As of: February 4, 2024, 2:02 p.m
By: Alexander Kaindl
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National player in ice hockey and football, vice world champion, record goalscorer in Florence: Kurt Hamrin was one of the best kickers of his time.
Now he has died.
Stockholm – They called him “l'uccellinò” – “the little bird”.
To this day he is AC Fiorentina's record goalscorer and one of the greatest sports personalities Sweden has ever had.
Now Kurt “Kurre” Hamrin has died at the age of 89.
Football legend Kurt Hamrin is dead: mourning for “the little bird”
In Scandinavia and especially in Italy, where he played most of his professional games, there is of course great sadness.
For example, Fiorentina's Instagram account said: “Hamrin was and always will be a true legend for all football fans and especially for Fiorentina fans.
Together with Batistuta, he still holds the goalscoring record in the purple shirt.
He tied his life inseparably to the city of Florence.”
Hamrin became known to a wider German football audience at the 1958 World Cup - and became a bogeyman.
He scored the goal to make it 3-1 in an emotionally heated semi-final against the reigning world champions and provoked Erich Juskowiak's dismissal, which from the German audience's perspective was the cause of the defeat against the hosts.
In the final against Brazil for the young Pele (2:5), Hamrin came away empty-handed.
Kurt Hamrin was successful in both Milan (left) and Florence.
© Buzzi / TopFoto / Imago
Kurt Hamrin played for Juventus Turin, Calcio Padova, Fiorentina, AC Milan and SSC Napoli
The winger moved from AIK Solna to Italy in 1956, where he was revered as “the little bird” because of his light-footed style of play.
He played for Juventus Turin, Calcio Padova, Fiorentina, AC Milan and SSC Napoli before ending his career at IFK Stockholm.
He remains Fiorentina's record goalscorer and has scored a total of 190 times in Serie A.
Kurt Hamrin: Big titles with Florence and Milan
In addition to the championship with Milan in 1968 and two cup victories with Florence, Hamrin celebrated triumph in the National Champion Cup with Milan in 1969. He also won the European Cup Winners' Cup with both clubs (1961/1968).
Hamrin scored 16 goals in 32 international matches for Sweden.
Curious: Hamrin was also a first-class ice hockey player and even played two international matches for Sweden before deciding to pursue a career as a professional footballer.
With Hamrin, another football legend has now closed his eyes forever - fans all over the world recently mourned the deaths of Franz Beckenbauer and Gigi Riva.
(akl/sid)