Matthias Sindelar

Matthias Sindelar (German: [maˈtiːas ˈʃɪndəlaːɐ̯], Czech: Matěj Šindelář; 10 February 1903 – 23 January 1939) was an Austrian professional footballer. Regarded as one of the greatest Austrian players of all time, Sindelar notably played for Austria Vienna and the national side.

Matthias Sindelar
Personal information
Full name Matthias Sindelar
Birth name Matěj Šindelář
Date of birth (1903-02-10)10 February 1903
Place of birth Kozlov, Moravia, Austria-Hungary
Date of death 23 January 1939(1939-01-23) (aged 35)
Place of death Vienna, Germany
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Centre-forward
Youth career
1918–1922 Hertha Vienna
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1921–1924 Hertha Vienna 23 (4)
1924–1939 Austria Wien 312 (240)
International career
1926–1937 Austria 43[1] (26)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Austria
Central European International Cup
Silver medal – second place1927–30 Central European International Cup
Central European International Cup
Gold medal – first place1931–32 Central European International Cup
Central European International Cup
Silver medal – second place1933–35 Central European International Cup
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

He played as a centre-forward for the celebrated Austrian national side of the early 1930s that became known as the Wunderteam, which he captained at the 1934 World Cup. Known as "The Mozart of football" or Der Papierene ("The Paper Man")[2] for his slight build, he was renowned as one of the finest pre-war footballers, known for his fantastic dribbling ability and creativity. He was voted the best Austrian footballer of the 20th Century in a 1999 poll by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS)[3] and was named Austria's sportsman of the century a year before.[4][5]

With the Wunderteam, Sindelar was one of the key elements of their developing formation and style of play as it evolved into a 2-3-5. According to specialists like Paul Dietschy, this formation provided "such fluidity to the Austrian system", leading to its earning the nickname of "the Viennese whirlpool". Although the Wunderteam regularly lacked efficiency, Sindelar's individual technical skill and vision often compensated for these issues.

Early years

Of Czech descent, Sindelar was born Matěj Šindelář (Czech: [ˈmacɛj ˈʃɪndɛlaːr̝̊]) in Kozlov, Moravia, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the son of Jan Šindelář, a blacksmith, and his wife Marie (née Švengrová). Despite occasional claims that Sindelar was of Jewish origin, the family was Catholic. These claims most likely arise from his main club, Austria Vienna's connection to Vienna's Jewish population.[6][7]

They moved to Vienna in 1905 and settled in the predominantly working-class district of Favoriten, which had a large Czech-speaking community. Young Matěj, whose name would be Germanized as Matthias, began playing football in the streets with the other children of the neighbourhood, many of whom were immigrants from Bohemia and Moravia. Notably, he grew up alongside his future Austrian teammate Josef Bican.

According to many sources, upon the death of his father, Sindelar took up a job as either an apprentice mechanic or a locksmith; during this time, he also had many other odd jobs, such as selling sporting goods to the people of Vienna.

Club career

Sindelar began his footballing career with Hertha Vienna, whom he joined in 1918. This opportunity arose when, at the age of fifteen, he was spotted by a scout, who signed him up for Hertha's youth teams. Already considered to be "an excellent dribbler and finisher" as a teenager, Sindelar had quickly progressed into the first team by the early 1920s.

Playing in the blue and white jersey of Hertha, Sindelar quickly learned to compensate for his rather frail, infantile physique through the development of his high-level technique, allowing him "to dodge and dribble at will his opponents, and to squeeze with disconcerting ease (through gaps in [sic]) the opposing defences”. It is these characteristics which make him obtain the nickname of “der Papierene” ("the Paper man").

Sindelar quickly earnt his keep at Hertha Vienna, scoring his first goals in the national championship, in particular, thanks to his quick feet, and becoming a vital cog in their team. Both his and the club's fortunes took a turn for the worse, however, as Sindelar suffered a serious knee injury in May 1923, making him indefinitely unavailable. Concurrently, Hertha also went through a great economic crisis and Sindelar, as well as some of his teammates, were made redundant. In his time at Hertha Vienna, Sindelar scored 4 goals in 23 matches.

Austria Vienna

Now a free agent but still injured, Sindelar consulted the club doctor of SV Amateure who suggested that he should undergo meniscus surgery. At the time, such an operation was operation considered quite risky as it could mark the end of his career. Feeling that such a risk was necessary to take Sindelar had the surgery and, once successfully healed, signed for SV Amateure in 1924, who were at the time Austrian league and cup champions. In 1926, SV Amateure would become professional and take on its current name of FK Austria Vienna.

His time at Austria Vienna coincided with one of the club's most successful spells pre-War. He helped the team win the Austrian Cup five times across an eleven-year spell - in 1925, 1926, 1933, 1935 and 1936. He also won an 1. League title in 1926, and the Mitropa Cup twice, in 1933 and 1936 respectively. Much like his time at Hertha Vienna, Sindelar was a center forward and utilised his technical ability, talent on the ball, and eye for goal to overcome his physical disadvantages. He was also seen as a great leader in the pitch. Gifted with 'ankle-breaking' agility his ability to beat the defender one-on-one was often described as 'exceptional'. In this sense, he is often compared in terms of modern-day footballers to counterparts such as Ferenc Puskás.

Overall, in 703 matches for Austria Vienna, he scored 600 goals and In 2001 was named in their Team of the Century.

Sindelar was arguably one of Europe's best and, in scope, most influential footballers of his generation, recognized for his ball control, passing and dribbling, and especially his creativity. There are anecdotal claims that some fans went attended Sindelar's games not only to see him play but to get a better understanding of how football 'should' be played.

In 1938 he appeared as himself in the Austrian film Roxy and the Wonderteam.

Career statistics
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[8][9]
Club Season League Cup Mitropa Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Hertha Vienna 1921-22 80000080
1922-23 1731000183
1923-24 80100090
Austria Vienna 1924-25 1740000174
1925-26 725400126
1926-27 231853002821
1927-28 1982100219
1928-29 2173100248
1929-30 181561002416
1930-31 171498002624
1931-32 221510002315
1932-33 211156002617
1933-34 212234653031
1934-35 15947212117
1935-36 17856782922
1936-37 2113451043522
1937-38 15910662215
1938-39 1101010120
Total 29815856463124385228

International career

Austria national team

From 1926 to 1937, Sindelar was capped 43 times for his country, scoring 26 goals.[10] He scored four goals in his first three international matches, including one in his debut match, a 2–1 victory over Czechoslovakia on 28 September 1926. Sindelar became an essential part of the Austrian Wunderteam that was coached by Hugo Meisl, until the two later had a falling out. Writer David Goldblatt described the events:

He made his international debut in 1926 and played well before falling out of favour with the disciplinarian Meisl. Four years in the international wilderness followed until Meisl was cornered by a gathering of the city's leading football commentators as he sat in the Ring Café in 1931. Everyone was arguing for Sindelar's recall and Meisl changed his mind. Sindelar played. Scotland were beaten and the Wunderteam – already disciplined, organized, hardworking and professional – acquired their playmaker and inspiration, that vital spark of unpredictability.[11]

1927-30 Central European International Cup

while Austria had not quite earned the moniker of Wunderteam yet, a young Sindelar helped them to their first major international tournament performance, being a part of the squad that made Runners-up in the Central European International Cup.

1931-32 Central European International Cup

The Wunderteam started by winning the Central European International Cup: 1931–32, Sindelar scoring 4 goals to help Austria win its first and so far only international Trophy.

1933-35 Central European International Cup

This time around The Wunderteam finished as Runners-up. Sindelar scoring 3 goals to make him Austria's all-time top goalscorer at the Central European International Cup.

1934 World Cup

Sindelar and Austria made the whole their stage at the 1934 World Cup, where they truly earned their nickname of the "Wunderteam". The high point came with their win over Hungary in the quarterfinals, when Sindelar was matched up against centre-half György Sárosi, who would go on to claim a runners-up medal at the following World Cup in France. In a bruising encounter, one Hungarian was sent off, and Johann Horvath, the Austrian midfielder, was injured and missed the semi-final against Italy. Austria was then defeated by the host nation, with Sindelar affected by the harsh marking of Luis Monti.

Austria v Germany 1938

On 3 April 1938, the Austrian team played Germany in the Prater Stadium in Vienna. This match was significant as, just a few weeks earlier Nazi Germany had annexed Austria (known as the Anschluss), and had absorbed the national team into that of Nazi Germany, ignoring their qualification for that summer's World Cup. Thus, this would be Austria's last international match until after the Second World War. This was and is seen by many as a great tragedy for Austrian football as they feel that Austria were one of the favourites to lift that year's World Cup trophy.

The match dubbed the "Anschlussspiel" in German (lit. Anschluss game), was planned as a celebration by the Nazi regime of the Anschluss and Austria's "coming home to the Reich". At Sindelar's behest, the Austrian team played in red-white-red strips which mimicked the Austrian flag's colours instead of their traditional white and black strips. Austria squandered many easy goalscoring opportunities during the match in a way that looked deliberate. However, in the last 20 minutes, Sindelar and teammate Karl Sesta both scored as the game finished 2–0.[12] Sindelar is claimed to have celebrated extravagantly in front of senior Nazi dignitaries.

International caps and goals

The following is a list of Sindelar's international appearances and goals with the Austria national football team.[13][14][15][16]

Cap #DateLocationType of
match		ResultOpponentMinutes
played		GoalsNotes
1 28 Sep 1926PragueFriendly2–1 Czechoslovakia901
2 10 Oct 1926ViennaFriendly7–1  Switzerland902
3 7 Nov 1926ViennaFriendly3–1 Sweden901
4 20 Mar 1927ViennaFriendly1–2 Czechoslovakia900
5 10 Apr 1927ViennaFriendly6–0 Hungary480[17]
6 6 May 1928ViennaFriendly3–0 Yugoslavia900[18]
7 28 Oct 1928ViennaCentral European International Cup2–0  Switzerland900
8 23 Mar 1930PragueFriendly2–2 Czechoslovakia900
9 16 May 1931ViennaFriendly5–0 Scotland901
10 24 May 1931BerlinFriendly6–0 Germany900
11 14 Sep 1931ViennaFriendly5-0 Germany903
12 4 Oct 1931BudapestCentral European International Cup2–2 Hungary900
13 29 Nov 1931BaselCentral European International Cup8–1  Switzerland901
14 20 Mar 1932ViennaCentral European International Cup2–1 Italy902
15 24 Apr 1932ViennaFriendly8–2 Hungary903[19]
16 22 May 1932PragueCentral European International Cup1–1 Czechoslovakia901
17 17 Jul 1932StockholmFriendly4–3 Sweden901
18 2 Oct 1932BudapestFriendly3–2 Hungary900
19 23 Oct 1932ViennaCentral European International Cup3–1  Switzerland900
20 7 Dec 1932LondonFriendly3–4 England901
21 12 Feb 1933ParisFriendly4–0 France901
22. 9 April 1933ViennaFriendly1–2 Czechoslovakia900
23 30 Apr 1933BudapestFriendly1–1 Hungary900
24 11 Jun 1933ViennaFriendly4–1 Belgium901
25 17 Sep 1933PragueFriendly3–3 Czechoslovakia902
26 1 Oct 1933ViennaFriendly2–2 Hungary900
27 29 Nov 1933GlasgowFriendly2–2 Scotland900
28 10 Dec 1933AmsterdamFriendly1–0 Netherlands900
29 15 Apr 1934ViennaFriendly5–2 Hungary900
30 25 Apr 1934ViennaWorld Cup qualification6–1 Bulgaria901
31 27 May 1934Turin1934 FIFA World Cup3–2 France1201
32 31 May 1934Bologna1934 FIFA World Cup2–1 Hungary900
33 3 Jun 1934Milan1934 FIFA World Cup0–1 Italy900
34 23 Sep 1934ViennaCentral European International Cup2–2 Czechoslovakia900
35 7 Oct, 1934BudapestCentral European International Cup1–3 Hungary900
36 24 Mar 1935ViennaCentral European International Cup0–2 Italy900
37 6 May 1936ViennaFriendly2–1 England900
38 17 May 1936RomeFriendly2–2 Italy900
39 27 Sep 1936BudapestCentral European International Cup3–5 Hungary902
40 21 Mar 1937ViennaCentral European International Cup2–0 Italy730[20]
41 9 May 1937ViennaFriendly1–1 Scotland900
42 23 May 1937BudapestFriendly2–2 Hungary900
43 19 Sep 1937ViennaCentral European International Cup4–3  Switzerland901
Totals384126
== 3 Apr 1938ViennaFriendly2–0 Germany901[21]

Team record

In the 43 matches that Sindelar played, Austria had a total record of 25 victories, 11 draws, and just 7 losses, with Sindelar scoring 26 times.

Death and myth

Refusing to leave his home country, Sindelar refused to play for the new German national team citing old age (by this point he was 35 years old) and injury as his excuse.

Sindelar's grave at Vienna's Zentralfriedhof

On 23 January 1939 both Sindelar and his girlfriend Camilla Castagnola were found dead at the apartment they shared in Vienna; the official verdict cited carbon monoxide poisoning as the cause.[22] Different theories speculated that his death was an accident, suicide or murder.[23]

Austrian writer Friedrich Torberg later dedicated the poem "Auf den Tod eines Fußballspielers" ("On the death of a footballer") to Sindelar. The poem suggested that he had committed suicide as a result of the German Anschluss of Austria in 1938. On the other hand, it has been thought and reported that his death was accidental, caused by a defective chimney.[22] A neighbour had reported a defective chimney in the block a few days before Sindelar's death.[23] However, in a 2000s documentary screened on the BBC, Egon Ulbrich, a lifelong friend of Sindelar, stated that a local official was bribed to record his death as an accident, which ensured that he would receive a state funeral. "According to the Nazi rules, a person who had been murdered or who has committed suicide cannot be given a grave of honour. So we had to do something to ensure that the criminal element involved in his death was removed," he stated.[24] It has also been suggested that Sindelar was killed for his opposition for the Anschluss. The Gestapo notably had a file on him and had kept his café under surveillance.[25]

Honours

Sindelar was ranked as Austria's best footballer of the twentieth century by the IFFHS, also ranking as the world's 22nd best. His career titles include:

Club
Austria Wien

International
Austria

Individual

References
  1. Some sources, including the RSSSF (Austria – Record International Players), list 26 goals in 43 matches. Other sources say he appeared in 44 matches or scored 27 goals.
  2. The Paper Man: life and death of a footballer The Guardian
  3. Stokkermans, Karel / RSSSF. "IFFHS' Century Elections". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 12 January 2016. Retrieved 9 April 2007.
  4. Bardelli, Gino / trivela.com. "Sindelar: O craque que não se curvou ao Nazismo" (in Portuguese). Trivela.com. Archived from the original on 23 December 2006. Retrieved 11 April 2007.
  5. "Austria's greatest". The Football Association. 2 September 2004. Archived from the original on 9 March 2005. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
  6. Wilson, Jonathan (3 April 2007). "Sindelar: the ballad of the tragic hero". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 June 2014. There have been suggestions that Sindelar and/or Castignola were Jewish. It is true that Sindelar played for Austria Vienna, the club of the Jewish bourgeoisie, and came from Moravia, from where several Jews had migrated to Vienna, but his family was Catholic.
  7. Hesse-Lichtenberger, Ulrich (2003). Tor!: The Story of German Football. London: WSC Books. p. 83. ISBN 978-0954013455. Despite reports to the contrary, neither Sindelar nor the woman he would soon begin a fatal affair with were of Jewish heritage.
  8. "Fussball in Österreich SpielerstatstikSindelar Matthias". www.austriasoccer.at.
  9. "Mitropa Cup – Historical Lineups". 3 November 2015.
  10. According to http://www.austriasoccer.at/LSP/Datenbank/lstat9.htm, http://www.austriasoccer.at/LSP/Datenbank/lstat7.htm (data matches the statistical archives of the Austrian Football Association: Länderspiele von September 1923 – April 1934 Archived 4 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine and Länderspiele von April 1934 – Mai 1952 Archived 22 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine) and the RSSSF page Austria – Record International Players. Other sources say he appeared in 44 matches or scored 27 goals.
  11. David Goldblatt, The Ball is Round: A Global History of Soccer (Penguin, 2008; ISBN 1101097671), p. 257.
  12. Der Papierene
  13. Matthias Sindelar – International Goals. RSSSF
  14. Austrian Football Association. "Statistics of matches of the Austria national team (September 1923 – April 1934)" (PDF). oefb.at. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 July 2007. Retrieved 12 April 2007.
  15. Austrian Football Association. "Statistics of matches of the Austria national team (April 1934 – May 1952)" (PDF). oefb.at. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 November 2012. Retrieved 12 April 2007.
  16. Kutschera, Ambrosius. "Statistik Österreichischer länderspiele". austriasoccer.at. Retrieved 12 April 2007.
  17. Entered game as substitute (42')
  18. Austria played two matches on 6- 5-1928, vs. Hungary and vs. Yugoslavia: both matches are considered official for Austria but Yugoslavia did not recognise its match vs. Austria as official.
  19. Scored the first 3 of Austria's goals; second international hat-trick in eight months.
  20. Match suspended at the 73rd minute. Not considered official by the Italian Football Federation. Sources: https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/unb-italy-19.html (see note [5]); https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/ital-recintlp.html (see NB); http://www.austriasoccer.at/LSP/1930_39/1937/s1937_02.htm
  21. The celebratory match played between Austria (as Ostmark) and Germany (as Altreich) in the Praterstadion after the Anschluss is not an official match for either team.
  22. Hesse-Lichtenberger, Uli (18 July 2003). "The 'Paper Man' mystery". ESPNFC. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  23. Wilson, Jonathan (3 April 2007). "Football: Jonathan Wilson on the mysterious death of Matthias Sindelar, probably Austria's greatest-ever player". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
  24. Duffy, Jonathan (22 September 2003). "Football, fascism and England's Nazi salute". BBC News. Retrieved 9 April 2007.
  25. Ashdown, John (22 April 2014). "World Cup: 25 stunning moments … No11: Austria's Wunderteam go close". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
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