Alain Sutter

Alain Sutter
Sutter in 2008
Personal information
Date of birth (1968-01-22) 22 January 1968 (age 56)
Place of birth Bern, Switzerland
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
1973–1985 SC Bümpliz 78
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1985–1993 Grasshoppers 202 (36)
1987–1988 → Young Boys (loan) 28 (5)
1993–1994 1. FC Nürnberg 29 (5)
1994–1995 Bayern Munich 22 (1)
1995–1997 SC Freiburg 45 (5)
1997–1998 Dallas Burn 25 (2)
Total 351 (54)
International career
1985–1996 Switzerland 68 (5)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Alain Sutter (born 22 January 1968) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He is currently the sporting director of FC St. Gallen.

Playing career

Born in Bern, Sutter played youth football for SC Bümpliz 78,[1] before beginning his professional career in 1985 with Grasshoppers,[2] one of Switzerland's most storied clubs. After spending the 1987–88 season on loan at BSC Young Boys, he was ready to take his place in the Grasshoppers first team, where he remained until the 1993–94 season, when he decided to move to Germany to play with 1. FC Nürnberg.[3]

After Sutter's impressive performances during the 1994 FIFA World Cup,[4] Germany's most successful club, Bayern Munich, quickly signed the midfielder where he played for one season,[3] before moving again this time to SC Freiburg.[5] In 1997, he transferred to Major League Soccer in the United States, where he signed for the Dallas Burn (now FC Dallas).[6] He played one season in Dallas but his tenure there was cut short when, during training in early 1998, he stepped awkwardly in a hole of the practice field (the Burn was using the facilities of a high school at that time) and the injury forced him to retire.[7] He ended his career with 68 caps and five goals for the Swiss national team.

Retirement

Sutter was a football expert and commentator for Swiss television from 1998 to 2017.[8]

He became the sporting director of FC St. Gallen on 3 January 2018.[9]

Controversies

Sutter was the main force behind a controversy in 1995. Before an important match for the Swiss team, he unfolded a banner to protest against France testing the atom bomb.[10]

Honours

Grasshoppers

Bayern Munich

Individual

International

International goals for Switzerland

Score and results list Switzerland's goal tally first.[14]
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 21 September 1988 Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg, Luxembourg  Luxembourg
1–0
4–1
 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification
2. 14 November 1990 Stadio Olimpico, Serravalle, San Marino  San Marino
1–0
4–0
 UEFA Euro 1992 qualification
3. 25 March 1992 Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Ireland  Republic of Ireland
1–0
1–2
 Friendly
4. 22 June 1994 Pontiac Silverdome, Detroit, United States  Romania
1–0
4–1
 1994 FIFA World Cup
5. 6 September 1994 Stade de Tourbillon, Sion, Switzerland  United Arab Emirates
1–0
1–0
 Friendly

Published works

  • Sutter, Alain (2015). Stressfrei glücklich sein. Altendorf: Giger Verlag. ISBN 978-3-905958-69-0.
  • Sutter, Alain (2016). Herzensangelegenheit. Altendorf: Giger Verlag. ISBN 978-3-906872-00-1.

References

  1. ^ "SC Bümpliz 78 - Seite 2 von 2". Fussballmagazin ZWÖLF (in German). 30 October 2015.
  2. ^ "Alain Sutter". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
  3. ^ a b Wettstein, Mischi. "Alain Sutter war Nagelsmanns Lieblingsspieler bei Bayern München". Nau (in German). Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  4. ^ "Alain Sutter war an der WM 1994 trotz Handicap herausragend". Südostschweiz (in German). 18 June 2020.
  5. ^ "Ein bisschen zu weich". Fussballmagazin ZWÖLF (in German). 13 September 2015.
  6. ^ Landman, Brian (1 October 2005). "Dallas' No. 66 finding his kicks". Tampa Bay Times.
  7. ^ Loyola, Kelvin (6 March 2021). "5 players that played in MLS that you might have missed". Bolavip US.
  8. ^ "Alain Sutter verlässt SRF-Expertenteam". medien.srf.ch (in German). Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  9. ^ "FC St.Gallen 1879 | Sutter Alain". fcsg.ch (in German). Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  10. ^ "Wie kann ein Mensch solch eine Zerstörung anrichten?" (in German). Spiegel Online. 22 September 2010. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
  11. ^ "Switzerland Super Cup Finals". RSSSF. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  12. ^ "Bayern v Lokomotiv Moscow game report". UEFA. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  13. ^ All-Star Game flashback, 1997 at MLSsoccer.com
  14. ^ "Alain Sutter (Player)". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 7 April 2023.


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