Harald Anton "Toni" Schumacher (born 6 March 1954) is a German former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

. At club level, he won a

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...

title and three

DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considere ...

titles with 1. FC Köln. At international level, he represented

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. Schumacher won the 1980 European Championship and lost two

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

finals, in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

and

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

. In the

1982 FIFA World Cup The 1982 FIFA World Cup was the 12th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Spain between 13 June and 11 July 1982. The tournament was won by Italy national foo ...

semi-final, he controversially collided with and seriously injured French defender

Patrick Battiston Patrick Raymond Jean Battiston (born 12 March 1957) is a French former footballer who played as a defender for the France national team in three World Cups and won the 1984 European Football Championship. At club level, he played for Metz, Sa ...

. Schumacher was voted

German Footballer of the Year The title Footballer of the Year (German: ''Fußballer des Jahres'') has been awarded in Germany since 1960. Eligible are German players as well as non-German players playing in Germany. In 1996, the title Women's Footballer of the Year (German ...

in 1984 and 1986. Since April 2012, he has served as vice president at 1. FC Köln.

Club career

Schumacher made his first-team debut with 1. FC Köln at the age of 19. He played for the club from 1972 to 1987, including in 213 consecutive Bundesliga matches from 1977 to 1983. For most of those years, until well into the mid-1980s, he was widely considered one of the world's top goalkeepers, and he was the automatic first-choice goalkeeper for his country. He backstopped Köln to the double in 1978, winning the Bundesliga title (ahead of

Borussia Mönchengladbach Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e. V. Mönchengladbach, commonly known as Borussia Mönchengladbach (), Mönchengladbach () or Gladbach (; abbreviated as Borussia MG, BMG), is a professional Association football, football club based in ...

on goal difference) and the DFB-Pokal (defeated

Fortuna Düsseldorf Düsseldorfer Turn- und Sportverein Fortuna 1895 e.V., commonly known as Fortuna Düsseldorf (), is a German football club in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, which competes in the 2. Bundesliga. Founded in 1895, Fortuna entered the league ...

). The year before he had led Köln to a DFB-Pokal victory (against

Hertha BSC Hertha, Berliner Sport-Club e. V., commonly known as Hertha BSC (), and sometimes referred to as Hertha Berlin, Hertha BSC Berlin, or simply Hertha, is a German professional football club based in the locality of Westend of the borough of Charl ...

in the final), the club's first major trophy win in nine years. He appeared in two other DFB-Pokal finals, in 1980 (lost to

) and 1983 (defeated

Fortuna Köln Fortuna ( la, Fortūna, equivalent to the Greek goddess Tyche) is the goddess of fortune and the personification of luck in Roman religion who, largely thanks to the Late Antique author Boethius, remained popular through the Middle Ages until a ...

). Schumacher was voted

twice, in 1984 and 1986, by the nation's football journalists.

International career

Schumacher played 76 international matches for

between 1979 and 1986, including 15 World Cup qualifying matches and 14 World Cup matches. He won the 1980 European Championship (defeated

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

2–1 in the final) and lost two

finals, in

(to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, 3–1) and

(to

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, 3–2). In the 1982 tournament, in the controversial semi-final against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, he saved two penalty kicks in the post-extra time shootout, which West Germany ultimately won. In the 1986 quarter-final against tournament hosts,

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, he saved two of the three shootout penalties he faced, enabling West Germany to advance.

Controversy at 1982 World Cup

Schumacher was involved in a collision with a French defender, substitute

, in the semi-final of the 1982 World Cup. Battiston and Schumacher were both sprinting towards a long through ball pass from

Michel Platini Michel François Platini (born 21 June 1955) is a French football administrator and former player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Platini won the Ballon d'Or three times in a row, in 1983, 1984 and 1985, ...

. Battiston managed to reach the ball first and flicked it up and to the side of the approaching Schumacher. Schumacher leapt into the air as the ball sailed past him, ultimately wide of the goal. Schumacher, still in the air, collided with Battiston. The resulting contact left Battiston unconscious, later slipping into a coma. Schumacher has always denied any foul intention regarding the incident, saying that he was simply going for the ball, as a goalkeeper is entitled to do. Others have alleged that he intentionally collided with Battiston. Battiston also lost two teeth and had three cracked ribs. He received oxygen on the pitch. Michel Platini later said that he thought Battiston had died, because "he had no pulse and looked pale". The Dutch referee

Charles Corver Charles George Reinier Corver (16 January 1936 – 10 November 2020) was a Dutch football referee. Career He was decorated twice by the Queen (Order of Orange-Nassau) and the football association (KNVB-UEFA-FIFA). He refereed the 1982 World Cu ...

did not award a penalty for the incident. Schumacher proceeded to take the goal kick and play resumed. West Germany would eventually go on to win the game on penalty kicks after the match was tied at 3–3. Schumacher caused more controversy after the game with his response to news that Battiston had lost two teeth: "If that's all that's wrong, tell him I'll pay for the

crowns A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

." Schumacher did visit Battiston in the hospital, and though the Frenchman felt his apology at the time was insincere, Battiston admitted that he had forgiven him by the time the two countries faced each other four years later in yet another World Cup semifinal. That match ended in a 2–0 victory for West Germany. A French newspaper poll asked which was the least popular man in France, and Schumacher beat

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

into second. When West Germany and France met again in

World Cup 1986 The 1986 FIFA World Cup was the 13th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June 1986. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia ha ...

, Battiston said that the incident was "forgiven and forgotten". However, he said that he was wary of getting "close to Schumacher" and said that he would hold a distance of at least 40 meters from the West German goalkeeper. Schumacher would mostly refrain from commenting on the incident.

Coaching career

As coach of

SC Fortuna Köln SC Fortuna Köln is a German association football club based in the city of Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. History The club was formed as on 21 February 1948 through the merger of three local sides: Victoria Köln 1911 (one of two clubs to ...

he was sacked at half time by club chairman Jean Löring when his club was 0–2 behind against

Waldhof Mannheim SV Waldhof Mannheim is a multi-sports club, located in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg. It is most known for its association football team; however, there are also professional handball and table-tennis sides. The club today has a membership of over ...

in December 1999.

Autobiography

In 1987, Schumacher's autobiography ''Anpfiff'' ("kick-off") was published in various countries, including France, where there was interest in Schumacher's comments on the Battiston incident. Schumacher maintained that his actions did not constitute a foul and that he was only trying to get the ball. He said that he did not go over to check on Battiston's condition because several French players were standing around Battiston and making threatening gestures in his direction. The book also included accounts of alleged improprieties by German football players, including substance abuse. This resulted in Schumacher's exclusion from the German national team and his long-term Bundesliga club, 1. FC Köln.

Career statistics

Ref.

Honours

1. FC Köln *

: 1977–78 *

: 1976–77, 1977–78, 1982–83 Borussia Dortmund *

: 1995–96 Fenerbahçe * 1.Lig: 1988–89 Germany *

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

runner-up:

* UEFA European Champion:

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

Individual *

: 1984, 1986 *

UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament At the end of each UEFA European Championship tournament, several awards are attributed to the players and teams which have distinguished from the rest, in different aspects of the game. Awards There are currently five post-tournament awards, and o ...

: 1984 *

FIFA World Cup Silver Ball At the end of each FIFA World Cup final tournament, several awards are presented to the players and teams who have distinguished themselves in various aspects of the game. Awards *There are currently five post-tournament awards from the FIFA ...

* Turkish Footballer of the Year: 1988, 1989

References

External links

Detail of international matches, by RSSSFLeverkusen who's who
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schumacher, Toni 1954 births Living people People from Düren Sportspeople from Cologne (region) German expatriate footballers German footballers Germany international footballers Germany B international footballers Association football goalkeepers 1. FC Köln players FC Schalke 04 players FC Bayern Munich footballers Borussia Dortmund players Fenerbahçe S.K. footballers UEFA Euro 1980 players 1982 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 1984 players 1986 FIFA World Cup players UEFA European Championship-winning players Bundesliga players Süper Lig players Expatriate footballers in Turkey SC Fortuna Köln managers Footballers from North Rhine-Westphalia German football managers