Fritz Szepan

Who was Fritz Szepan?

Friedrich "Fritz" Szepan was a German footballer in the period leading up to and including World War II. He spent his entire career with Schalke 04 where he won six national championships and one German Cup. He is commonly regarded as one of the greatest Schalke players of all time. To celebrate the 100th birthday of the club, the supporters voted the Schalker Jahrhundertelf, the "Team of the century": he was included in the midfield. From 1929 to 1938 he played for the German national team which he led as captain in 30 matches and during two World Cups.

Usually a highly skilled midfielder, his versatility allowed him to play centre half and as forward. He wasn't very fast, however he compensated his lack of speed with fantastic intelligence, technique and positional play. Because of his extraordinary game understanding and leadership, he was later known as "Beckenbauer before the war".