“My penalty in 1976 changed everything – but Sepp Maier hated me. He had a photo of me on his dartboard” Antonin Panenka on football’s most famous ever penalty
There’s only a short list of footballers who have a particular technique named after them, like with the Cruyff turn, and, in different parts of the world, the Papinade and the Pele kick.
Fifty years on from the spot kick that made him a worldwide name, Antonin Panenka remains on that list.
The goalscoring midfielder enshrined his place in football terminology in the Euro 76 final, stepping up as his country’s fifth and final penalty taker in the shootout against West Germany and dinking the ball into the middle of the net to win the trophy for Czechoslovakia.
“Even today, people in my country still want to take photos with me”
The sheer composure and audacity captured the imagination and changed the career of the then 27-year-old who plied his trade for hometown club Bohemians Prague.
Panenka went on to play in Austria, most notably for Rapid Vienna, with whom he won two Bundesliga titles, the second of which was part of a league and cup double, as well as finishing as the top scorer in the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1984/85.
Panenka believes he never would have got that opportunity had it not been for that magic moment in the Euros final. As he told FourFourTwo: “My penalty in 1976 changed everything.
“Not only did I play abroad, I also had the chance to play in exhibition teams with some of the greatest footballers ever, like Eusebio, Franz Beckenbauer and Johan Cruyff.
“At first I felt almost intimidated, but I realised they were completely normal people – open and generous with team-mates and fans.
“Even today, people in my country still want to take photos with me. They know who I am and what I did. I’ve left my legacy – to my country through that European Championship trophy, and to my fellow citizens by always behaving well and trying to set an example, both on and off the pitch.
“Of course, people only remember me for that penalty today, even though I trained hard all my life and did far more than just that on the field. Then again, how many footballers are able to say they invented a shot that will forever carry their name?”
Panenka’s penalty did have a more unfortunate legacy for another player, though: the West German goalkeeper Panenka fooled, Sepp Maier.
“My God, how much Sepp Maier hated me afterwards,” Panenka said.
“I think he stayed angry with me for more than 35 years. We have a mutual friend who visited his house in Germany and told me that Maier keeps a dartboard in his garage with a photo of my face on it!
“I couldn’t believe it, but he swore it was true. Later, we met and even drank a beer together, but never brought up the penalty. I don’t think he holds the resentment any more.”
