BIOGRAPHY

Sven-Goran Eriksson Cancer Type

Published

6 months ago

January 12, 2024

Sven-Goran Eriksson is a Swedish football manager and former player. Born on 5 February 1948, Eriksson made his debut for Torsby IF at the age of 16 and later joined KB Karlskoga FF in 1972. He was heavily influenced by Tord Grip, who favored the English style of play brought to Sweden by Bob Houghton and Roy Hodgson. Eriksson retired from professional football at the age of 27 but went on to experience major success in club management between 1977 and 2001, winning 18 trophies with various league clubs in Sweden, Portugal, and Italy. In European competitions, he won both the UEFA Cup and the European Cup Winners' Cup.

After retiring as a player, Sven-Goran Eriksson received an offer to become Tord Grip's assistant at Degerfors. He led the team to the playoffs in 1977 and 1978, winning the latter and promotion to Swedish Football Division 2. Eriksson's success with assistant manager Tom Chadney attracted the attention of larger clubs, leading him to be appointed manager of IFK Göteborg in 1979.

Eriksson's European success led to his recruitment by Portuguese club Benfica, which he joined in June. He won the Primeira Divisão, the Taça de Portugal, and finished runners-up in the 1982–83 UEFA Cup to Anderlecht. After winning a second consecutive league title, Eriksson moved on to Italy, becoming manager of Roma.

In July 1992, Sven-Goran Eriksson returned to Italy to lead Sampdoria, where he managed to win another Coppa Italia in 1994. He left the club in June 1997.

In December 1996, Eriksson agreed to leave Sampdoria to manage Blackburn Rovers, but in February 1997, he resigned to stay in Italy and become the new manager at Lazio. Eriksson employed fellow Swede Tord Grip as his assistant and found major success with Lazio, winning the Coppa Italia and Italian Supercup in 1998 and 2000, the European Cup Winners' Cup (1999), and the Serie A title in 2000.

Eriksson has coached in 10 countries, including Sweden, Portugal, Italy, England, Mexico, Ivory Coast, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, China, and the Philippines.