The legend of Ferenc Puskás lives on among the biggest FIFA icons and in a new musical

According to the EA Sports website, Hungarian football legend, Ferenc Puskás will be included in a game mode in FIFA, the world’s best-selling sports video game franchise together with Eric Cantona, Petr Cech, Davor Suker, Xavi and other iconic players. However, this is not the only great news Puskás fans received this week. The long-awaited musical about the life of “Puskás Öcsi” will premiere at Erkel Theatre in Budapest on August 20.

After many years of lobbying and voting, and thousands of articles, recommendations and comments posted by Hungarian football fans, Ferenc Puskás will finally join the team of the FIFA FUT 21 icons. The Hungarian footballer will be the only FIFA 21 player born before 1930. “After the Panini cards, Ferenc Puskás will appear in another platform and in this way, hundreds of millions of children playing FIFA will get to know the most famous Hungarian,” said György Szöllősi Ambassador of Hungarian Football Tradition and Affairs Concerning Ferenc Puskás on his Facebook page.

“There are few players who stand as tall as Ferenc Puskás in football history, let alone Real Madrid’s near-fictional club lineage. Widely recognised as one of the greatest forwards ever, Puskás drove Madrid to three European Cups, with his dribbling ability, movement and perfect timing contributing to some of Real Madrid’s most glorious moments.

He also carried Hungary to a FIFA World Cup final – amassing 84 goals in 85 appearances for his nation. The FIFA “Puskás” Award is given to the scorer of the best goal each year. You can only imagine what the man it’s named after’s goals were like,” wrote EA Sports about the Hungarian footballer.

Hirado added that the Olympic and world champion silver medalist is widely regarded as the sport’s first international superstar.

Puskás is the only football player in the world to score a goal in a World Cup Final (1954, Bern), an Olympic Football Tournament (1952, Helsinki), a European International Cup Final (1953, Rome), a European Champions Cup Final (1960, Glasgow) and a World Cup Final (1960, Madrid). He is the best-scoring player on the Hungarian National Team and the Sportsman of the Nation since 2004,

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The latest theatrical production about the life of Ferenc Puskás, focusing on the period between 1937 and 1960, will be first performed at 15:00 and 19:00 on August 20. The organisers originally planned a more grandiose premiere at Heroes Square, but the location had to be changed due to the coronavirus pandemic and the restrictions, Origo wrote.

“This performance presents the life of a person whom every Hungarian can be proud of,” said Tamás Veréb who plays Ferenc Puskás. Vajk Szente, the director, added that

“Ferenc Puskás is one of the greatest heroes in Hungary. We had to make a theatre piece about him,”

The Golden Team plays an essential role in the musical and all the players of the national team who played at the 1954 FIFA World Cup will appear in the production. Since authentic stage movement is crucial to a good performance, so the actors did not only rehearsed in the theatre but also on the ELTE-BEAC Pluhár István Football Field.

Puskás, a musical is an entirely Hungarian production and the tickets for the premiere are available on the event’s website.

Featured image: video still from Puskás, a musical

Source: hirado.hu, origo.hu