André Jacowski

André Jacowski (5 December 1921 – 5 February 2002) was a Franco-Polish footballer who played as a defender for Stade de Reims between 1945 and 1953. He also played two matches for the French national team in 1952. He was a member of the great Stade de Reims team of the early 1950s, which won two Ligue 1 titles (1948–49 and 1952–53), one Coupe de France in 1950, and the 1953 Latin Cup.^[3]

André Jacowski

Personal information
Birth name	Andrzej Żakowski
Date of birth	(1921-12-05)5 December 1921
Place of birth	Wiatowice, Poland
Date of death	5 February 2002(2002-02-05) (aged 80)
Place of death	Reims, France
Height	1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)[1][2]
Position	Defender
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
	Arago sport orléanais [fr]
1945–1953	Stade de Reims
1953–1954	RC Paris
International career
1952	France	2	(0)
Managerial career
1954–1957	Chartres
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Playing career

Club career

Born on 5 December 1921 in Wiatowice,^[4][a] near Kraków, Andrzej Żakowski began his football career at the amateur club Arago sport orléanais [fr],^[5] one of the many Catholic clubs affiliated with the Gymnastic and Sports Federation of French Patronages (FGSPF) that offered a culturally familiar sporting to home many Polish immigrants and war refugees.^{[citation needed]} Shortly after the liberation of France in 1945, he joined Stade de Reims, which had been recently promoted the top flight, where he eventually established himself as a regular at right back.^[2]

Together with Paul Sinibaldi, Roger Marche, and Albert Batteux, he was a member of the great Stade de Reims team of the early 1950s that won two Ligue 1 titles (1948–49 and 1952–53) and one Coupe de France in 1950,^[2][3] starting in the final at Colombes on 14 May, where he helped his side keep a clean-sheet in a 2–0 victory his future club RC Paris.^[6] On the following day, the journalists of the French newspaper L'Équipe stated that he and Marche "saved Reims in the first half with last-ditch tackles and dives on the ball", and then "held firm after the restart and were, with goalkeeper Sinibaldi, their team's best players".^[7] Three years later, he helped Reims win the 1953 Latin Cup, the forerunner of the European Cup, although he did not start in the final.^[3][8] He stayed at Reims for eight years, from 1945 until 1953, when he moved to Ligue 2 team RC Paris, where he retired in 1954, aged 33.^[2][5][3] in total, he scored 2 goals in 190 league matches.^[1][2]

International career

In April and May 1952, the 30-year-old Jacowski earned two international caps for France in friendly matches against Portugal and Belgium, helping his side to 3–0 and 2–1 victories, respectively.^[3][5] After the former match, the journalists from L'Équipe stated that he "made a very good international debut", highlighting that he had "never played an easier match" due to Portugal's gradual slowdown.^[9]

Managerial career

After his career as a player ended, Jacowski became a coach, taking over Chartres in 1954, but his first season there ended in relegation to DH.^[10]

Death

Jacowski died in Reims on 5 February 2002, at the age of 80.^[4][11][b]

Honours

Nice

• Ligue 1:
  • Champions (1): 1949–50 and 1952–53
• Coupe de France:
  • Champions (1): 1950
• Latin Cup:
  • Champions (1): 1953

Notes

1. Some sources wrongly claim that he was born on 5 December 1922.^[2][3][5]
2. Some sources wrongly claim that he died on 20 April 2002.^[3]