Catalog number: NL13JP

Label Sheet - Ján Popluhár

Philatelic Stamp Sheet Slovakia 2013 - Significant Sports Events: Ján Popluhár (1935 – 2011).

Unavailable

Philatelic Adhesive Sheet Slovakia 2013 - Significant Sports Events: Ján Popluhár (1935 – 2011).
Author: Doc.akad. mal. Igor Benca
Issue number: 98 NL 533/13
Date of issue: 14.02.2013

Specification
Ján Popluhár (1935 – 2011), a long-time pillar of Slovan Bratislava (1955 – 1969), played 62 matches (1958 – 1967) for Czechoslovakia and was considered one of the world's best defensive players. At the first European Football Championship (France, 1960), he was a member of the bronze Czechoslovak team. He played in the 1958 World Cup in Sweden and the 1962 World Cup in Chile, where he significantly contributed to winning silver and was awarded the World Fair Play Award (1967) for his generous sportsmanship towards the injured Pelé. In 1965, he was the Czechoslovak Footballer of the Year. Deservedly, in 2000, he was declared the best Slovak footballer of the 20th century. As the only Slovak, he was a member of the FIFA World XI, which played against the England national team at Wembley in 1963, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the English Football Association. The starting lineup also included Josef Masopust and Svatopluk Pluskal. In 1965, he was invited to the farewell match of British football legend Sir Stanley Matthews. At the UEFA Congress in Paris (2011), he was awarded the Emerald Order for his contributions to the development of football. He started at AC Čeklís (today Bernolákovo), developed his talent at RH Brno and Slovan Bratislava under the guidance of coaching legend Leopold "Jim" Šťastný, the author of Popluhár's nickname "Bimbo". There and in the national team, he was a defensive mainstay alongside Viliam Schrojf, the best goalkeeper of the 1962 World Cup. The stamp, coupon, and FDC motif commemorate the 150th anniversary of the organized foundations of the world's most popular sport in 1863 in England. From Čeklís through Paris, Santiago de Chile, and Wembley back to Bernolákovo – this was the life journey of an honest and incredibly humble man, to whom Slovak football will forever be indebted...

source: pofis.sk