He reaped enormous success in Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Michael Laudrup was recently named the Danish athlete of all time.
But today he lives a life far from football.
Finn Laudrup was himself a successful football player, in Bröndby, Denmark, so there was no doubt that there were good genes. But that his sons – especially the older one, Michael, would become so immensely good at the sport, few could have predicted. In fact, many believe that few players – when they were at their best – had the same capacity as Michael Laudrup.
Incredible career
Michael had his big breakthrough in Bröndby where he completely threw in goals, which led to a move to the big club Juventus, 1983. He won Scudetton, and his incredible game perception was quickly intercepted by none other than Johan Bruyff. The Dutchman was the coach of Barcelona, and Cruyff had longed for a player with a creative ability beyond the ordinary.
And there was hardly anyone better than Laudrup. The Dane became a central figure in Johan Cruyff’s build, and there were over 200 matches, where Laudrup always had a finger in the game in every single attack. But after five successful years, Cruyff’s “Dream Team” began to stagnate, and Laudrup chose to controversially move to Real Madrid. However, it was not the same success in the Spanish capital, and after only two years he left for an adventure in Japan, and only a few years later – after doing a season in Ajax as well – his career was over.
Laudrup also reaped great success at national team level, as he was part of the Denmark that was successful in the European Championships in 1984, and the World Cup in 1986.
Danish athletes of all time
A receipt for his incredible career came not least in the autumn, when he was voted on Danish television as the greatest Danish athlete of all time. He won before, among others, Peter Schmeichel and tennis player Caroline Wozniacki, and was moved when the appointment came.
But Laudrup was not only a good player, he was also a successful coach. He started as an assistant national team captain in Denmark, but got his first head coach assignment in Bröndby, in 2002. This was followed by assignments in Spanish Getafe, Russian Spartak Moscow – but the biggest success came in Wales. As coach of Swansea, he won the club’s first major title, winning the League Cup at Wembley, and also managed to lead the team to a ninth place in the Premier League.
However, Laudrup was fired the following season, and then chose to earn a living in Qatar, where he had two coaching jobs for a total of four years. In 2018, he chose to leave football completely – and he has not returned since. Laudrup appears in various football contexts in Denmark sometimes, but otherwise has a low profile and otherwise invests in his companies. Among other things, he has a wine company that has really started to gain momentum and make a real profit.
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