Ratko Svilar (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, t ...

: Ратко Свилар; born 6 May 1950) is a Serbian retired

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 ...

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 ...

. Having played for Antwerp for nearly 20 years, he also coached the Belgian club on several occasions.

Club career

Born in

Crvenka Crvenka () is a small town located in the municipality of Kula in the West Bačka District, Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Serbia. The town has a Serbian ethnic majority, and it had a population of 9,001 in 2011. Name In Serbian, th ...

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yu ...

, Svilar joined Royal Antwerp F.C. in November 1980 from

FK Vojvodina Fudbalski klub Vojvodina ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Војводина), commonly known as Vojvodina and colloquially as Voša ( sr-Cyrl, Воша), is a Serbian professional football club based in Novi Sad, Vojvodina, the second l ...

– he started his career with lowly hometown club

FK Crvenka Fudbalski Klub Crvenka ( en, Football Club Crvenka) (Serbian Cyrillic: ФК Црвенка) is a football club based in Crvenka, Serbia. History The club was founded in 1919 as CSK - Crvenački Sportski Klub (Crvenka Sports Club). In 1945, it ...

– and proceeded to endure a 16-year spell with the

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

side, alternating between the posts and the bench; in the 1991–92 season, he contributed with 12 league appearances to help his team finish in fifth position, winning the

Belgian Cup The Belgian Cup (french: link=no, Coupe de Belgique; nl, Beker van België []; german: link=no, Belgischer Fußballpokal) is the main Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in Belgium, run by the Belgia ...

– his only piece of silverware – in the process. Svilar retired from professional play aged 46, going on to have several coaching spells with his last and most important club.

International career

Svilar represented

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

for seven years, and was a participant at the 1982 FIFA World Cup. He won his first

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

on 25 September 1976, starting in a 0–3 away friendly loss 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 ...

Personal life

Svilar's son, Mile, is also a

References

External links

Royal Antwerp profile
* *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Svilar, Ratko 1950 births Living people Yugoslav footballers Serbian footballers Association football goalkeepers Yugoslav First League players FK Vojvodina players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Rochester Lancers (1967–1980) players Belgian Pro League players Royal Antwerp F.C. players Yugoslavia international footballers 1982 FIFA World Cup players Yugoslav expatriate footballers Serbian expatriate footballers Expatriate soccer players in the United States Expatriate footballers in Belgium Yugoslav expatriates in Belgium Serbian expatriates in Belgium Serbian football managers Royal Antwerp F.C. managers Serbian expatriate football managers Expatriate football managers in Belgium FK Crvenka players

Club career

International career

Personal life

See also

References

External links