Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Full name | Wojciech Kowalczyk | ||||||||||||||||
Date of birth | 14 April 1972 | ||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Warsaw, Poland | ||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.82 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||
Position(s) | Striker | ||||||||||||||||
Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
Olimpia Warsaw | |||||||||||||||||
Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
1990 | Polonez Warsaw | ||||||||||||||||
1990–1994 | Legia Warsaw | 109 | (39) | ||||||||||||||
1994–1997 | Betis | 62 | (14) | ||||||||||||||
1998–1999 | Las Palmas | 28 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
2001 | Legia Warsaw | 15 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
2001–2002 | Anorthosis | 27 | (24) | ||||||||||||||
2003–2004 | APOEL | 16 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
2005–2006 | Absolwent UW Warsaw | ||||||||||||||||
2018–2019 | Weszło Warsaw | 8 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
Total | 258 | (89) | |||||||||||||||
International career | |||||||||||||||||
Poland Olympic | |||||||||||||||||
1991–1999 | Poland | 39 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
Wojciech Kowalczyk (born 14 April 1972) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a striker, currently working as a football pundit.
He played a bulk of his professional career with Legia Warsaw and in Spain. Early into his international career, he helped the Poland national team win the silver medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics.
Born in Warsaw, Kowalczyk played his youth football with local Olimpia and Polonez, joining country giants Legia Warsaw in 1990 at the age of 18. Almost from the very beginning, he was an automatic first-choice; in his weakest season, his first, he only appeared in 11 Ekstraklasa games, but was crucial in helping oust U.C. Sampdoria in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup by scoring twice in Genoa for the 2–2 draw and qualification for the semifinals 3–2 on aggregate.
After having started the 1994–95 campaign with Legia (five matches, three goals, another league title), Kowalczyk moved abroad and signed with La Liga side Real Betis, but was never able to reproduce his previous form. He finished his five-year spell in Spain with UD Las Palmas in the second division, where he also appeared sparingly.
After almost one year out of football, Kowalczyk returned to his country and his main club, Legia. In late 2001 he changed countries again, joining Cyprus' Anorthosis Famagusta FC and netting a career-best 24 goals; after a nearly non-existent second season he finished his professional career in the same country, with APOEL FC, retiring at 32 – afterwards, he would play in amateur football until 2019, with AZS Absolwent UW Warsaw and Weszło Warsaw.
Kowalczyk gained 39 caps for Poland, scoring 11 goals. His debut came at the age of 19 on 21 August 1991, against Sweden. [1]
His biggest international highlight was helping the Olympic squad win silver at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. He did not score at all in the group stage, but eventually ranked third in the charts at four, three behind compatriot Andrzej Juskowiak. [2]
National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
Poland | 1991 | 3 | 1 |
1992 | 7 | 2 | |
1993 | 4 | 1 | |
1994 | 6 | 0 | |
1995 | 4 | 1 | |
1996 | 2 | 1 | |
1997 | 6 | 1 | |
1998 | 3 | 3 | |
1999 | 4 | 1 | |
Total | 39 | 11 |
# | Date | Place | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 21 August 1991 | Gdynia, Poland | ![]() | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
2 | 19 May 1992 | Salzburg, Austria | ![]() | 4–1 | 4–2 | |
3 | 14 October 1992 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | ![]() | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification |
4 | 27 October 1993 | Istanbul, Turkey | ![]() | 1–0 | 1–2 | |
5 | 25 April 1995 | Zabrze, Poland | ![]() | 3–2 | 4–3 | UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying |
6 | 1 May 1996 | Mielec, Poland | ![]() | 1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
7 | 24 September 1997 | Olsztyn, Poland | ![]() | 2–0 | 2–0 | |
8 | 25 March 1998 | Warsaw, Poland | ![]() | 1–0 | 2–0 | |
9 | 10 November 1998 | Bratislava, Slovakia | ![]() | 2–1 | 3–1 | |
10 | 3–1 | |||||
11 | 10 February 1999 | Ta' Qali, Malta | ![]() | 1–0 | 1–1 |
After retiring, Kowalczyk established himself as a football pundit, initially working with Polsat Sport TV. [3] Since 2018, he has contributed columns to the Weszło website and appeared on Weszło TV’s Liga Minus, a program analyzing Ekstraklasa matches. [4] [5] He was affiliated with Kanał Sportowy until 2024. [6]
In collaboration with sports journalist Krzysztof Stanowski, he co-authored the book Kowal. Prawdziwa historia (Kowal: The True Story), which was reissued in 2021. [7]
His brother, Artur Kowalczyk, was also the player until he finished his career with Grom Lipowo in the 2013–14 season. [8]
Legia Warsaw
Anorthosis
APOEL
Weszło Warsaw
Poland Olympic
Individual
Marcin Burkhardt is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for V liga club KS Raszyn. He is also the assistant coach of Weszło Warsaw. From 2021 to 2022, he served as the sporting director of Pogoń Siedlce.
Jacek Wojciech Gmoch is a Polish former professional footballer, manager, and commentator. As a player he spent the majority of his career playing for Legia Warsaw as a defender, and represented Poland 29 times internationally. After a career ending injury he became a successful trainer, winning multiple titles in Poland, Greece, and Cyprus, while also managing the Poland National Team.
Bartłomiej Grzelak is a Polish football manager and former player who played as a forward. He was most recently the interim manager of IV liga Masovia club Weszło Warsaw, along with Marcin Burkhardt.
Marcin Smoliński is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
Dariusz Wdowczyk is a Polish former professional football manager and player. He played for Gwardia Warsaw, Legia Warsaw, Celtic, Reading, and Polonia Warsaw. He has subsequently carved out a career in football management.
Iñaki Astiz Ventura is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a central defender, currently assistant manager of Ekstraklasa club Legia Warsaw.
Igor Lewczuk is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for IV liga Masovia club KS CK Troszyn. Besides Poland, he has played in France.
Hélio José Ribeiro Pinto is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder, currently a manager.
Arkadiusz Piech is a Polish footballer who plays as a forward for Piast Nowa Ruda.
Jakub Kosecki is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a winger for V liga Masovia club KS Raszyn.
Łukasz Gikiewicz is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a striker for V liga Masovia club KS Raszyn.
Damian Zbozień is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Górnik Łęczna. Besides Poland, he has played in Russia.
Mateusz Wieteska is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Serie A club Cagliari and the Poland national team.
Rafał Augustyniak is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Ekstraklasa club Legia Warsaw.
Kamil Wojtkowski is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for I liga club Stal Stalowa Wola.
Bartosz Piotr Slisz is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Major League Soccer club Atlanta United and the Poland national team.
Merveille Fundambu is a Congolese footballer who plays as a midfielder.
Daniel Ciechański is a Polish footballer who plays as a forward for KS Łomianki.
KTS Weszło, informally, due to the city of its headquarters, also called KTS Weszło Warszawa, is a Polish football club based in Warsaw, Masovian Voivodeship. It was founded by media and sports group Weszło and is run as a fan-owned initiative.
Krzysztof Jakub Stanowski is a Polish journalist, columnist and businessman, co-owner of the Weszło group and Kanał Zero.