Turnverein Malstatt formed in 1903...
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
2. Fußball-Bundesliga
- Changes in division set-up :* Number of clubs: currently 18. From 1974 to 1981 there were two conferences, each of 20 teams. In 1981–91 it had 20...
||38||12||||||||||||
|-
|1975–76||38||17||||||||||||
|-
|1976–77||rowspan="10"|Hamburger SV
Hamburger SV
Hamburger Sport-Verein, usually referred to as HSV in Germany and Hamburg in international parlance, is a German multi-sport club based in Hamburg, its largest branch being its football department...
||rowspan="10"|German League
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
||30||1||||||||||||
|-
|1977–78||33||4||||||||||||
|-
|1978–79||21||4||||||||||||
|-
|1979–80||32||5||||||||||||
|-
|1980–81||33||10||||||||||||
|-
|1981–82||28||8||||||||||||
|-
|1982–83||34||4||||||||||||
|-
|1983–84||34||5||||||||||||
|-
|1984–85||32||3||||||||||||
|-
|1985–86||29||2||||||||||||
382||75||||||||||||
382||75||||||||||||
International
|-|1977||2||0
|-
|1978||0||0
|-
|1979||0||0
|-
|1980||6||1
|-
|1981||11||1
|-
|1982||5||0
|-
|1983||0||0
|-
|1984||2||0
|-
|1985||8||1
|-
|1986||9||0
|-
!Total||43||3
|}
International goals
- Score and results list West Germany's goal tally first.
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. 10 September 1980 St. Jakob-Park St. Jakob-Park' is a Swiss sports stadium in Basel. It is the largest football venue in Switzerland and home to FC Basel. "Joggeli", as the venue is nicknamed by the locals, was originally built with a capacity of 33,433 seats. The capacity was increased to 42,500 for Euro 2008, which was hosted by Switzerland...
, BaselBaselBasel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
2–0 3–2 Friendly Exhibition gameAn exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...2. 14 October 1981 Praterstadion, Vienna ViennaVienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
2–1 3–1 1982 World Cup qualifier 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)Listed below are the dates and results for the 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the European zone . For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification....3. 27 March 1985 Ludwigsparkstadion, Saarbrücken SaarbrückenSaarbrücken is the capital of the state of Saarland in Germany. The city is situated at the heart of a metropolitan area that borders on the west on Dillingen and to the north-east on Neunkirchen, where most of the people of the Saarland live....
2–0 6–0 1986 World Cup qualifier 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 2The 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification UEFA Group 2 was a UEFA qualifying group for the 1986 FIFA World Cup. The group comprised Czechoslovakia, Malta, Portugal, Sweden and West Germany....
Club
- HamburgHamburger SVHamburger Sport-Verein, usually referred to as HSV in Germany and Hamburg in international parlance, is a German multi-sport club based in Hamburg, its largest branch being its football department...
:- Fußball-BundesligaFußball-BundesligaThe Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
: 1978–79, 1981–82, 1982–83; - European CupUEFA Champions LeagueThe UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
: 1982–83 - UEFA Cup Winners' CupUEFA Cup Winners' CupThe UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a football club competition contested annually by the most recent winners of all European domestic cup competitions. The cup is one of the many inter-European club competitions that have been organised by UEFA. The first competition was held in the 1960–61 season—but...
: 1976–77 - UEFA Super Cup: 1977 runner-up, 1983 runner-up
- UEFA CupUEFA CupThe UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...
: 1981–82 runner-up
- Fußball-Bundesliga
Manager
- StuttgartVfB StuttgartVerein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart, is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club is best known for its football team, which has participated in all but two Bundesliga seasons...
:- UEFA Intertoto CupUEFA Intertoto CupThe UEFA Intertoto Cup, also abbreviated as UI Cup and originally called the International Football Cup, was a summer football competition for European clubs that had not qualified for one of the two major UEFA competitions, the Champions League and the UEFA Cup. The competition was discontinued...
: 2002
- UEFA Intertoto Cup
- Bayern MunichFC Bayern MunichFC Bayern Munich , is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional football team, which is the most successful football club in Germany, having won 22 national titles and 15 cups....
:- Fußball-BundesligaFußball-BundesligaThe Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
: 2004–05, 2005–06 - DFB-PokalDFB-PokalThe DFB-Pokal or DFB Cup is a German knockout football cup competition held annually. 64 teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. It is considered the second most important national title in German football after the Bundesliga...
: 2004–05, 2005–06 - DFB Ligapokal: 2004
- Fußball-Bundesliga
- WolfsburgVfL WolfsburgVfL Wolfsburg is a professional German association football club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, who play in the Bundesliga football competition. Wolfsburg have won the Bundesliga once in their history, in the 2008–09 season, and were DFB-Pokal runners-up in 1995. The current head coach is Felix...
:- Fußball-BundesligaFußball-BundesligaThe Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
: 2008–09
- Fußball-Bundesliga
Personal life
Magath is the son of a former Puerto RicanPuerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
soldier in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
stationed in Aschaffenburg and a German mother. Both were abandoned by his father in 1954, when he returned to his homeland. The adolescent Magath first heard from his father when he was 15 years old, after he wrote a letter to Puerto Rico. In 1999, he visited Puerto Rico and finally met his father. They established a relationship and started visiting each other twice a year ever since.