Subscribe to our social channels to get the latest news about Hungary!
He is the most famous Hungarian – Ferenc Puskás would be 93 years old – photos, videos
Change language:
Hungarian scientists, athletes, musicians, composers, inventors and many others did and discovered great things from the Rubik’s cube to the Vitamin C. However, Ferenc Puskás, is the most famous among all of them, his name is well-known from Argentina to Japan and from Australia to the United States. Why?
Born to a German (Danube Swabian) family in a suburb, Kispest, near Budapest, he showed great talent for football already when he was young. Therefore, even though he did not reach the minimum age (12), he could play in the local club with his childhood friend, József Bozsik who became a member of the Hungarian Golden Team, as well. He made his first senior appearance for Kispest in November 1943 in a match against Nagyváradi AC. It was there where he got the nickname “Öcsi” or “Buddy” because he was not too tall and was very young, only 16 by then.
Kispest became the team of the Hungarian Army during the Communist dictatorship, but he continued to play there. The club acquired the best Hungarian players of that time, and with the help of Puskás, they won five Hungarian League titles. He also finished as a top goal scorer in the league in 1947–48, 1949–50, 1950 and 1953, scoring 50, 31, 25 and 27 goals, respectively. In 1948, he was the top goal scorer in Europe.
- Congratulations! Budapest’s Puskás Aréna became the Stadium Of The Year 2019!
- The life of Ferenc Puskás will be made into a musical
- Puskás posthumously honoured with World Sports Legends Award
In the Hungarian team, he debuted in 1945 against Austria when they won 5:2. He played 85 games and scored 84 times for Hungary. Together with Zoltán Czibor, Sándor Kocsis, József Bozsik, and Nándor Hidegkuti, he formed the nucleus of the Golden Team that was to remain unbeaten for 32 consecutive games between 1950 and 1954.
During that run, they became Olympic Champions in 1952, beating Yugoslavia 2–0 in the final in Helsinki. Puskás scored four times at the Olympic tournament, including the opening goal in the final. They also defeated England twice, first with a 6–3 win at Wembley Stadium on the “match of the century” and then 7–1 in Budapest. Puskás scored two goals in each game against England. Here are the highlights on what happened in the Wembley Stadium.