Helmut Senekowitsch

Helmut Senekowitsch
Personnel
birthday	October 22, 1933
place of birth	Graz ,  Austria
date of death	September 9, 2007
Place of death	Klosterneuburg ,  Austria
position	striker
Juniors
Years	station
	ESV Austria Graz
Men's
Years	station	Games (goals) 1
0000-1952	ESV Austria Graz
1952-1955	Grazer SC
1955-1958	SK Sturm Graz	72 (30)
1958-1961	First Vienna FC	75 (63)
1961-1964	Betis Seville	47 (10)
1964-1971	FC Wacker Innsbruck	160 (16)
National team
Years	selection	Games (goals)
1957-1968	Austria	18 (4)
Stations as a trainer
Years	station
1971-1973	Graz AK
1973-1975	SK VÖEST Linz
1975-1976	FC Admira Wacker
1976-1988	Austria
1978-1979	UAG Tecos
1979-1980	Athletic Bilbao
1980-1981	Betis Seville
1981	Panathinaikos Athens
1982	Olympiacos Piraeus
1982-1983	Eintracht Frankfurt
1983-1984	AEK Athens
1984-1985	Graz AK
1985-1988	UAG Tecos
1988	Cádiz FC
1989-1990	Panionios Athens
1990-1991	Omonia Nicosia
1991-1992	LASK Linz
1993	Viennese sports club
1995-1996	FAC Viktoria Vienna
1997	First Vienna FC
1 Only league games are given.

Helmut Senekowitsch (born October 22, 1933 in Graz , † September 9, 2007 in Klosterneuburg ) was an Austrian soccer player and soccer coach . He took part with the Austrian national team in the 1958 World Cup in Sweden and was the first Austrian to successfully gain a foothold in the Spanish Primera División at Betis Sevilla . As a trainer, he led VÖEST to a surprising championship and brought the national team to the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, where the famous 3-2 victory over defending champions Germany was achieved.

Career

As a player

Helmut Senekowitsch became known in his active career as a dangerous striker, but at the beginning and especially at the end of his career he also played in midfield. His nickname "Zeki" - based on a tick that bites into the opponent - testifies to his great combative attitude as a footballer. Senekowitsch began his professional career at ESV Austria Graz . In 1952 he moved to the first division club Grazer SC . His first year in the highest Austrian league ended with relegation to the second tier. With local rivals SK Sturm Graz , who also played in the B-League , he rose again in 1956 to the A-League. For several years, the club was threatened by relegation, which finally took place in 1959. However, Senekowitsch's achievements brought him a regular place in the national team.

Senekowitsch made his national team debut on September 25, 1957 in the 1958 World Cup qualification . The Styrian scored his first goals in international matches against Luxembourg and Czechoslovakia in the following two games. As a striker, he also played in all Austrian games during the 1958 World Cup in Sweden. The future world champion Brazil, the future European champion Soviet Union and England were too strong opponents in a group that was too difficult. After the World Cup and the relegation of Sturm, Senekowitsch went to the Vienna football club . Here he had his strongest seasons in 1960 with 25 and 1961 with 23 goals, was runner-up , reached the ÖFB Cup final and was part of the “ Decker Team ”. He contributed one goal each to the victories over Spain (3: 0) and, in front of a record crowd of 92,000 spectators in the Prater Stadium , England (3: 1).

In 1961 Senekowitsch moved to Betis Sevilla in the Spanish Primera División , where he played for three years. The best placement during this time was third place in the table. He then returned to Austria and ran for Wacker Innsbruck . The crowning highlights of his long playing career were winning the Austrian championship in his last professional season in 1970/71 and the ÖFB Cup a year earlier - his only title in his active career.

As a trainer

Helmut Senekowitsch began his coaching career with his resignation as a player in 1971. His first club was the first division GAK , where he set a new club record with third place. At his second stop at SK VÖEST Linz , he surprisingly became Austrian champion in 1973/74. So Senekowitsch soon rose to one of the most famous Austrian coaches and, after an engagement at FC Admira / Wacker, finally took over the Austrian national team on March 1, 1976 .

The national team qualified for the 1978 World Cup in Argentina straight away . The team was able to reach seventh place after victories over Spain and Sweden and 3-2 over world champions Germany. After this, probably the greatest success of his career, he looked after numerous other teams at home and abroad, because due to tensions between himself, the sports director Max Merkel and the association management, he had not extended his contract, which expired on June 30, 1978.
For the time being, there was a message that Senekowitsch would be the new coach at SpG Wattens - Wacker Innsbruck (in view of the 0: 6 Intercup home defeat of the Tyroleans against 1. FC Kaiserslautern ), also because the former team coach was a visitor at Tivoli ., but then it was announced that he was introduced to his new club in Guadalajara on September 2nd . After only one year of engagement, he returned to UAG Tecos in 1985. He also worked again in the Spanish Primera División at Athletic Bilbao, Betis and FC Cádiz (where his engagement ended in mid-October 1988), stood on the sidelines with Panathinaikos, Olympiakos and AEK at all three major Greek clubs and was also on the sidelines at Eintracht Frankfurt German Bundesliga.

Helmut Senekowitsch died on the night of September 8th to 9th, 2007 from his longstanding esophageal cancer.

successes

• 2 × Austrian champion : 1971 (player) 1974 (coach)
• 3 × Austrian runner-up: 1961, 1967, 1968
• 1 × Austrian Cup winner : 1970 (player)
• 1 × Greek cup winner : 1983 (coach)
• 1 × Austrian Cup finalist: 1961 (player)
• Participation in the 1958 World Cup : group stage (best 16) (players)
• Participation in the 1978 World Cup : 7th place (coach)
• Participation in the European Championship 1960 : quarter-finals (players)
• 18 international matches and 5 goals for the Austrian national soccer team from 1957 to 1968

Awards (excerpt)

• Silver Medal of Honor for Services to the Republic of Austria : 2003
• In 2011, Senekowitschgasse in Vienna- Donaustadt (22nd district) was named after him

ÖFB international matches under team boss Helmut Senekowitsch

Legend

• H = home game
• A = away game
• * = Play on a neutral place
• green background color = victory of Austria
• yellow background color = tie
• red background color = defeat

Games	Victories	draw	Defeats	Gates	TD
26th	14th	4th	8th	40:26	+14

No.	date	Result	opponent		venue	occasion	comment
403	04/28/1976	1-0	Sweden	H	Vienna
404	06/12/1976	0: 2	Hungary	A.	Budapest ( HUN )
405	06/23/1976	1: 2	Soviet Union	H	Vienna
406	09/22/1976	3: 1	Switzerland	H	Linz
407	10/13/1976	2: 4	Hungary	H	Vienna
408	11/10/1976	3-0	Greece	A.	Kavala ( GRE )
409	December 05, 1976	1-0	Malta	A.	Gżira ( MLT )	1978 World Cup qualification
410	December 15, 1976	3: 1	Israel	A.	Tel Aviv ( ISR )
411	03/09/1977	2-0	Greece	H	Vienna
412	04/17/1977	1-0	Turkey	H	Vienna	1978 World Cup qualification
413	04/30/1977	9-0	Malta	H	Salzburg	1978 World Cup qualification	First international game in Salzburg, highest home win, highest international game win For the first time the fans sing "Always again Austria"
414	06/01/1977	0-0	Czechoslovakia	A.	Ostrava ( TCH )
415	08/24/1977	2: 1	Poland	H	Vienna
416	09/24/1977	1: 1	German Democratic Republic	H	Vienna	1978 World Cup qualification
417	10/12/1977	1: 1	German Democratic Republic	A.	Leipzig ( GDR )	1978 World Cup qualification
418	10/30/1977	1-0	Turkey	A.	Izmir ( TUR )	1978 World Cup qualification	Herbert Prohaska shoots Austria with the "Spitz von Izmir" for the fourth World Cup participation
419	02/15/1978	1: 1	Greece	A.	Athens ( GRE )
420	March 22, 1978	0: 1	Belgium	A.	Charleroi ( BEL )
421	04/04/1978	1-0	Switzerland	A.	Basel ( SUI )
422	05/20/1978	0: 1	Netherlands	H	Vienna
423	06/03/1978	2: 1	Spain	*	Buenos Aires ( ARG )	1978 World Cup preliminary round
424	06/07/1978	1-0	Sweden	*	Buenos Aires ( ARG )	1978 World Cup preliminary round
425	06/11/1978	0: 1	Brazil	*	Mar del Plata ( ARG )	1978 World Cup preliminary round
426	06/14/1978	1: 5	Netherlands	*	Cordoba ( ARG )	1978 World Cup intermediate round
427	06/18/1978	0: 1	Italy	*	Buenos Aires ( ARG )	1978 World Cup intermediate round
428	06/21/1978	3: 2	Germany	*	Cordoba ( ARG )	1978 World Cup intermediate round	“ Wunder von Córdoba ” Austria is eliminated as fourth in the group

Web links

• Literature by and about Helmut Senekowitsch in the catalog of the German National Library
• Helmut Senekowitsch in the database of fussballdaten.de
• Helmut Senekowitsch in the database of weltfussball.de

Footnotes and individual references

1. ↑ ^{a b c} according to other sources he initially played for the clubs Hertha Graz and AAC Gemeinde, which no longer exist
2. ↑ "Senekowitsch now as the new coach at Wacker Innsbruck?" In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna July 14, 1978, p. 17 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
3. ↑ «“ Seki ”is in Mexico» . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna September 2, 1978, p. 16 ( Arbeiter-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
4. ^ Column 1: "Senekowitsch went voluntarily" . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna October 20, 1988, p. 23 ( Arbeiter-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
5. ↑ For 31 years “Austria again and again” has been sung