Australia’s 1974 World Cup coach Rasic dies aged 87

Rasic arrived in Australia in 1962 and was named coach of the Socceroos at the age of 34 in 1970, leading the team on an unbeaten run of 12 matches and ultimately to qualification for the World Cup in West Germany.

Published : Jun 08, 2023 12:16 IST , SYDNEY - 1 MIN READ

REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO Footballs lay on the pitch during a training session of the German national football team in Frankfurt on the eve of their international friendly match against Peru.
REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO Footballs lay on the pitch during a training session of the German national football team in Frankfurt on the eve of their international friendly match against Peru. | Photo Credit: AFP
infoIcon

REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO Footballs lay on the pitch during a training session of the German national football team in Frankfurt on the eve of their international friendly match against Peru. | Photo Credit: AFP

Rale Rasic, the Yugoslavian-born coach who led Australia to their first World Cup finals campaign in 1974, has died aged 87, Football Australia said on Thursday.

Rasic arrived in Australia in 1962 and was named coach of the Socceroos at the age of 34 in 1970, leading the team on an unbeaten run of 12 matches and ultimately to qualification for the World Cup in West Germany.

In the finals, the mostly amateur Australians failed to score a goal in losses to both East and West Germany and a draw with Chile, finishing bottom of their group.

Rasic was sacked after the tournament and Australia would not qualify again until the World Cup returned to a reunified Germany in 2006.

“Rale changed the game in Australia in 1974, qualifying Australia for the first World Cup ever,” current Australia coach Graham Arnold said in a news release.

“The amount of passion and love that Rale had for football has never drifted too far away from myself and he has been a great inspiration for me over the years.

“He was such a great man, he loved a chat, and loved a story, and he always kept those stories going and that motivated a lot of people in life.”

Rasic was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1989.

The Socceroos will wear black armbands in memory of Rasic when they take on world champions Argentina in a Beijing friendly next week, Football Australia said.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment