Winfried "Winnie" Schäfer (born 10 January 1950) is a German football manager and former player who last managed of Qatari club Al-Khor.

Playing career

Winfried Schäfer played 403

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 footb ...

matches and scored 46 goals in the (West) German top-flight. He won the 1970 Bundesliga title and 1970 DFB-Pokal with two different clubs – because the West German Cup final was played after the 1970 FIFA World Cup and his move from Mönchengladbach to Offenbach.

Coaching career

Karlsruher SC

As a manager, he led

Karlsruher SC Karlsruher SC is a German association football club, based in Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg that currently plays in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of German football. Domestically, the club was crowned German champion in 1909, and won the ...

to the semi-finals of the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

in the 1993–94 season.

VfB Stuttgart

Tennis Borussia Berlin

Cameroon national team

In November 2001, Schäfer was appointed head coach of

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the ...

. He won the

2002 African Cup of Nations The 2002 African Cup of Nations was the 23rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the association football championship of Africa ( CAF). It was hosted by Mali. Just like in 2000, the field of sixteen teams was split into four groups of four. C ...

with Cameroon, defeating

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

3–2 in a penalty shoot-out after a 0–0 draw in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

Al-Ahli

In 2006, he won the UAE national championship with Al-Ahli (Dubai). He worked then from 2007 to 2009 for

UAE League The UAE Pro League ( ar, دوري المحترفين الإماراتي), known for sponsorship reasons as the ADNOC Pro League, is the top professional football league in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The first team to win the title was Al O ...

side Al-Ain.

FK Baku

On 10 June 2010, Schäfer signed a two-year contract with Azerbaijani club

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world an ...

. On 18 January 2011 his contract was ended.

Thailand national team / Muangthong United

Schaefer and Thailand players during THA-OMA

In late June 2011, Schäfer was hired as

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

manager on a three-year contract. On 4 June 2013, Schäfer and

Football Association of Thailand The Football Association of Thailand under Patronage of His Majesty the King ( th, สมาคมกีฬาฟุตบอลแห่งประเทศไทย ในพระบรมราชูปถัมภ์), or FA Thailand for s ...

mutually agreed to cancel the contract. The following day, he became manager of thai club

Muangthong United Muangthong United Football Club ( th, สโมสรฟุตบอลเมืองทอง ยูไนเต็ด) is a Thai professional football club based in Muang Thong Thani, Nonthaburi province. The club plays in the Thai League 1 ...

, replacing Serbian

Slaviša Jokanović Slaviša Jokanović ( sr-Cyrl, Славиша Јокановић, ; born 16 August 1968) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He is the manager of Russian club Dynamo Moscow. A physical player considered strong in the ai ...

Jamaica national team

On 17 July 2013, it was announced that Schäfer will become the new coach of

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispa ...

, replacing previous manager Theodore Whitmore who resigned from his position following a 2–0 loss to

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

. Jamaica's first match with Schäfer as manager was a World Cup qualification match against

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

on 7 September 2013 which ended with a 0–0 draw. In the 2014 Caribbean Cup, Jamaica's first match ended with a 1–1 draw over

Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label= Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...

. However, the team recorded two-straight wins against

Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda (, ) is a sovereign country in the West Indies. It lies at the juncture of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the Leeward Islands part of the Lesser Antilles, at 17°N latitude. The country consists of two majo ...

and

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and s ...

to make it to the final. Schäfer led Jamaica to their sixth Caribbean Cup title after beating

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

4–3 on penalties in the final. In June 2015 at the

Copa América The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...

, Jamaica put in an incredible performance, being drawn in the same group as regional powers

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 List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

and

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, who both defeated Jamaica by a single goal. Shortly after, on 22 July 2015 Schäfer's team reached the Final of the Gold Cup after beating tournament favourites the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

Esteghlal

On 2 October 2017, Schäfer was chosen to become the new manager of Iranian club Esteghlal, following

Alireza Mansourian Alireza Mansourian ( fa, علیرضا منصوريان; born 2 December 1971) is an Iranian football coach and retired player. Club career Mansourian was born in Tehran. During his career, he played for Singapore S.League clubs: Balestier Khals ...

's resignation as team's head coach. The next day, he signed his official contract with Esteghlal until the end of the season.

2017–18 season

Upon being appointed, Schäfer re-called Esteghlal's captain

Mehdi Rahmati Seyed Mehdi Rahmati Oskuei ( fa, سید مهدی رحمتی اسکویی; born February 3, 1983) is an Iranian football coach and former player who currently manages Aluminium Arak in the Persian Gulf Pro League. He played for the Iran nation ...

who was banned from joining the team by the previous coach, Alireza Mansourian, as well as asking the management to re-sign Behnam Barzay whose contract wasn't renewed and became a free agent in summer. Schäfer also chose to continue working with

Mick McDermott Michael McDermott (born 1974 in Belfast) is a Northern Irish former professional football player, and is currently the assistant manager to Carlos Queiroz at the Qatar national team. Dermott has held various coaching roles in professional footbal ...

(whom he worked with as fitness coach in

Al Ain Al Ain ( ar, ٱلْعَيْن, , ) is a city in the western side of Tuwwam region and the seat of the administrative division of its namesake, Al Ain in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It is bordered to the east by the Omani ...

) as Esteghlal's assistant manager, however they had a conflict later on and McDermott left the club on 30 October. Jiří Saňák and Miguel Coley were announced to replace him as Schäfer's assistant coach. His first official match as Esteghlal's coach was the 0–0 against

Foolad Foolad Khuzestan Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال فولاد خوزستان, ''Bāshgāh-e Futbāl-e Fulād-e Khuzestān'') is an Iranian football club, based in Ahwaz, Khuzestan that plays in Persian Gulf Pro League. Foolad F.C. wa ...

Azadi Stadium The Azadi Stadium ( fa, ورزشگاه آزادی Varzešgâh''-è Âzâdi''), opened as the Aryamehr Stadium ( fa, ورزشگاه آریامهر Varzešgâh-è ''Âryâmehr''), is an all-seater football stadium in Tehran, Iran. The stadium wa ...

on 13 October. His first victory came against Nassaji Mazandaran in Hazfi Cup, which Esteghlal won the match 2–1. He won his first league match on 31 October beating Naft Talaieh 2–0. During the winter transfer window, he offloaded players which were not part of his plans for the rest of the season. Hassan Beyt Saeed joined

while

Yaghoub Karimi Yaghoub Karimi ( fa, یعقوب کریمی; August 31, 1991) is an Iranian football midfielder. Club career Pas He joined Pas in the summer 2003 from the youth academy. He played five seasons for Pas youth team. Esteghlal In summer 2009, Kar ...

went to Esteghlal Khuzestan. Sajjad Shahbazzadeh joined Qatar SC on a free transfer. In association with Esteghlal vice president Seyed Pendar Toufighi, two new signings were made by Schäfer; free agent's Bojan Najdenov and

Mame Thiam Mame Baba Thiam (born 9 October 1992) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Süper Lig club Kayserispor and the Senegal national team. Club career Youth career Born in Nguidile, Louga Region, Thiam left for Ital ...

arrived at the club. On 28 December Schäfer's Esteghlal beat Esteghlal Khuzestan 3–0 and became the first team to reach a total of 900 points in all-time

Persian Gulf Pro League The Persian Gulf Pro League ( fa, لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, ''Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs''), formerly known as the Iran Pro League ( fa, links=no, لیگ برتر ایران, ''Lig-e bartar-e Irân''), is the highest division of profe ...

table. In the

2018 AFC Champions League The 2018 AFC Champions League was the 37th edition of Asia's premier club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 16th under the current AFC Champions League title. Kashima Antlers won the title for the f ...

, Schäfer's team were drawn against Al-Rayyan,

and Al-Hilal in the competition's

group of death A group of death in a multi-stage tournament is a group which is unusually competitive, because the number of strong competitors in the group is greater than the number of qualifying places available for the next phase of the tournament. Thus, ...

. However, they did not lose a game, topping the group with some impressive performances. On 1 March 2018, Schäfer won his first Tehran derby as a manager in a 1–0 victory; this was also his third win against Branko Ivanković, having previously beaten him twice in

2. Bundesliga The 2. Bundesliga ( ) is the second division of professional football in Germany. It was implemented 11 years after the founding of the Fußball-Bundesliga as the new second division for professional football. The 2. Bundesliga is ranked below ...

with Tennis Borussia Berlin when Branko was the manager of

Hannover 96 Hannoverscher Sportverein von 1896, commonly referred to as Hannover 96 (), Hannover, HSV or simply 96, is a German professional football club based in the city of Hanover, Lower Saxony. They played in the Bundesliga for a total of 30 years betw ...

during the 1999–2000 season. On 3 May 2018, Schäfer extended his contract until June 2020. On the same day, Schäfer won his first trophy with Esteghlal, the Hazfi Cup, when his side defeated Khooneh be Khooneh 1–0, with

scoring the only goal. Esteghlal extended their record of 7 Hazfi Cups.

2018–19 season

Winfried Schäfer in Tehran derby press conference 07

During Schäfer's second season as manager, he saw some of his top players leaving the club, Majid Hosseini moved to

Trabzonspor Trabzonspor Kulübü is a Turkish sports club located in the city of Trabzon. Formed in 1967 through a merger of several local clubs, the men's football team has won seven Süper Lig championships. Trabzonspor also have a women's football team, ...

, while Omid Ebrahimi joined Al Ahli, Server Djeparov signed for Zhetysu and Omid Noorafkan moved to

Charleroi Charleroi ( , , ; wa, Tchålerwè ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. By 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593.

. Esteghlal signed players such as Morteza Aghakhan, Rouhollah Bagheri,

Farshad Mohammadi Mehr Farshad Mohammadi Mehr is an Iranian midfielder who currently plays for Iranian football club Zob Ahan in the Persian Gulf Pro League The Persian Gulf Pro League ( fa, لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, ''Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs''), for ...

, Meysam Teymouri,

Ali Karimi Mohammad Ali Karimi Pashaki ( fa, علی کریمی ; born 8 November 1978) is an Iranian football coach and former player. During his professional football career, he has played in the Iran Pro League, UAE Pro League, Qatar Stars League and ...

and Morteza Tabrizi to replace the departed players and improve the squad depth. He also asked to sign Nigerian striker Alhaji Gero, his compatriot Markus Neumayr as well as

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

international

Humam Tariq Humam Tariq Faraj Naoush ( ar, همام طارق فرج نعوش; born 10 February 1994 in Baghdad) is an Iraqi professional footballer who plays for Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya and the Iraq national team as winger. He also played for Esteghlal F.C. bet ...

. Schäfer's Esteghlal were eliminated in the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League after a 5–3 aggregate loss to

Al Sadd Al Sadd Sports Club ( ar, نادي السد الرياضي, lit=Dam Sports Club) is a Qatari sports club based in the Al Sadd (Qatar), Al Sadd district of the city of Doha. It is best known for its association football team, whic ...

on 17 September 2018. They were also eliminated from the Hazfi Cup on 1 November, reaching the Round of 16 stage, after a penalty shootout defeat to Saipa after a 2–2 draw. On 29 April 2019, Schäfer was suspended until the end of the season two days after Esteghlal's loss to Padideh in the league and replaced by his assistant

Farhad Majidi Farhad Majidi ( fa, فرهاد مجیدی; born 3 June 1976) is an Iranian football coach and former player who currently manages Al-Ittihad Kalba SC in UAE Pro League. He mostly played as attacking midfielder for Esteghlal when he was a footba ...

Baniyas

On 6 July 2019, Schäfer was confirmed as the new manager of Emirati side

Baniyas Baniyas ( ar, بَانِيَاس ') is a Mediterranean coastal city in Tartous Governorate, northwestern Syria, located south of Latakia (ancient Laodicea) and north of Tartous (ancient Tortosa). It is known for its citrus fruit orchards and ...

, he coached the team until his contract expired with barely any notable records other than getting to the UAE President's Cup semi finals.

Al-Khor

In late January 2021, Schäfer became the head coach of

Qatar Stars League The Qatar Stars League ( ar, دوري نجوم قطر), or the QSL, also called QNB Stars League for sponsorship reasons, is the top level football league in Qatar football league system. Contested by 12 teams, it operates on a system of promoti ...

club Al-Khor to help them in a difficult situation. Results and performance improved relatively, the team remained in the league after win 3–1 in the play-off match against Al-Shahania. On 11 November 2021, he left Qatar after his contract was terminated.

Managerial statistics

Honours

Player

;Borussia Mönchengladbach *

: 1969–70 *

: 1978–79 ;Kickers Offenbach *

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 considered ...

: 1969–70

Manager

;Karlsruher SC *

runner-up: 1986–87 *

runner-up: 1995–96 *

UEFA Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, ' betting pool'),Most precisely, from ( football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Fo ...

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone o ...

;Cameroon national team *

African Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations referred to as AFCON (french: Coupe d'Afrique des Nations, sometimes referred to as CAN, or TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons), and sometimes as African Cup of Nations, is the main internat ...

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships (AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, ...

runner-up:

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A ...

;Al-Ahli *

UAE Football League The UAE Pro League ( ar, دوري المحترفين الإماراتي), known for sponsorship reasons as the ADNOC Pro League, is the top professional football league in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The first team to win the title was Al O ...

: 2005–06 ;Al-Ain * UAE President's Cup: 2008–09 *

Etisalat Emirates Cup The UAE League Cup ( ar, كأس رابطة المحترفين الإماراتية) or the Pro League Cup is a knockout tournament for clubs in the UAE Pro-League. The first edition of the tournament was played in the 2008–2009 season. In the ...

: 2008–09 * UAE Super Cup: 2009 ;Thailand national team * AFF Championship runner-up:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

;Jamaica national team * Caribbean Cup:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wa ...

* CONCACAF Gold Cup runner-up:

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

;Esteghlal * Hazfi Cup: 2017–18 * Iranian Super Cup runner-up:

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Personal life

Schäfer is married, has two children, and has lived with his family for more than 25 years in Ettlingen near Karlsruhe. In 2004 Schäfer was elected with the most votes to the municipal council of Ettlingen. He ran for the newly founded association "For Ettlingen". Because of his frequent work-related stays abroad, he held the mandate but barely. He is known for his passion for football. His son Sascha Oliver works with him as an assistant.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schafer, Winfried 1950 births Living people People from Mayen German footballers Germany B international footballers Germany under-21 international footballers Borussia Mönchengladbach players Karlsruher SC players Kickers Offenbach players Bundesliga players German football managers 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup managers 2002 FIFA World Cup managers 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup managers Cameroon national football team managers Tennis Borussia Berlin managers Karlsruher SC managers VfB Stuttgart managers Bundesliga managers Al Ain FC managers Esteghlal F.C. managers Baniyas SC managers UAE Pro League managers Expatriate football managers in the United Arab Emirates Thailand national football team managers Jamaica national football team managers Expatriate football managers in Jamaica 2015 Copa América managers Copa América Centenario managers 2004 African Cup of Nations managers 2002 African Cup of Nations managers Association football midfielders UEFA Cup winning players 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup managers Footballers from Rhineland-Palatinate Expatriate football managers in Iran Persian Gulf Pro League managers West German footballers West German football managers German expatriate sportspeople in Thailand German expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates German expatriate sportspeople in Iran German expatriate sportspeople in Jamaica German expatriate sportspeople in Cameroon German expatriate sportspeople in Azerbaijan German expatriate sportspeople in Qatar