Jiří Sobotka

{{Short description|Czech football player and coach (1911–1994)}}

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Jiří Sobotka

| image = Jiří Sobotka (1961).jpg

| caption = Sobotka in 1961

| birth_date = {{birth date|1911|6|6|df=yes}}

| birth_place = Prague, Austria-Hungary

| death_date = {{Death date and age|1994|5|20|1911|6|6|df=yes}}

| death_place = Intragna, Switzerland

| position = Forward

| youthyears1 =

| youthclubs1 = Čechoslovan Košíře

| years1 = 1931–1939

| years2 = 1939–1941

| years3 = 1942

| years4 = 1943–1946

| years5 = 1946–1951

| clubs1 = Slavia Prague

| clubs2 = Hajduk Split

| clubs3 = Slavia Prague

| clubs4 = SK Baťa Zlín

| clubs5 = Chaux-de-Fonds

| caps2 = 34

| goals2 = 17

| nationalyears1 = 1934–1937

| nationalteam1 = Czechoslovakia

| nationalcaps1 = 23

| nationalgoals1 = 8

| manageryears1 = 1940–1941

| manageryears2 = 1946–1959

| manageryears3 = 1959–1961

| manageryears4 = 1961–1965

| manageryears5 = 1964–1965

| manageryears6 = 1965–1967

| manageryears7 = 1968–1969

| manageryears8 = 1970–1971

| manageryears9 = 1971–1972

| manageryears10 = 1972–1973

| manageryears11 = 1973–1976

| managerclubs1 = Hajduk Split

| managerclubs2 = Chaux-de-Fonds

| managerclubs3 = Feyenoord

| managerclubs4 = FC Basel

| managerclubs5 = Switzerland

| managerclubs6 = FC Biel-Bienne

| managerclubs7 = Charleroi

| managerclubs8 = UE Sant Andreu

| managerclubs9 = Chaux-de-Fonds

| managerclubs10 = FC Aarau

| managerclubs11 = Bellinzona

| medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{TCH}}}}

}}

Jiří Sobotka (also known as Georges Sobotka; 6 June 1911 – 20 May 1994) was a Czech football player and manager. He played internationally for Czechoslovakia.

Career

Sobotka played for Czechoslovakia national football team (23 caps, 8 goals)[https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/sobotka-intl.html Jiri Sobotka - International Appearances] and participated at the 1934 FIFA World Cup when Czechoslovakia came in second.

He played for Slavia Prague, Hajduk Split (winning the Banovina of Croatia first league[https://www.rsssf.org/players/kroa-champ-teams.html Croatia - Championship Winning Squads]) and FC La Chaux-de-Fonds.

During his period in Split, he played 36 league matches scoring 17 goals in the 1939-40[http://www.hajduk.hr/?otvori=arhiva&sezona=36 1939-40 league stats] at Hajduk Split official website.{{in lang|hr}} and 1940-41[http://www.hajduk.hr/?otvori=arhiva&sezona=29 1940-41 league stats] at Hajduk Split official website.{{in lang|hr}} seasons. Before arriving to Yugoslavia, he had been a player-coach in Switzerland with FC Winterthur.[http://fcwinterthur1896.com/trainer/ All-time coaches] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161011053235/http://fcwinterthur1896.com/trainer/ |date=11 October 2016 }} at FC Winterthur official website, retrieved 24-11-2015

After his playing career, he coached numerous clubs in Switzerland[https://www.rsssf.org/players/trainers-zwit-clubs.html Switzerland - Trainers of First and Second Division Clubs] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080627223859/http://www.rsssf.com/players/trainers-zwit-clubs.html |date=27 June 2008 }} and won 6 Swiss cups.[http://www.football.ch/sfv/chcup/fr/start.aspx Coupe Suisse] He also coached Charleroi in Belgium[http://www.dhnet.be/dhjournal/archives_det.phtml?id=307088 DH.be - Le Sporting centenaire!] UE Sant Andreu in Spain,[http://hemeroteca.elmundodeportivo.es/preview/1970/07/06/pagina-9/1415989/pdf.html?search=sobotka Edición del viernes, 26 junio 1970, página 9 - Hemeroteca - elmundodeportivo.es] and Switzerland national team.[https://www.rsssf.org/tablesz/zwit-intres.html Switzerland - International Matches]

Curiosity

A well-documented curiosity was that during the winter break of their 1963–64 season FC Basel travelled on a world tour. This saw them visit British Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, French Polynesia, Mexico and the United States. As first team manager Sobotka was together with 16 players and 15 members of staff, supporters and journalists participated in this world tour from 10 January to 10 February 1964. Team captain Bruno Michaud filmed the events with his super-8 camara. The voyage around the world included 19 flights and numerous bus and train journeys. Club chairman, Lucien Schmidlin, led the group, but as they arrived in the hotel in Bangkok, he realised that 250,000 Swiss Francs were missing. The suitcase that he had filled with the various currencies was not with them. He had left it at home, but fortunately Swiss Air were able to deliver this to him within just a few days. During the tour a total of ten friendly/test games were played, these are listed in their 1963–64 season. Five wins, three draws, two defeats, but also three major injuries resulted from these test matches. A broken leg for Peter Füri, an eye injury for Walter Baumann and a knee injury for Bruno Michaud soon reduced the number of players to just 13.{{citation | first = Josef | last = Zindel | year = 2018 | title = Die ersten 125 Jahre: 1964 | work = The unbelievable world tour|pages=60–61| publisher = Friedrich Reinhardt Verlag|location=Basel}}

Honours

=As a player=

Slavia Prague

Czechoslovak First League: 1932–33, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1936–37

Hajduk Split

Croatian First League: 1940–41

Czechoslovakia

FIFA World Cup runner-up: 1934

=As a manager=

Chaux-de-Fonds

Swiss Championship: 1953–54, 1954–55
Swiss Cup: 1947–48, 1950–51,{{efn|name=PM|Sobotka won the 1947–48 and 1950–51 Swiss Cups as a player-manager}} 1953–54, 1954–55, 1956–57

Feyenoord

: Eredivisie: 1960–61

FC Basel

Swiss Cup: 1962–63

References

External links

{{CMFS player|SobotkaJiri}}
{{WorldFootball.net|jiri-sobotka}}
[http://www.hajduk.hr/?otvori=klub&kat=treneri&trener=jiri-sobotka Career story] at Hajduk Split official website. {{in lang|hr}}

{{Navboxes

| title = Jiří Sobotka managerial positions

| list1 =

}}

Category:1911 births

Category:1994 deaths

Category:Czechoslovak men's footballers

Category:Czechoslovakia men's international footballers

Category:Czech men's footballers

Category:SK Slavia Prague players

Category:FC Zlín players

Category:HNK Hajduk Split players