François "Bitzi" Konter (20 February 1934 – 29 August 2018) was a

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

ish 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 lea ...

Club career

Konter started his career at local team Chiers Rodange but played much of his club football in Belgium, for

RSC Anderlecht Royal Sporting Club Anderlecht, commonly abbreviated to RSC Anderlecht (, , ) or RSCA (, , ), is a Belgian professional association football, football club based in Anderlecht, Brussels Capital-Region. Anderlecht plays in the Belgian First Div ...

and AA Gent.

International career

He played for Luxembourg's national team at the height of the country's footballing strength, making his debut in October 1955 against

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, and was an integral part of the team that almost reached the semi-finals of the 1964 European Championship. During his international career, Konter played 77 games and scored four goals. He played in 16

FIFA World Cup qualification The FIFA World Cup qualification is a set of competitive matches that a national association football team plays in order to qualify for one of the available berths at the final tournament of the men's FIFA World Cup. Qualifying tournaments ar ...

matches.Record at FIFA Tournaments
– FIFA He was the country's all-time record cap holder from November 1966 until November 1995 when Carlo Weis overtook his tally. He played his final international game in April 1969, in a World Cup qualifier against

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

International goals

:''Scores and results list Luxembourg's goal tally first.''

Honours

Belgian First Division The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023– ...

: 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966 *

Belgian Cup The Belgian Cup (; ; ) is the main knockout football competition in Belgium, run by the Royal Belgian FA. The competition started in 1908 with provincial selections as the "Belgian Provinces Cup". Starting from 1912 only actual clubs were allowed ...

: 1965

Personal life

Konter married Ginette Faber in 1981. They have one daughter, Nadine. His grandson Yannick Bianchini played for

Jeunesse Esch Jeunesse Esch (full name ''Association Sportive la Jeunesse d'Esch/Alzette'') is a professional football club based in Esch-sur-Alzette, in south-western Luxembourg. The side play in the National Division, the highest league in the country, and ...

and

UN Käerjeng 97 The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

References

External links

Bio
– Profootball * 1934 births 2018 deaths Footballers from Differdange Luxembourgian men's footballers Luxembourgian expatriate men's footballers Luxembourg men's international footballers R.S.C. Anderlecht players KAA Gent players Belgian Pro League players Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Luxembourgian expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Men's association football central defenders {{Luxembourg-footy-bio-stub