Jean-Marie Pfaff

Jean-Marie Pfaff (born 4 December 1953) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper^[1] who spent most of his professional career with Beveren and Bayern Munich. Pfaff was capped 64 times playing for Belgium, and participated at the 1982 FIFA World Cup and 1986 FIFA World Cup tournaments. Pfaff was named goalkeeper of the 1986 FIFA World Cup, and he was the first player to receive the IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper award in 1987.^[2]

Jean-Marie Pfaff

Pfaff in 2007
Personal information
Date of birth	(1953-12-04) 4 December 1953 (age 70)
Place of birth	Lebbeke, East Flanders, Belgium
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1972–1982	Beveren	305	(0)
1982–1988	Bayern Munich	156	(0)
1988–1989	Lierse	23	(0)
1989–1990	Trabzonspor	22	(0)
Total		506	(0)
International career
1976–1987	Belgium	64	(0)
Managerial career
1998–1999	K.V. Oostende
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

Pfaff was born in Lebbeke. At the age of 16, he joined K.S.K. Beveren with whom he won a Belgian champions title (1979) and a Belgian Cup (1978). The same year, he received the Belgian Golden Shoe. In 1982, he entered the Bayern Munich squad,^[3] getting three Bundesliga titles (from 1985 to 1987) and two German cups (1984 and 1986).^[4]

International career

 

Jean-Marie Pfaff during a training of the national team in 1980

Pfaff first played with the Red Devils in 1976 against the Netherlands.^[5] He was the goalkeeper during Euro 80 and Euro 84, and the 1982 and 1986 World Cups.

Style of play

Despite his sturdy physical build, Pfaff possessed quick reflexes and was known for his spectacular playing style, as well as his ability to produce acrobatic saves, which made him an effective shot-stopper. He was also known for his extroverted and outspoken character, his lively and eccentric personality, and his strong and charismatic leadership qualities, as well as his confidence, fair-play, and professionalism, which made him an excellent organiser of the defence and a popular figure among the fans; as such, due to his cheerful attitude on the pitch and humorous demeanor, he earned him the nickname El Simpático ("Mr. Nice Guy," in Spanish) during the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. He also excelled at quickly rushing off his line; moreover, although he was not the tallest goalkeeper, his large hands aided him when coming out to claim the ball, which made him an authoritative presence in goal. Furthermore, he was renowned for his penalty–stopping abilities. Despite his goalkeeping ability, however, and his reputation as one of the best goalkeepers in the world in his prime, and as one of Belgium's greatest goalkeepers ever^[6] – with some in the sport even ranking him as one of the best goalkeepers of all time –, he was also known to be inconsistent and prone to occasional errors.^[a]

Farewell match

To say goodbye to football, a farewell match was organized on the Beerschot field in 1991. The "Belgium of the eighties" squad and a selection of world stars faced each other, including Franz Beckenbauer, Ruud Krol, Michel Platini, Roger Milla, Alain Giresse and Søren Lerby. The match was broadcast live in 36 countries.^[21]

After retirement

 

Pfaff in 2017 (Red Bull Salzburg-Anderlecht)

Pfaff was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004. He was a representative of company United Sol Energy in 2005. The company became the sponsor of the former East German record champion BFC Dynamo before the 2005-06 season. Pfaff became a member of BFC Dynamo and promoted the establishment of a new youth sports school at the club.^[22] The new youth sports school at BFC Dynamo was meant to bear his name.^[23] Pfaff visited the Sportforum Hohenschönhausen and participated in training with youth teams of BFC Dynamo.^[24] However, the sponsorship never materialized. Pfaff resigned from the club on 11 August 2006 and terminated his membership.^[25] He was a TV star in Belgium and the Netherlands with the reality show De Pfaffs showing him and his family from 2002 to 2012.^[26]

Honours and awards

Beveren^[27]

• Belgian First Division: 1978–79
• Belgian Cup: 1977–78
• Belgian Supercup: 1979

Bayern Munich^[28]

• Bundesliga: 1984–85, 1985–86, 1986–87
• DFB-Pokal: 1983–84, 1985–86
• DFL-Supercup: 1987–88
• European Cup runner-up: 1986–87

Belgium

• UEFA European Championship runner-up: 1980^[29]
• Belgian Sports Merit Award: 1980^[30]
• FIFA World Cup fourth place: 1986^[31]

Individual

• Belgian Golden Shoe: 1978^[32]
• Kicker Goalkeeper of the Year: 1983^[33]
• Kicker German Football Rankings - World Class Goalkeeper: 1983, 1986^[34]
• Ballon d'Or nominations: 1983,^[35] 1986,^[36] 1987^[37]
• European Goalkeeper of the Year: 1983, 1987^[38]
• FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1986^[39]
• FIFA World Cup Golden Glove: 1986^[40]
• France Football + La Gazzetta dello Sport + Guerin Sportivo World Cup team: 1986^[41]
• IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper of the Year: 1987^[42]
• Belgian Golden Shoe of the 20th Century (6th): 1995^[43]
• Voetbal International's 50 World Stars by Raf Willems: 1999^[44]
• IFFHS World Keeper of the Century (16th): 2000^[45]
• IFFHS European Keeper of the Century (10th): 2000^[45]
• Platina 11 (Best Team in 50 Years of Golden Shoe Winners): 2003^[46]
• FIFA 100: 2004^[47]
• Golden Foot Legends Award: 2014^[48]
• World Sports Legends Award: 2016^[49]
• IFFHS All Time Belgium Dream Team: 2021^[50]
• Honorary Citizen of Beveren: 2022^[51]
• Museum Jean-Marie Pfaff in Beveren: 2023^[52]

Books

• Nummer Eén by Marcel Van Bergen in 1979, 209 pages (Dutch)
• J.M. Pfaff-De Derde Dimensie by Theo Bauwens in 1983, 152 pages (Dutch)^[53]
• De Held van Munchen (celebrity comic) by K. Luyckx and F. Defossez in 1984, 44 pages (Dutch)^[54]
• Das Torwartbuch by Jean-Marie Pfaff and Sepp Maier in 1984, 222 pages (German)^[55]
• De Pfaffs (celebrity comic) by Ronald Grossey and Charel Cambré in 2003 (Dutch)^[56]
• Overleven by Jean-Marie Pfaff in 2007, 247 pages (Dutch)^[57]
• J.M. Pfaff-Mein Leben-Vom straßenfußballer zum Welttothuter in 2021, 296 pages (Dutch, German)^[58]

Notes

1. See^{[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]}

References

1. "Jean-Marie Pfaff". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
2. "Jean-Marie Pfaff wordt 70: 'Collega's die me vroeger in een slecht daglicht hebben gesteld, moeten niet meer afkomen'". De Morgen (in Dutch). 3 December 2023.
3. Arnhold, Matthias (16 January 2020). "Jean-Marie Pfaff - Matches and Goals in Bundesliga". RSSSF. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
4. . FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 25 December 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
5. Stokkermans, Karel (16 January 2020). "Jean-Marie Pfaff - International Appearances". RSSSF. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
6. "10 Best Belgian Soccer Players of All Time". Soccer Mavericks. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
7. MURA, GIANNI (28 June 1986). "DA PFAFF A VALDANO ECCO I MR. UNIVERSO". la Repubblica.it (in Italian). Retrieved 12 June 2021.
8. "EURO cult heroes: Jean-Marie Pfaff, 1980". UEFA.com. 26 June 2020. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
9. Losapio, Andrea (18 April 2020). "#iorestoacasa - Le storie della buonanotte: Jean Marie Pfaff, il portiere dai guanti enormi" (in Italian). www.tuttomercatoweb.com. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
10. "I portieri del Mondiale dei portieri" (in Italian). Rivista Studio. 6 July 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
11. Campo, Carlo; Rouse, Daniel. "Debate: Is Claudio Bravo a world-class goalkeeper?". theScore.com. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
12. "I più grandi Numeri Uno" (in Italian). Storie di Calcio. 19 December 2015. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
13. "Meet Svilar, Benfica's rookie goalkeeper". ESPN.com. 31 October 2017. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
14. Conterio, Marco (19 October 2016). "Uomini soli" (in Italian). www.tuttomercatoweb.com. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
15. "PFAFF Jean-Marie: il burattino senza fili" (in Italian). Storie di Calcio. 29 March 2017. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
16. Di Benedetto, Lorenzo (4 December 2020). "Jean-Marie Pfaff, portiere dai guanti giganti e showman dopo il ritiro" (in Italian). www.tuttomercatoweb.com. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
17. "Juventus, Buffon: Piedi per terra, migliorare le prestazioni" (in Italian). Tiscali Sport. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
18. "Buffon, leggenda da record: è davvero il numero uno di sempre?" (in Italian). sport.sky.it. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
19. Camedda, Paolo (2 October 2020). "Jean-Marie Pfaff, 'il clown della porta' che fece grande il Belgio e il Bayern Monaco" (in Italian). www.goal.com. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
20. "Van der Sar ranks among the all-time greats". ESPN.com. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
21. "Pfaff: 'de doelpuntenclown' die België en Bayern München groot maakte". voetbalzone.nl (in Dutch). 14 April 2023.
22. Heath, Duncan (26 July 2005). "In eigener Sache". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). Berlin: Verlag Der Tagesspiegel GmbH. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
23. Gaber, Felix (2 August 2005). "BFC Dynamo: Mit Pfaff in die Zukunft". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). Berlin: Verlag Der Tagesspiegel GmbH. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
24. Koch, Matthias (24 October 2005). "Jean-Marie Pfaff hat bei Dynamo ein Problem". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). Berlin: Verlag Der Tagesspiegel GmbH. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
25. Doneck, Karsten (14 August 2006). "Jean-Marie Pfaff kündigt". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). Berlin: Verlag Der Tagesspiegel GmbH. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
26. "De Pfaffs". IMDB. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
27. "SK Beveren | Geschiedenis".
28. "FC Bayern München | Honours".
29. "UEFA Euro 1980".
30. "Nationale Trofee voor Sportverdienste".
31. "Fifa.com - 1986 FIFA World Cup Mexico™".
32. "Winnaars Gouden Schoen".
33. "Pfaff im Interview: "Nübels Entscheidung war dumm"".
34. "Kicker Ranking / Rangliste 1955 to 2017 (in German)".
35. "Ballon d'Or 1983".
36. "Ballon d'Or 1986".
37. "Ballon d'Or 1987".
38. "Top facts about Jean-Marie Pfaff, El Simpatico".
39. "1986 FIFA World Cup All-Star Team".
40. "Topend Sport - World Cup Best Goalkeepers (Golden Glove)".
41. "BigSoccer - All star teams of 1986 World Cup".
42. "IFFHS (International Federation of Football for History & Statistics)". iffhs.de. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
43. "Soulier d'or belge du 20ème siècle".
44. "The Best x Players of the Century/All-Time". rsssf.org. 1999.
45. "IFFHS' Century Elections". RSSSF. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
46. UEFA.com (15 January 2004). "Aruna voted Belgium's finest | Inside UEFA". UEFA.com. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
47. "FIFA 100".
48. . Golden Foot. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
49. "WSLA Monaco". worldsportslegendsaward.com. 3 December 2016.
50. "IFFHS All Time Belgium Dream Team". www.iffhs.com. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
51. "Net ereburger en Jean-Marie Pfaff wil in Beveren al een voetbalmuseum oprichten". VRT (in Dutch). 24 June 2022.
52. "Jean-Marie Pfaff leidt ons rond in zijn pop-upmuseum: "Mensen doen beseffen dat je niets zomaar krijgt in het leven"". Sporza (in Dutch). 10 July 2023.
53. "Jean-Marie Pfaff., de derde dimensie". agon-sportsworld.de (in German). 30 December 2023.
54. "De held van Munchen". stripinfo.be (in Dutch). 30 December 2023.
55. "Das Torwartbuch". abebooks.com (in German). 30 December 2023.
56. "De Pfaffs". stripinfo.be (in Dutch). 30 December 2023.
57. "Overleven". hebban.nl (in Dutch). 30 December 2023.
58. "Bayern-Ikone Pfaff: Ein neues Buch - und kein Verständnis für Nübel". abendzeitung-muenchen.de (in German). 28 January 2022.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jean-Marie Pfaff.

• Official website  
• – FIFA competition record (archived)  
• Jean-Marie Pfaff – UEFA competition record ()
• Jean-Marie Pfaff at the Royal Belgian Football Association  
• Jean-Marie Pfaff at National-Football-Teams.com