Sándor Kocsis

Sándor Kocsis

Kocsis in August 1960
Personal information
Full name	Sándor Kocsis Péter
Date of birth	(1929-09-21)21 September 1929
Place of birth	Budapest, Hungary
Date of death	22 July 1979(1979-07-22) (aged 49)
Place of death	Barcelona, Spain
Position(s)	Striker
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1943–1944	Köbanyai TC	5	(0)
1945–1950	Ferencváros	54	(40)
1950	ÉDOSZ	30	(30)
1950–1956	Honvéd	160	(176)
1957–1958	Young Fellows Zürich	11	(7)
1958–1965	Barcelona	75	(42)
1961	→ Valencia (guest)
Total		335	(295)
National team
1948–1956	Hungary	68	(75)
Teams managed
1970–1971	Hércules
??	Alicante
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Sándor Péter Kocsis ([ˈʃaːndor ˈpeːtɛr ˈkot͡ʃiʃ], SHAWN-dor KOTCH-ish; 21 September 1929 – 22 July 1979) was a Hungarian footballer who played for Ferencváros TC, Budapest Honvéd, Young Fellows Zürich, FC Barcelona and Hungary as a striker. During the 1950s, along with Ferenc Puskás, Zoltán Czibor, József Bozsik and Nándor Hidegkuti, he was a member of the Mighty Magyars. After the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, he moved to Spain where he became a member of the FC Barcelona team of the late 1950s.

Kocsis was a prolific goalscorer for both Budapest Honvéd and Hungary. While playing for Honvéd, he was the top goalscorer in any European league in both 1952 and 1954. He also scored 75 goals in 68 appearances for Hungary – a 1.10 goal/game average at the game's highest level. Kocsis was the top goalscorer in the 1954 World Cup with 11 goals, a record at the time for goals in a single World Cup. He was also the first player to score two hat tricks in a World Cup. His 2.2 goal/game average in the World Cup finals is second only to that of Ernst Wilimowski (Poland) who scored four goals in his only World Cup match.^[1] and only Just Fontaine has scored more goals than Kocsis in a single World Cup. He is the most prolific goalscorer in national team matches in all levels in recorded history according to Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF) with 125 goals scored.^[2] Kocsis was particularly known for scoring headers.

His 1.103 goals/game average is ranked No.1 for players past 43 caps in FIFA class-A competition, closely followed by Gerd Müller with 1.097 goals/game (68 goals in 62 games). They are the only two players in history above a +1.0 goals/game average encompassing over 43 internationals. Ferenc Puskás with .99 goals/game (84 goals in 85 matches) is currently ranked 3rd.

Sándor Kocsis registered seven hat tricks for Hungary.^[3]

Career[]

Early years[]

Kocsis was born in Budapest. He began his career as a junior with Kőbányai TC, before joining Ferencváros TC in 1946. There, he won his first Hungarian League title in 1949. He was then conscripted into the army and joined the army club, Honvéd. His team mates at Honvéd included Ferenc Puskás, Zoltán Czibor and József Bozsik. During his time at the club he won three more Hungarian League titles in 1952, 1954 and 1955. He finished as top goalscorer in the league on three occasions in 1951, 1952 and 1954 scoring 30, 36 and 33 goals respectively.^[4] On the latter two occasions he was also the top goalscorer in any European league.

During the 1952 season at Honvéd, Kocsis was the world's top goalscorer in world 1st division football with 36 goals. He repeated that feat in 1954 with 33 goals.

Kocsis made his debut for the senior Hungary team in 1948. Together with Ferenc Puskás, Zoltán Czibor, József Bozsik and Nándor Hidegkuti, he formed the offensive nucleus of the Golden Team that went unbeaten for 32 consecutive games. The Hungarian national team suffered no defeats in Class-A international matches between 4 June 1950 and 4 July 1954, in the 1954 FIFA World Cup Final.

Kocsis scored his first international hat trick in a game against Sweden on 20 November 1949, and he scored a further one on 22 June 1952 against Finland. Kocsis also scored six goals at the Olympics in Helsinki as Hungary became Olympic Champions in 1952. On 19 October 1952, he scored his third international hat trick in a game against Czechoslovakia.

In 1953, Hungary defeated England 6–3 at Wembley Stadium and then in 1954 by 7–1 in Budapest. During the latter game, Kocsis added a further two goals. In 1953 Hungary also won the Central European International Cup.

1954 World Cup[]

Sándor Kocsis (1953)

He finished the 1954 World Cup as top goalscorer, scoring 11 goals including two hat tricks, the first of the three players that achieved this. In the opening game he scored his first hat trick of the tournament against South Korea as Hungary cruised to a 9–0 win. In the next game against Germany, he went one further and scored four of the goals in an 8–3 win against the understrength team of coach Sepp Herberger.^[5] In the quarter-finals Hungary played Brazil in a game referred to as the Battle of Berne: Kocsis scored twice in an encounter which saw Hungary win 4–2. Hungary then reached the final after they defeated reigning World champions Uruguay in the semi-finals. The game was 2–2 in extra time until Kocsis scored twice to seal another 4–2 win. In the final they met Germany once again. However, for the first time in the competition Kocsis failed to score and the Germans won 3–2.

On 24 October 1954, he scored his sixth international hat trick and second against Czechoslovakia. He completed his seventh and last hat trick for Hungary on 5 November 1955 in a game against the same opponents, Sweden, that he had scored his first.

Honvéd World Tour[]

In 1956 Honvéd entered the European Cup and in the first round they were drawn against Athletic Bilbao. Honvéd lost the away leg 2–3, but before the home leg could be played, the Hungarian Revolution had erupted back in Budapest. The players decided against going back to Hungary and arranged for the return with Athletic to be played at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels. Despite drawing 3–3 they went out on 6–5 on aggregate.

Elimination left Honvéd in limbo. The players summoned their families from Budapest and, despite opposition from FIFA and the Hungarian football authorities, they organised a fundraising tour of Italy, Portugal, Spain and Brazil. After returning to Europe, the players parted ways. Some, including Bozsik, returned to Hungary while others, including Czibor, Kocsis and Puskás, found new clubs in Western Europe.

FC Barcelona and coaching career[]

Kocsis spent one season with Young Fellows Zürich before another Hungarian refugee, László Kubala, persuaded him and Zoltán Czibor to join him at FC Barcelona where he became a vital member of the team. He subsequently scored on his La Liga debut in a 4–1 win over Real Betis and as part of a team that also included Ramallets, Evaristo and Luis Suárez, Kocsis won a Copa del Generalísimo/La Liga double in 1959 and a La Liga/Fairs Cup double in 1960. FC Barcelona also reached the final of the European Cup in 1961 and this saw Czibor and Kocsis return to the Wankdorf Stadium in Bern, where in 1954, while playing for Hungary, they had lost the World Cup Final and where, on 23 February 1958, Kocsis had lost 5–1 to BSC Young Boys while playing for Young Fellows Zürich. Despite both Kocsis and Czibor scoring, they finished on the losing side once again. They also lost by the same 3–2 score again, this time to S.L. Benfica.

He scored twice in the 1959 Copa del Generalísimo final as FC Barcelona defeated Granada CF 4–1. In the 1960 European Cup he scored four of the goals in a 5–2 quarter-final win over Wolves. He also scored a hat trick against Real Sociedad in a La Liga game in 1961 and scored all three goals in the 1962 Fairs Cup final that they lost to Valencia CF 7–3 on aggregate. In 1961, he also played as a guest for Valencia CF and helped them win their own summer trophy, the Trofeo Naranja. He scored in both games as Valencia beat Botafogo and FC Barcelona. Kocsis also scored in the 1963 Copa del Generalísimo final held at the Camp Nou. FC Barcelona beat Real Zaragoza 3–1.

Later life and death[]

Kocsis retired as a player in 1966 and opened a restaurant in Barcelona called Tete D’ Or. He also worked as a coach with FC Barcelona and managed Hércules CF between 1972 and 1974. However his coaching career was cut short when he was diagnosed with leukemia and then stomach cancer. On 22 July 1979, aged 49, he fell to his death from the fourth floor of a hospital in Barcelona. It has been alleged that he committed suicide, though it may have been only an accident.^[4][6]

Career statistics[]

Club[]

Source:^[7]

International[]

Sources:^[8][9]

International goals[]

Scores and results list Hungary's goal tally first.

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Competition
1	6 June 1948	Hungária, Budapest	Romania	9–0	1948 Balkan Cup
2
3	2 May 1949	Hungária, Budapest	Austria	6–1	1948–53 Dr. Gerö Cup
4	19 June 1949	Råsunda Stadium, Stockholm	Sweden	2–2	Friendly
5	20 November 1949	Hungária, Budapest	Sweden	5–0	Friendly
6
7
8	30 April 1950	Hungária, Budapest	Czechoslovakia	5–0	Friendly
9
10	15 May 1950	Praterstadion, Vienna	Austria	3–5	Friendly
11	24 September 1950	Hungária, Budapest	Albania	12–0	Friendly
12
13	27 May 1951	Hungária, Budapest	Poland	6–0	Friendly
14
15	14 October 1951	Městský stadion, Ostrava	Czechoslovakia	2–1	Friendly
16
17	18 November 1951	Hungária, Budapest	Finland	8–0	Friendly
18
19	18 May 1952	Hungária, Budapest	East Germany	5–0	Friendly
20	15 June 1952	Stadion Wojska Polskiego, Warsaw	Poland	5–1	Friendly
21
22	22 June 1952	Helsinki Olympic Stadium, Helsinki	Finland	6–1	Friendly
23
24
25	15 July 1952	Kupittaa, Turku	Romania	2–1	1952 Summer Olympics
26	21 July 1952	Pallokenttä, Helsinki	Italy	3–0	1952 Summer Olympics
27	24 July 1952	Urheilukeskus, Kotka	Turkey	7–1	1952 Summer Olympics
28
29	28 July 1952	Helsinki Olympic Stadium, Helsinki	Sweden	6–0	1952 Summer Olympics
30
31	20 September 1952	Wankdorf Stadium, Bern	Switzerland	4–2	1948–53 Dr. Gerö Cup
32	19 October 1952	Hungária, Budapest	Czechoslovakia	5–0	Friendly
33
34
35	5 July 1953	Råsunda Stadium, Stockholm	Sweden	4–2	Friendly
36	23 May 1954	Népstadion, Budapest	England	7–1	Hungary v England (1954)
37
38	17 June 1954	Hardturm Stadium, Zürich	South Korea	9–0	1954 FIFA World Cup
39
40
41	20 June 1954	St. Jakob Stadium, Basel	West Germany	8–3	1954 FIFA World Cup
42
43
44
45	27 June 1954	Wankdorf Stadium, Bern	Brazil	4–2	1954 FIFA World Cup Quarterfinal
46
47	30 June 1954	Stade Olympique de la Pontaise, Lausanne	Uruguay	4–2	1954 FIFA World Cup Semi Final
48
49	19 September 1954	Népstadion, Budapest	Romania	5–1	Friendly
50
51	26 September 1954	Dynamo Stadium, Moscow	Soviet Union	1–1	Friendly
52	10 October 1954	Népstadion, Budapest	Switzerland	3–0	Friendly
53
54	24 October 1954	Népstadion, Budapest	Czechoslovakia	4–1	Friendly
55
56
57	14 November 1954	Népstadion, Budapest	Austria	4–1	Friendly
58	8 December 1954	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Scotland	4–2	Friendly
59	8 May 1955	Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo	Norway	5–0	Friendly
60	11 May 1955	Råsunda Stadium, Stockholm	Sweden	7–3	Friendly
61
62
63	15 May 1955	Idrætsparken, Copenhagen	Denmark	6–0	Friendly
64
65	29 May 1955	Népstadion, Budapest	Scotland	3–1	Friendly
66	17 September 1955	Stade Olympique de la Pontaise, Lausanne	Switzerland	5–4	1954–1960 Dr. Gerö Cup
67	2 October 1955	Great Strahov Stadium, Prague	Czechoslovakia	1–1	1954–1960 Dr. Gerö Cup
68	16 October 1955	Népstadion, Budapest	Austria	6–1	1954–1960 Dr. Gerö Cup
69	3 June 1956	Stade du Heysel, Brussels	Belgium	4–5	Friendly
70
71	9 June 1956	Estádio Nacional, Lisbon	Portugal	2–2	Friendly
72	15 July 1956	Népstadion, Budapest	Poland	4–1	Friendly
73
74	16 September 1956	Stadion FK Crvena Zvezda, Belgrade	Yugoslavia	3–1	1954–1960 Dr. Gerö Cup
75	7 October 1956	Parc des Princes, Paris	France	2–1	Friendly

Honours[]

Olympic medal record
Representing  Hungary
Men's Football
	1952 Helsinki	Team competition

Club[]

Ferencváros TC

• Hungarian Champions: 1949

Honvéd FC

• Hungarian Champions (3): 1952, 1954, 1955

Barcelona

• Spanish Champions (2): 1958–59, 1959–60
• Copa del Generalísimo (2): 1958–59, 1962–63
• Inter-Cities Fairs Cup: 1958–60

International[]

Hungary

• Olympic Champions: 1952
• Central European Champions: 1953
• FIFA World Cup Runner up: 1954

Individual[]

• Hungarian Football Federation Player of the Year: 1954
• FIFA World Cup Golden Boot: 1954
• FIFA World Cup Silver Ball: 1954
• FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1954
• World Soccer: The 100 Greatest Footballers of All Time
• Ballon d'Or: 8th place 1956

Sources[]

• Behind The Curtain — Travels in Eastern European Football: Jonathan Wilson (2006)^[10]
• The World Cup — The Complete History: Terry Crouch (2002)^[11]
• 50 Years of the European Cup and Champions League: Keir Radnedge (2005)^[12]

See also[]

• List of men's footballers with 50 or more international goals
• List of men's footballers with 500 or more goals
• List of Eastern Bloc defectors

References[]

External links[]

• Media related to Sándor Kocsis at Wikimedia Commons
• La Liga stats
• Hungary stats at RSSSF
• Hungary stats at Sportmuzeum
• Guest with Valencia CF