Sándor Kocsis

Kocsis was born in Budapest. He began his career as a junior with Kőbányai TC, before joining Ferencváros 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 teammates 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.^[6] 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.^[7] 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. Hungary also won the 1948–53 Central European International Cup with Ferenc Puskás as top scorer.

 

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.^[8] 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.

Ending the Golden years with a silver medal at the 1955-60 Central European International Cup, making it a grand total of 2 gold/titles and 2 silver for the Mighty Magyars.

In 1956 Honvéd entered the European Cup and in the first round they were drawn against Athletic Bilbao. Honvéd lost the away leg 3–2, 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.

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 and La Liga double in 1959 and a La Liga and 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.

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 died of suicide, though it may have been only an accident.^[6][9]

Ferencváros

• Nemzeti Bajnokság I: 1949

Honvéd

• Nemzeti Bajnokság I: 1952, 1954, 1955

Barcelona

• La Liga: 1958–59, 1959–60
• Copa del Generalísimo: 1958–59, 1962–63
• Inter-Cities Fairs Cup: 1958–60
• European Cup runner-up: 1960-61

Hungary

• Summer Olympics: 1952
• Central European International Cup: 1948–53
• FIFA World Cup runner-up: 1954
• Central European International Cup: Runner-up: 1955–60

Individual

• Hungarian Football Federation Player of the Year: 1954
• FIFA World Cup Golden Boot: 1954
• FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1954
• World Soccer: The 100 Greatest Footballers of All Time
• Ballon d'Or: 8th place 1956
• Top 11 hungary player all time: #2^[13]
• IFFHS men's all time Hungary dream team^[14]
• IFFHS World Player of the Century: #39 ^[15]
• IFFHS European Player of the Century: #23

• Behind The Curtain — Travels in Eastern European Football: Jonathan Wilson (2006)^[16]
• The World Cup — The Complete History: Terry Crouch (2002)^[17]
• 50 Years of the European Cup and Champions League: Keir Radnedge (2005)^[18]

• 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

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sándor Kocsis.

• La Liga stats (archived)
• Hungary stats at RSSSF
• Hungary stats at Sportmuzeum (archived)
• Guest with Valencia CF (archived)