Vladimir Durković

Vladimir Durković (Serbian Cyrillic: Владимир Дурковић; 6 November 1937 – 22 June 1972) was a Serbian football defender.^[1] He was part of the Yugoslav squad that won gold at the 1960 Summer Olympics.^[2]

Vladimir Durković

Personal information
Full name	Vladimir Durković
Date of birth	6 November 1937 (1937-11-06)
Place of birth	Đakovica, Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Date of death	22 June 1972(1972-06-22) (aged 34)
Place of death	Sion, Switzerland
Height	1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s)	Defender
Youth career
	Napredak Kruševac
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1954–1955	Napredak Kruševac	9	(1)
1955–1966	Red Star Belgrade	177	(7)
1966–1967	Borussia M'gladbach	10	(0)
1967–1971	Saint-Étienne	116	(0)
1971–1972	Sion	25	(0)
Total		337	(7)
International career
1959–1966	Yugoslavia	50	(0)
Medal record Men's Football Representing  Yugoslavia Olympic Games 1960 Rome Team European Championship 1960 France Team
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career

Club career

Durković played with Red Star Belgrade until he was 28 at which point he moved abroad and made a name for himself with AS Saint-Étienne, winning three French League titles and the Coupe de France twice.

International career

Capped 50 times by Yugoslavia between 1959 and 1966,^[3] Durković excelled as a 22-year-old at the first UEFA European Championship, offering defensive solidity and attacking penetration at right-back. Although Yugoslavia finished second in France, Durković won a gold medal at the Rome Olympics the following September. He also wore the number two shirt at the 1962 FIFA World Cup in Chile and was an ever-present as Yugoslavia eliminated former winners Uruguay and West Germany and finished fourth. His final international was a June 1966 friendly match against Bulgaria.^[4]

Death

He died when shot by a drunken policeman in Sion, Switzerland in June 1972 at the age of 34. The police officer was later sentenced to 9 years prison of which he served 7 years.^[5][6]

Honours

Red Star Belgrade

• Yugoslav First League: 1955–56, 1956–57, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1963–64
• Yugoslav Cup: 1957–58, 1958–59, 1963–64
• Mitropa Cup: 1958

AS Saint-Etienne

• Ligue 1: 1967–68, 1968–69, 1969–70
• Coupe de France: 1967–68, 1969–70

Yugoslavia

• UEFA European Championship: runner-up 1960
• Olympic gold medalist in 1960

Individual

• UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament: 1960^[7]