AUSTRIAN FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION

Football started to take hold in Austria towards the end of the 19th century, with the first clubs formed in 1894 - the First Vienna Football Club and the Cricketers. It became the most popular sport with the introduction of the 8 hour working day in 1919.

The first golden period in Austrian football history took place from 1930 to 1933, when the national side of Matthias Sindelar and co. went 16 games undefeated, and were dubbed the 'Wunderteam'.

The second highlight was the period from 1950 to 1954, which culminated in Austria's third place finish at the World Cup Finals - their best to date. In all they have qualified for the World Cup Finals on 7 occasions.

Founded

 18.03.1904

Pro players

 520

Amt players

 375,680

Yth players

 220,000

FIFA  ranking

 86 (July 04)

Coach

 Andreas Herzog (caretaker)


 


Recent matches v England

Date

Venue

Comp

Score

04 Sept 2004

Vienna

F

2-2

13 June 1979

Vienna

F

3-4

26 Sept 1973

Wembley

F

7-0

27 May 1967

Vienna

F

1-0

20 Oct 1965

Wembley

F

2-3

04 Apr 1962

Wembley

F

3-1

F = Friendly

Star Players

Andreas Herzog, 35, is the most capped Austrian of all time, having featured for the national side on 103 occasions. The playmaking midfielder, renowned for his dangerous left foot, is currently plying his trade for the LA Galaxy, having spent ten years in the German Bundesliga. He won the UEFA Cup with Bayern Munich, and 2 German Cups and a League Cup with Werder Bremen. He represented Austria at both the 1990 and 1998 World Cup Finals.

Alexander Manninger, 27, will be most well known in this country for his 5 seasons as understudy to David Seaman at Arsenal, and his contributions to the 97-98 double-winning season. He is currently on the books at Bologna in Italy.

Legend

Hans Krankl - A striker, he scored 34 goals in 69 games for Austria, with his 4 at the 1978 World Cup putting him amongst the tournament's top scorers. The 1977-78 season saw him score the most goals in Europe for Rapid Vienna, and that, in addition to his World Cup performance, secured a move to Barcelona. He finished his first season there as top scorer in Spain, and helped his side to win both the Copa Espana and The European Cup Winners' Cup. He was five-times the Austrian Player of the Year, and was voted the most popular player of the last 25 years.

Insider's view

Hans Krankl (Former Austria Head Coach): "The team is in reconstruction and this lasts a long period of time, but it is also clear that we have to deliver certain results." On the World Cup 2006 draw: "It could have been worse, but I'm delighted that we are going to play three British teams"

The Colour
AUSTRIA

Area

 83,858 km2

Population

 7,800,000

Capital

 Vienna

Language

 German
Famous people - Arnold Schwarzenegger (actor, politician), Sigmund Freud (psychology), Fritz Lang (director), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (composer), Johann Strauss (composer), Franz Schubert (composer), Karl Popper (philosopher)


Austrian Trivia

Category  Stat
Nobel prize laureates  11
Cinema attendance in 1999 1834.34 per 1000 people
Televisions 519.03 per 1000 people
No. of Austrian Everest ascents 14