Andrzej Iwan, the legendary footballer of Wisła Kraków, a representative of Poland, and a participant in two World Cups have passed away. Let’s see what happened to him and Andrzej Iwan cause of death in detail.
What happened to Andrzej Iwan?
Andrzej Iwan is dead – reported RMF FM. The former great football player died in Krakow at the age of 63. He was a legendary player of Wisła Kraków, as well as Wanda Kraków, Górnik Zabrze, VfL Bochum, and Aris FC, representing Poland 29 times in 1978-1987, a participant in the 1978 (5th-8th place) and 1982 (3rd place) World Cups.
Oh no, extremely sad news that another of Poland's World Cup medallists, Andrzej Iwan, has died at the age of 63.
Iwan played for Wisła Kraków, Górnik Zabrze and VfL Bochum, and made 29 appearances for the national team between 1978 and 1987. RIP. pic.twitter.com/bvj51nwjTL— Ryan Hubbard 🇵🇱⚽ (@Ryan_Hubbard) December 27, 2022
How did Andrzej Iwan die?
In the early hours of Tuesday afternoon, there was unfortunate news for the Polish football community. RMF FM informed about the death of Andrzej Iwan at the age of 63.
“It is with deep sadness that we received information about the death of an outstanding player of the White Star and a representative of Poland, Andrzej Iwan,” wrote the Socios Wisła organization on Twitter, saying goodbye to the legend of the club from the capital of Lesser Poland.
Andrzej Iwan (63 l) – legenda Wisły Kraków. Były piłkarz reprezentacji Polski (29/11), uczestnik dwóch mundiali. Na mistrzostwach świata w Hiszpanii wywalczył z reprezentacją trzecie miejsce. Po kariery próbował swoich sił jako trener. Pracował też jako ekspert i komentator. pic.twitter.com/WQIv9r5dzv
— Kto zmarł w sporcie? (@KtoZmarl) December 27, 2022
Andrzej Iwan Past Illness history
| Andrzej Iwan – a prodigy of Polish football, at the age of 18 played in the World Cup in Argentina. However, a few months later he was arrested for beating up a waitress in the “Stylowa” restaurant in Nowa Huta. Despite problems with alcohol and gambling, Ivan had a fairly successful sports career. He was a representative of the country, won the title of the Polish champion, and played in the Bundesliga and Greece. However, there was also the other side of the coin – alcohol, and gambling. AND wan tried to deal with it somehow, but some things couldn’t be hushed up. He lost his job in Wisła in the spring of 2002 when, as team manager, he went to book a hotel for a training camp before the match against GKS Katowice, and … he disappeared like a stone in the water. There was no contact with him for several days. The following years were getting worse. However, he got out of trouble. The film “Roulette with Ivan” was a form of therapy. In this painfully honest documentary, he told about his life, how he used to lose playing roulette and poker, and then washed his sorrows away with alcohol. However, his family was with him all the time and it was thanks to them that he survived the worst moments. Currently, Andrzej Iwan is a respected football commentator. He went straight. This former Wisła player never hid that one of the reasons he decided to tell his story was the desire to draw the attention of young players not to follow his example. |
Andrzej Iwan cause of death
Andrzej Iwan reportedly struggled with numerous mental and physical health problems, including alcohol and gambling addictions. He also made other attempts at suicide. However, the exact reason for his demise has not yet been made public. We will update this page as soon as we have official information.
He died at the age of 63 in his hometown of Kraków. This sad event was confirmed in an interview with Przegląd Sportowy Onet by the manager of the first team of Wisła Kraków, Jarosław Krzoska. Born in Krakow, Iwan represented Poland 29 times in the international arena, including the World Cup in Spain, where Antoni Piechniczek’s players took third place and achieved one of the two greatest successes in the history of our football.
Very sad information came after Christmas, Andrzej Ivan, an outstanding footballer before years, medalist of the 1982 World Cup, is dead. In recent years, a valued commentator, a master of anecdotes, and privately a great friend… His biography “Burned” tells about his life’s difficult periods and an extremely colorful career. Goodbye Ajwen…
Who was Andrzej Iwan?
Andrzej Iwan was born on November 10, 1959 in Kraków. There he began his football career. He was a pupil of the local Wanda, but his greatest popularity came from playing for Wisła, where he made his debut at the age of 17. He defended its colors in the years 1976-1985, cementing the status of the club’s legend.
In 1978, he won the Polish Championship with the White Star. He won three consecutive titles in the years 1986-1988 as a player of Górnik Zabrze. In total, in the then-first league (today Ekstraklasa) he played 269 matches and scored 90 goals. He also tried his hand abroad, at VfL Bochum and Aris Thessaloniki.
He appeared at two World Cups – in 1978 and 1982, with a bronze medal. Iwan appeared in the first two matches of the Spanish championship, against Italy and Cameroon. A serious injury ruled him out of further matches. He was a hair away from going to the championship in 1986, but an injury sustained in a league game also knocked him out of the game. In total, he played 29 times for the Polish national team, scoring 11 goals for it.
Coaching Career
After the end of his football career, he started coaching. For several years he trained junior groups in Wisła Kraków. In the years 1999–2001, he assisted the first coaches of the White Star, first Adam Nawałka, and then the duo Orest Lenczyk – Waldemar Fornalik.
In June 2002, he took the position of the second coach of Zagłębie Lubin, where he worked again alongside Adam Nawałka, but after less than five months the coaching staff was dismissed.
The next stop in Ivan’s coaching career was the then fourth-league Okocimski KS Brzeskowhich was entrusted to him in January 2003. He worked in the team from the city of beer “Ajwen” until April 2005, when he was fired after a series of compromising defeats by Okocimski. Working with the Brest club, Iwan won the 4th league gr. eastern, but in the decisive battle for promotion to a higher class, “Piwosze” had to recognize the superiority of Kmita Zabierzów.
European amateur championship
In 2004, working together with Michał Królikowski, he won promotion as a coach of the Małopolska National Team to the final tournament of the UEFA Regions’ Cup (European amateur championship) held in the summer of 2005 in Małopolska. In May 2005, Iwan found a new employer – performing in the district class Płomień Jerzmanowice. He worked in a club in a town near Kraków for two periods, but not for long.
This was due to the health problems of the former representative of the country. Ivan returned to the coaching bench of Flame on November 4, 2005, only to say goodbye to the team in January.
In March 2006, he took the position of coach of the junior team of Wiatr Ludźmierz, only to say goodbye to the Podhale club after the end of the season.
In the following season, he became the coach of the Orlęta Rudawa team. He worked at the Wieczysta Kraków club as an advisor. In 2021, he returned to Wisła Kraków, taking a position in the scouting department.
Personal Life
At the beginning of his football career in Wisła Kraków and the national team, Andrzej Iwan was arrested for beating up one of the
waitresses in ” Stylowa ” and was punished with a one-year disqualification.
In 2012, the Buchmann publishing house published the autobiography of Andrzej Iwan entitled “Spalony”, which he wrote in collaboration with journalist Krzysztof Stanowski.
The book presents the life story of a football player and also talks about his addictions to alcohol, gambling, and suicide attempts. The book was reissued in 2021 with two additional chapters. His son Bartosz Iwan was also a footballer.
Tributes flooded social media for Andrzej Iwan
The Polish environment says goodbye to Andrzej Iwan. “Great talent, definitely a positive character” The former midfielder played with the Polish national team at the 1978 and 1982 World Cups and returned from the latter tournament with a bronze medal. In total, he played 29 matches for the Polish national team between 1978 and 1987 and scored eleven goals. During his football career, Iwan played for teams such as Górnik Zabrze, VFL Bochum, Wisła Kraków, and Aris FC.
In total, he won four Polish championships, including three with Górnik and one with Wisła. Andrzej Iwan then tried his hand as a coach and was, among others, assistant to Adam Nawałka in Wisła Kraków in 1999-2001 or Zagłębie Lubin in 2002. He also worked as an expert or commentator. Andrzej Iwan returned to Wisła in 2021, taking up a position in the scouting department. It was like reaching out for a helping hand because Ivan was struggling with alcohol addiction and had suicidal tendencies in the past. The football community said goodbye to Andrzej Iwan on Twitter.
Krzysztof Pieczyński
Very sad information came after Christmas, Andrzej Ivan, an outstanding footballer before years, medalist of the 1982 World Cup, is dead. In recent years, a valued commentator, a master of anecdotes, and privately a great friend… His biography “Burned” tells about his life’s difficult periods and an extremely colorful career. Goodbye Ajwen…
PZPN Cezary Kulesza
“Andrzej Iwan has passed away. A great footballer, a colorful man, and a legend of Wisła Kraków. His opinions on football topics were extremely valuable. He will always remain in our memory! – wrote the president of PZPN Cezary Kulesza.
“Reading Burned, I did not think that I would be able to meet the hero of this book in person. Andrzej Iwan was just a damn good man. Huge sadness,” Marcin Ryszka expressed his opinion.
Marek Wawrzynowski from “Sports Review”
Andrzej Iwan was a great guy, a good man, and for journalists a wonderful interlocutor, a brilliant narrator with a photographic memory. Human weaknesses meant that he did not achieve as much as he could, but he will be remembered as a definitely positive character,” wrote Marek Wawrzynowski from “Sports Review”.
W wieku 63 lat zmarł Andrzej Iwan.
Były reprezentant Polski, srebrny medalista mistrzostw świata w 1982 roku, uczestnik mistrzostw świata w 1978 roku, legenda Wisły Kraków.
Wyrazy współczucia dla rodziny i najbliższych… pic.twitter.com/uq6c2kDk3p
— Kanał Sportowy (@Sportowy_Kanal) December 27, 2022
Mateusz Borek
“Great talent. Incredibly sensitive and honest guy. He lived as he wanted. Rest,” wrote Mateusz Borek on Twitter, saying goodbye to the former Polish representative.
Nie żyje Andrzej Iwan medalista MS 1982 Mistrz Polski pic.twitter.com/tJECXuvpLc
— Tomasz Szczepanik (@TomaszSzczepan5) December 27, 2022
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Lavanya (Senior Editor) is a full-time content writer with almost 5 years of experience and a part-time teacher. She joined Medico Topics on the Breaking News trainee scheme in 2022 and now works on MedicoTopics.com. As a lifelong learner, She is constantly curious about learning new things and passionate about sharing knowledge with people through her writing and teaching.
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