Klaus Fischer (born 27 December 1949) is a German former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

er and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He was a key player on the West Germany national team that lost the 1982 World Cup final to Italy. As a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

, he was noted for his

bicycle kick In association football, a bicycle kick, also known as an overhead kick, scissors kick, is an acrobatic strike where a player kicks an airborne ball rearward in midair. It is achieved by throwing the body backward up into the air and, before d ...

s, and scored a spectacular overhead kick equalizer in extra-time of a 1982 World Cup semi-final against France.

Club career

Fischer was born in Kreuzstraßl, near

Lindberg Lindberg is a municipality in the district of Regen in Bavaria in Germany in the immediate neighbourhood of the larger town Zwiesel. Location Lindberg lies in the Danube Forest (''Donau-Wald'') region in the middle of the Bavarian Forest on ...

( Bayerischer Wald) in the district of Regen. He moved from SC Zwiesel to

TSV 1860 Munich , commonly known as TSV 1860 München (; lettered as ) or 1860 Munich, is a sports club based in Munich. The club's football team currently plays in the 3. Liga, the third tier of German football. 1860 Munich was one of the founding members o ...

in 1968 and made 535

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 ...

appearances for 1860 Munich,

FC Schalke 04 Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as FC Schalke 04 (), Schalke 04 (), or abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional German football and multi-sports club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhi ...

, 1. FC Köln and

VfL Bochum Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum (), is a Football in Germany, German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club has spent 35 seas ...

. With Schalke 04 he won the

German Cup 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 considered ...

in 1972. Schalke 04 were one of the clubs involved in a bribery scandal in season 1970–71 of the Bundesliga. As one of the players involved, Fischer initially received a ban for life, but this punishment was later reduced to a one-year league ban and a five-year ban from national team eligibility. In 1976, he was top scorer in the Bundesliga. With 268 goals he ranks third to

Gerd Müller Gerhard "Gerd" Müller (; 3 November 1945 – 15 August 2021) was a German professional footballer. A striker renowned for his clinical finishing, especially in and around the six-yard box, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest goalsco ...

and

Robert Lewandowski Robert Lewandowski (; born 21 August 1988) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a striker for La Liga club Barcelona and captains the Poland national team. Recognised for his positioning, technique and finishing, Lewandowski is co ...

on the list of all-time top

goalscorers. In 1988 Fischer's club side VfL Bochum made it to the

final, but Fischer did not feature in the final match. He ended his career in 1988. His 182 league goals for Schalke 04 remain a club record.

International career

Fischer made 45 appearances for the Germany national team from 1977 to 1982, scoring 32 goals (eight headers and 24 with his feet, including two

s). He appeared in two World Cups and was a World Cup runner-up in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

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 ...

. Fischer was known particularly for his

s, often set up for him by

Rüdiger Abramczik Rüdiger Abramczik (born 18 February 1956) is a former German association football, football player and coach, best known for his ability to cross the ball (''"Flankengott"''). Club career Abramczik was born in Gelsenkirchen-Erle. He, whose y ...

. His goal from a bicycle kick in a 4–1 win in a 1977 international match against

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

was selected as the Goal of the Year by German television viewers. It would later be voted Goal of the Decade and

Goal of the Century Argentina v England was a football match played on 22 June 1986 between Argentina and England in the quarter-finals of the 1986 FIFA World Cup at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. The game was held four years after the Falklands War betwee ...

. He also scored a famous bicycle kick equalizer in extra time in a 1982 World Cup 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 ...

, which West Germany went on to win on penalties.

Coaching career

Fischer runs a football training school.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Schalke 04 *

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 ...

: 1971–72 1. FC Köln *

: 1982–83 ;West 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:

Individual * Bundesliga top scorer: 1975–76 (29 goals) *

Goal of the Year (Germany) The Goal of the Year in Germany is, like the '' Goal of the Month'' ( Tor des Monats), the ''Goal of the Decade'' and ''Goal of the Century'', an individual football award selected by spectators of the ''Sportschau'' ( ARD German TV), among spect ...

: 1977 * Goal of the Decade (Germany) * Goal of the Century (Germany) * ''

kicker Kicker or The Kicker may refer to: Sports * Placekicker, a position in American and Canadian football * ''Kicker'' (sports magazine), in Germany * Kicker, the German colloquial term for an association football player * Kicker, the word used i ...

Team of the Season: 1984–85

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fischer, Klaus 1949 births Living people People from Regen (district) Sportspeople from Lower Bavaria German footballers Association football forwards Germany international footballers Germany under-21 international footballers 1978 FIFA World Cup players 1982 FIFA World Cup players Bundesliga players Kicker-Torjägerkanone Award winners TSV 1860 Munich players FC Schalke 04 players 1. FC Köln players VfL Bochum players FC Schalke 04 managers Footballers from Bavaria German football managers