Josef Bican
Josef “Pepi” Bican (25 September 1913 – 12 December 2001) was an Austrian-Czech professional footballer who played as a striker. He is the second-most prolific goalscorer in official matches in recorded history according to Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF), with over 948 goals scored in 621 matches.[1] FIFA recognises a lower total of 805 goals.[2][3]
According to RSSSF, Bican scored over 1812 total goals in over 1089 total matches, making him the second greatest goalscorer of all time, behind Lajos Tichy with at least 1912 total goals scored in at least 1301 total matches.[4]
Bican began his professional career at Rapid Vienna in 1931. After four years at Rapid, he moved to local rivals Admira Wien. Bican won four league titles during his time in Austria,[5] then moved to Slavia Praha in 1937, where he stayed until 1948, and became the club’s all-time top goalscorer.[6] He later played for FC Vitkovice, FC Hradec Králové, and Dynamo Praha, retiring in 1955 as the all-time top goalscorer in the Czechoslovak First League with 447 goals.[7]
Bican was a member of the Austrian Wunderteam of the 1930s and represented the nation at the 1934 FIFA World Cup, where they reached the semi-finals. He later switched allegiance to the Czechoslovakia national football team, but a clerical error related to his transfer of national team precluded him from playing in the 1938 FIFA World Cup. Bican was a tall and powerful player,[8] with the technical ability to play with both feet,[9] and had considerable pace. During his athletic prime, he was reportedly capable of running 100 metres in 10.8 seconds, which was not far off the leading sprinters of his time.[2]
After his retirement from playing, Bican became a manager, and coached various teams from the 1950s until the 1970s. In 1998, Bican was given a “Medal of Honour” by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) for being among the world’s most successful top division goalscorers of all time.[10] In 2000, the IFFHS awarded Bican the “Golden Ball” in recognition of his status as the greatest goalscorer of the 20th century. The award was based on how many times a player had been top scorer in his domestic league, a feat which Bican achieved 12 times.[5][11]
