Helmut Köglberger: From the crew child to football legend in Graphic Novel!

Helmut Köglberger: From the crew child to football legend in Graphic Novel!

Urban-Loritz-Platz 2a, 1070 Wien, Österreich - A football phenomenon becomes a hero of a graphic novel: Helmut Köglberger, a legend of Austrian football, is the focus of a new book that will be published on March 16. The work, which comes up with more than 140 pictures on 120 pages, documents its moving life story from the crew to the celebrated football captain of the national team. The Viennese trio, consisting of illustrator Eugenio Belgrado and the authors Philip Bauer and Anatol Vitouch, brings Köglberger's impressive career alive, while the Graphic Novel is presented as part of the Nextcomic Festival, which takes place in Linz, Traun and Steyr from March 21 to 28.

Köglberger, who was born in Upper Austria in 1946 as the son of an African -American soldier and an Austrian woman, experienced a lot of discrimination on his childhood due to his origin, but struggled with willpower. From an outsider, he developed into a "century footballer", which became an Austrian champion with the LASK and Austria Vienna. He led the national team as captain and was celebrated by his fans as the "best in the world". In the graphic novel, not only is his sporting career illuminated, but also his search for his biological father and his commitment to a football academy in Kenya, which gives a deep insight into his moving life, which is almost "ready for Hollywood", as Vitouch describes, as reported in detail of football culture.

event on the life and work of Köglberger

In addition to the book presentation, a panel discussion takes place in the Club 2 x 11 special. Experts like Karl Daxbacher, a former player of Köglberger, and his son Stefan Köglberger will talk about the challenges and triumph of his life. Admission to the event, which is under the moderation of Nicole Selmer, is free of charge. This discussion offers a unique framework in which the multidimensionality of Köglberger's life, which was characterized by racism and social exclusion, is illuminated.