Birthdays
June 10
— 101 years ago, Vilmos Bártfai, a championship-winning footballer of Budapest Honvéd, was born. The excellent left winger wore the red-and-white shirt between 1951 and 1952. In 1951 he won the league silver medal with the team, then a year later, in 1952, reached the top and celebrated a Hungarian championship title.
June 12
— On this day, our Serbian-Hungarian defender, Branko Pauljevic, celebrates his 37th birthday. The experienced and tireless defender played a major role last season in Budapest Honvéd winning the league silver medal and successfully returning to the Hungarian top flight.
— 117 years ago, Imre Serényi was born. The exceptionally technical and dangerous international left winger left an indelible mark on the club's history. The outstanding forward first played for Kispest FC between 1930 and 1938. His greatest success in Kispest came in 1935, when he won a Hungarian Cup bronze medal with the team. After the Second World War, in 1945, he returned briefly to help his beloved club with his experience. Imre Serényi's career in Kispest speaks for itself: he made 184 league appearances in red and black and scored 89 goals. His contemporaries remembered him not only for his irresistible play, but also for his legendary humour and pranks.
— 114 years ago, Géza Szabó II was born. The forward, who represented the red-and-black colours in two spells, from 1933 to 1937 and from 1940 to 1943, was a true fan favourite. During his Kispest career he made 129 league appearances and demonstrated his eye for goal by finding the net 40 times. Among his greatest achievements was the Hungarian Cup bronze medal won in 1935.
— 118 years ago, Károly Paczolay was born, one of the defining figures in the development of young footballers in Kispest and Hungarian football. The excellent forward played for the Kispest side between 1928 and 1932. After his playing career he found a new vocation in coaching, playing an invaluable role during the golden era of the club's history. Between 1951 and 1963 he worked as a coach of Bp. Honvéd's pioneer and youth teams, shaping several generations of talents into professional footballers. His exceptional pedagogical and professional qualities were also demonstrated when he reached the top as coach of the Hungarian youth national team that won the UEFA Youth Tournament.
June 13
— 111 years ago, Adolf Vécsey was born. The Kispest-born goalkeeper guarded the red-and-black goal between 1940 and 1942. Over his two seasons he made 53 competitive appearances for the team. With extraordinary agility and spectacular saves, he dealt with even the most dangerous situations, sometimes with little regard for his own physical safety.
June 14
— 124 years ago today, László Érczhegyi was born, a financial councillor and former leader of sporting and club life in Kispest. From 1923 he served the club as a committee member of Kispesti AC (KAC), then from 1930 as an auditor of Kispest Football Club. In November 1941, the general meeting of Kispest Football Club elected him co-president of the organisation.
Deaths
June 9
— 32 years ago, at the tragically young age of just 44, István Kocsis, a former pillar of the Kispest defence, passed away. He reached the peak of his career in the colours of Budapest Honvéd. Between 1975 and 1981 he made 186 official league appearances for the red and whites. During his years in Kispest he reached the summit: he was a key player in the 1979/80 championship-winning team, while also being part of the Central European Cup silver-medal side in 1977 and the legendary UEFA Cup run that included victory over Ajax. Thanks to his outstanding performances he was named Hungarian Footballer of the Year in 1978, and he earned 20 caps for the national team, representing Hungary at the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.
June 10
— 27 years ago, Béla Egresi, one of the outstanding wingers in Kispest football history, passed away. The forward, known for his pace, technique and unpredictability, was nicknamed “Csöpi” because of his small stature. In Kispest colours he scored 55 goals in 90 official matches, an outstanding strike rate. For years he played alongside the young Ferenc Puskás as he began to make his mark. Thanks to his exceptional ability, he made his Hungary debut in 1943 and later scored ten goals in 23 international appearances.
June 12
— 74 years ago, Ferenc Puskás Sr., one of the most influential figures in the history of Kispest football, passed away. The father of Puskás “Öcsi” wore the Kispesti AC shirt in more than 50 top-flight league matches in the 1920s as a wholehearted half-back, but it was his work as a coach that brought him true immortality. Under his guidance Kispest celebrated the first league title in its history in the 1949/50 season, before repeating the achievement in the autumn 1950 campaign.
June 13
— 12 years ago, Gyula Grosics, the legendary “Black Panther” and goalkeeper of the Golden Team, passed away. The peak of his success was tied to Budapest Honvéd. In 1950 he joined the red-and-whites' world-beating side. He guarded the Kispest goal in 125 league matches and became a four-time Hungarian champion with the team. In Kispest he perfected the revolutionary role of the “sweeper-keeper”, regularly leaving his penalty area to take part in play with his feet. As a Honvéd player he also achieved the greatest international successes of his career with the national team: while playing in Kispest he became an Olympic champion (1952), Central European International Cup winner (1953), World Cup silver medallist (1954), and the winning goalkeeper in the famous 6–3 “Match of the Century” at Wembley.
