Renowned German goalkeeper Georg Koch has died at 54 after battling pancreatic cancer, years after an infamous firework incident forced his early retirement from professional football.
Former professional goalkeeper Georg Koch has died at the age of 54 following a two-year battle with pancreatic cancer.
Koch, who enjoyed a distinguished career across Europe with clubs like PSV Eindhoven and Fortuna Dusseldorf, was diagnosed with the incurable disease in May 2024.
At the time, he stoically remarked, “The disease is incurable, I will die. But God hasn’t decided when He’ll take me yet.”
Koch’s top-flight career famously ended prematurely after a firework exploded near his ear during a 2008 Vienna derby, causing permanent hearing and balance damage.
Reflecting on the incident that forced his retirement, Koch stated, “Two idiots are responsible for my retirement,” adding that “such an act should have consequences.”
Arsenal legend Jens Lehmann led tributes to the shot-stopper, who made over 370 professional appearances.