Ferenc Puskás

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

After the Hungarian Revolution, Puskás served a two-year ban from UEFA. Despite failing to sign for Ethnikos Piraeus in 1957 under pressure from rival clubs, in 1958 he emigrated to Spain where he successfully signed for Real Madrid at the age of 31. While playing with the club, Puskás won four Pichichis and scored seven goals in two European Cup finals, winning the competition three times with the club and claiming five consecutive La Liga titles. He scored 619 goals in 618 matches in the Hungarian and Spanish leagues and National Cups. During his first La Liga season, Puskás scored four hat-tricks, including one in his second game, against Sporting de Gijón on 21 September 1958. In the game against Las Palmas on 4 January 1959, Puskás and Alfredo di Stéfano scored hat-tricks in a 10–1 win. During the 1960–61 season, Puskás scored four times in a game against Elche and the following season, he scored five goals against the same team. Puskás scored two hat-tricks against Barcelona in 1963, one at the Bernabéu and one at the Camp Nou.

In Their Own Story

Puskás made his debut for Hungary on 20 August 1945 and scored in a 5–2 win over Austria. He went on to play 85 games and scored 84 times for Hungary. Together with Zoltán Czibor, Sándor Kocsis, József Bozsik, and Nándor Hidegkuti, he formed the nucleus of the Golden Team that remained unbeaten for 32 consecutive games. During this run, they became Olympic Champions in 1952, beating Yugoslavia 2–0 in the final in Helsinki. Puskás scored four times at the Olympic tournament, including the opening goal in the final. They also defeated England twice, first with a 6–3 win at Wembley Stadium, and then 7–1 in Budapest. Puskás scored two goals in each game against England. In 1953, they won the 1948-53 Central European International Cup. Puskás finished the tournament as top scorer with ten goals and scored twice as Hungary claimed the trophy with a 3–0 win over Italy at the Stadio Olimpico in 1953. Puskás scored three goals in the two first-round matches Hungary played at the 1954 FIFA World Cup. They defeated South Korea 9–0 and then West Germany 8–3. In the latter game, he suffered a hairline fracture of the ankle after a tackle by Werner Liebrich, and did not return until the final. Puskás played the entire 1954 World Cup final against West Germany with a hairline fracture. Despite this, he scored his fourth goal of the tournament to put Hungary ahead after six minutes, and with Czibor adding another goal two minutes later, it seemed the pre-tournament favorites would take the title. However, the West Germans pulled back two goals before half time, with six minutes left the West Germans scored the winner. Two minutes from the end of the match Puskás scored a late equalizer but the goal was disallowed due to an offside call.

Reader's Guide

Ferenc Puskás represented Hungary in the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland. He scored three goals in the two first-round matches: Hungary defeated South Korea 9–0 and then West Germany 8–3. In the latter game, he suffered a hairline fracture of the ankle after a tackle by Werner Liebrich, and did not return until the final. Puskás played the entire 1954 World Cup final against West Germany with a hairline fracture. Despite this, he scored his fourth goal of the tournament to put Hungary ahead after six minutes, and with Czibor adding another goal two minutes later, it seemed the pre-tournament favorites would take the title. However, the West Germans pulled back two goals before half time, with six minutes left the West Germans scored the winner. Two minutes from the end of the match Puskás scored a late equalizer but the goal was disallowed due to an offside call. The source does not mention any appearance in the 1958 World Cup. In October 2009, FIFA announced the introduction of the FIFA Puskás Award, awarded to the player who has scored the "most beautiful goal" over the past year.

Did You Know?

• Puskás scored 84 goals in 85 international matches for Hungary and later played four international matches for Spain.
• He is the European all-time top assist provider in international football with 53 assists.
• Puskás scored seven goals for Kispest in an 11–3 win against Győr on 19 February 1949.
• He scored two hat-tricks against Barcelona in 1963, one at the Bernabéu and one at the Camp Nou.
• The Népstadion in Budapest was renamed the Puskás Ferenc Stadion in his honor in 2002.