Ivan Ćurković

Ivan Ćurković (Serbian Cyrillic: Иван Ћурковић, pronounced [ǐʋan tɕǔːrkoʋitɕ]; born 15 March 1944) is a Serbian sports executive and former footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

Ivan Ćurković
Ćurković with Saint-Étienne in 1975
President of the Olympic Committee of Serbia
In office 2005–2009
Preceded by	Philip Zepter
Succeeded by	Vlade Divac
Personal details
Born	Ivan Ćurković (1944-03-15) 15 March 1944 (age 80) Mostar, Independent State of Croatia
Height	1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Association football career Position(s) Goalkeeper Youth career 1958–1960 Velež Mostar Senior career* Years Team Apps (Gls) 1960–1964 Velež Mostar 87 (0) 1964–1972 Partizan 201 (0) 1972–1981 Saint-Étienne 303 (0) Total 591 (0) International career 1963–1970 Yugoslavia 19 (0) Managerial career 1981–1982 France (assistant) 2001 FR Yugoslavia (co-manager) Medal record Mediterranean Games 1971 *Club domestic league appearances and goals

During his playing career that spanned 21 seasons from 1960 to 1981, Ćurković made over 700 official appearances for three clubs in Yugoslavia and France, winning numerous trophies and reaching the European Cup final on two occasions, with Partizan in 1966 and Saint-Étienne in 1976. He was also capped 19 times by Yugoslavia at senior level between 1963 and 1970.

After hanging up his boots, Ćurković held various high-level administrative positions, including serving as president of the Serbian Olympic Committee and vice-president of the Serbian Football Association. He also acted as president of his former club Partizan for almost two decades from 1989 to 2006.

Club career

A talented goalie, Ćurković began at his hometown club Velež Mostar and was officially registered by the club in 1958. He would sign his first professional contract in 1960 at the age of 16. During the 1960–61 Yugoslav First League, his first senior season, Ćurković played 13 (out of 22) games and helped the team narrowly avoid relegation from the top flight. He spent three more seasons with the Rođeni, leading them to a fourth-place finish in 1962–63.^[1]

In 1964, Ćurković was transferred to Partizan. He would become the first-choice goalkeeper in his debut season after Milutin Šoškić joined the army to complete his compulsory military service, helping the club win the championship.^[2] During the next season in 1965–66, Ćurković served as a backup to Šoškić through their European Cup campaign that year, as Partizan lost in the final to Real Madrid. He spent a total of eight seasons with the Crno-beli, making 227 appearances across all competitions.^[3]

In 1972, Ćurković moved abroad to France and signed with Saint-Étienne. He immediately established himself as the starting goalkeeper and played nine seasons with Les Verts, winning four domestic championship titles (1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, and 1980–81), three national cups (1973–74, 1974–75, and 1976–77), and reaching the European Cup final in 1975–76.^[4]

International career

At international level, Ćurković played 19 matches for Yugoslavia between 1963 and 1970. He participated at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.^[5]

Post-playing career

Between 1989 and 2006, Ćurković served as president of his former club Partizan, establishing a long-lasting partnership with general secretary Žarko Zečević and sporting director Nenad Bjeković.

In May 2001, Ćurković was appointed by the Football Association of FR Yugoslavia as co-manager of the FR Yugoslavia national team alongside Vujadin Boškov and Dejan Savićević, replacing Milovan Đorić after poor results at the start of the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification.^[6][7]

In July 2005, Ćurković was appointed as acting president of the Olympic Committee of Serbia and Montenegro, replacing Philip Zepter.^[8] He officially became president on 8 March 2006.^[9] Following the split between the two nations, Ćurković served as president of the Olympic Committee of Serbia until February 2009.

On 23 December 2009, Ćurković was named vice-president of the Football Association of Serbia during the presidential term of Tomislav Karadžić.^[10]

Personal life

Born in Mostar, Independent State of Croatia (present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina), Ćurković identifies as a Herzegovinian Croat and a Catholic.^[11]

In 1982, Ćurković was granted French citizenship by a decree of President François Mitterrand.^[12] He was also a recipient of France's Legion of Honour during a ceremony held in Belgrade on 5 October 2005, in which his former Saint-Étienne teammate Michel Platini presented him the award.^[13]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Velež Mostar	1960–61	Yugoslav First League	13	0	—		13	0
	1961–62	Yugoslav First League	22	0	—		22	0
	1962–63	Yugoslav First League	26	0	—		26	0
	1963–64	Yugoslav First League	26	0	—		26	0
	Total		87	0	—		87	0
Partizan	1964–65	Yugoslav First League	23	0	—		23	0
	1965–66	Yugoslav First League	18	0	1	0	19	0
	1966–67	Yugoslav First League	30	0	—		30	0
	1967–68	Yugoslav First League	29	0	4	0	33	0
	1968–69	Yugoslav First League	33	0	—		33	0
	1969–70	Yugoslav First League	33	0	2	0	35	0
	1970–71	Yugoslav First League	17	0	2	0	19	0
	1971–72	Yugoslav First League	18	0	—		18	0
	Total		201	0	9	0	210	0
Saint-Étienne	1972–73	French Division 1	38	0	—		38	0
	1973–74	French Division 1	38	0	—		38	0
	1974–75	French Division 1	38	0	8	0	46	0
	1975–76	French Division 1	38	0	9	0	47	0
	1976–77	French Division 1	37	0	6	0	43	0
	1977–78	French Division 1	37	0	2	0	39	0
	1978–79	French Division 1	36	0	—		36	0
	1979–80	French Division 1	38	0	8	0	46	0
	1980–81	French Division 1	3	0	0	0	3	0
	Total		303	0	33	0	336	0
Career total			591	0	42	0	633	0

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year^[14]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Yugoslavia	1963	1	0
	1964	8	0
	1965	0	0
	1966	0	0
	1967	0	0
	1968	6	0
	1969	3	0
	1970	1	0
Total		19	0

Honours

Partizan

• Yugoslav First League: 1964–65
• European Cup runner-up: 1965–66

Saint-Étienne

• French Division 1: 1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1980–81
• Coupe de France: 1973–74, 1974–75, 1976–77
• European Cup runner-up: 1975–76

Orders

• Knight of the Legion of Honour: 2005

References

1. "Ivan Ćurković: Nisam zaboravio našu sevdalinku" (in Bosnian). avaz.ba. 20 August 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
2. "1964-1965" (in Serbian). partizanopedia.rs. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
3. "Ivan Ćurković" (in Serbian). partizanopedia.rs. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
4. "15 mars 1944 : Naissance d'Ivan Curkovic" (in French). poteaux-carres.com. 15 March 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
5. "Ćurković Ivan" (in Serbian). reprezentacija.rs. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
6. "Đorića menjaju Boškov, Ćurković i Savićević" (in Serbian). blic.rs. 8 May 2001. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
7. "Čerčilovi vatrogasci" (in Serbian). glas-javnosti.rs. 8 May 2001. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
8. "Predsedništvo OKSCG smenilo Ceptera" (in Serbian). b92.net. 11 July 2005. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
9. "Ćurković zvanično predsednik OKSCG" (in Serbian). b92.net. 7 March 2006. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
10. "Ćurković potpredsednik FSS" (in Serbian). b92.net. 23 December 2009. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
11. "Hercegovac sam, Hrvat i katolik, ali u Beogradu sam proveo lijep život" (in Croatian). vecernji.hr. 25 January 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
12. "MO Bio – Ivan Ćurković, gardien de la muraille verte" (in French). main-opposee.com. 25 December 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
13. "Ćurković dobio orden Legije časti" (in Serbian). b92.net. 5 October 2005. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
14. "Ivan Ćurković, international football player". eu-football.info. Retrieved 1 June 2022.

External links

• Ivan Ćurković at WorldFootball.net
• Ivan Ćurković at National-Football-Teams.com