ČERNÁK, Tomáš. Persecution of the football coach Leopold Šťastný in 1940 – 1963

The present study deals with the persecution of the football player and manager Leopold "Jim" Šťastný, who was, due to his Jewish origin, persecuted in 1940-1944 and subsequently even after the communist coup in 1948-1963. Leopold "Jim" Šťastný is one of the most important figures in Slovak, Czechoslovak and Austrian football, as he significantly influenced and raised several generations of football players and future coaches. He introduced new, modern knowledge into football and the training process that was ahead of its time. Nevertheless, he was the target of various persecutory measures by the ruling regimes for more than twenty years with short breaks. However, his activities were thanks to his popularity quietly tolerated, which was surprising, especially during the World War II, when he worked at the Ministry of National Defence and unofficially coached an army team who won a Slovak Championship. As it was no secret that he was Jewish, this was a major exception within the countries belonging to the German sphere of influence.