Antonio Félix "Tota" Carbajal Rodríguez (; 7 June 1929 – 9 May 2023) was a Mexican professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

. He was also called ''"El Cinco Copas"'', in reference to his record of having played five

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

Club career

Born in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, Carbajal became a professional footballer with the local '' Club España'' in 1948, after having been in the squad that participated at the Olympic tournament in 1948. After the disappearance of ''España'' in 1950, he joined Club León, where he would remain until the end of his career.

International career

Carbajal made his international debut with the Mexico national team in the Maracanã Stadium in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

on 24 June 1950, against World Cup hosts

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. He was the youngest goalkeeper to play in that tournament, at the age of 21. He appeared in one match at the 1954 World Cup, against

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and in three at the 1958 tournament; at the 1962 World Cup in Chile, he became the first footballer ever to appear in four World Cups, also helping his team win its first-ever World Cup match when they defeated

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

3–1 in the first round. Four years later Carbajal, aged 37, established another mark with his fifth World Cup appearance, being chosen as the starting keeper for his team's final group stage appearance, a 0–0 draw against

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

, to honor the occasion. That record was equaled by German player

Lothar Matthäus Lothar Herbert Matthäus (; born 21 March 1961) is a German association football, football pundit and former professional player and manager. He captained Germany national football team, West Germany to victory in the 1990 FIFA World Cup and was ...

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, by his compatriot Rafael Márquez in

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

, in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

by Argentine

Lionel Messi Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi (; born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine professional Association football, footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Major League Soccer ...

, Portuguese

Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro (; born 5 February 1985) is a Portuguese professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Saudi Pr ...

and another compatriot in Andrés Guardado. In 2015 Homare Sawa and Formiga became the first footballers to appear for a record sixth time at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada. In total, Carbajal appeared in 48 international matches for Mexico. In 11 World Cup matches from 1950 to 1966, he conceded 25 goals, a record that was tied by Saudi goalkeeper

Mohamed Al-Deayea Mohamed Abdullaziz Al-Deayea Al-Shammari (; born 2 August 1972), also known as Mohammed Deayea al-Shammari, is a Saudi Arabian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He participated in four FIFA World Cups for the Saudi Ara ...

in 2002.

Managerial career

After retiring as a player, he became a manager in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s with Club León,

Unión de Curtidores Unión de Curtidores (Spanish, Union of Tanners; nicknamed Curtidores) is a football club. The club was founded on August 15, 1928. History The club was founded on August 15, 1928. The club gained fame in the early 1930s by defeating local clubs ...

, Atletas Campesinos and Atlético Morelia. He twice won both the Copa México as Campeón de Campeones with Club Leon in the early 1970s. Then he managed

in the only two seasons this club advanced to the play-offs, and was awarded Primera División's best coach one time. He achieved the championship in Segunda División with Atletas Campesinos in partnership with Antonio Ascencio. During the 1984–85 season, Carbajal was appointed as manager for Atlético Morelia; he helped the team avoid relegation in his first season. He went on to manage the team for over a decade, where the team qualified various times to the postseason, including two semi-finals.

Personal life and death

Carbajal died on 9 May 2023, at the age of 93. He had been hospitalised the week prior with blood pressure problems. From January 2023 until his death in May 2023, Carbajal was the last surviving player from the 1950 World Cup.

Managerial statistics

¹Includes results from season 1969-1970

Primera División de México Liga MX, also known as Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Mexico and the highest level of the Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Liga Mayor (1943–1949) and also as Primera Divi ...

& cup tournament ²Includes only results from 1970 to 1971 & 1971-72

(regular seasons and play-offs), cup tournaments and Campeón de Campeones. It does not include results from Torneo México 70 and 1972-73 Primera División de México's season ³Includes results from Primera División de México (regular seasons and play-offs) and cup tournaments ⁴Includes only results from 1978 to 1979

. It does not include results from 1979 to 1980 Primera División de México ⁵Includes only eight play-offs results from Segunda División de México ⁶Includes results from Primera División de México (regular seasons and play-offs), cup tournaments and 1988 CONCACAF Championship

Honours

Player

León * Primera División: 1951–52, 1955–56 *

Copa México Copa MX, also known as Copa Corona MX for sponsorship reasons, was an association football competition in Mexico and the domestic cup tournament for clubs at the highest and second levels of Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Copa ...

: 1957–58 * Campeón de Campeones: 1955–56 Individual * CONCACAF Team of the Century: 1998 *

FIFA Order of Merit The FIFA Order of Merit is the highest honour awarded by FIFA. The award is presented at the annual FIFA congress. It is normally awarded to people who are considered to have made a significant contribution to :association football. At FIFA's ce ...

: 1992 * Salón de la Fama del Fútbol Internacional:

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

* IFFHS CONCACAF Men's Team of All Time: 2021 * IFFHS Men's All Time Mexico Dream Team * Balón de Oro Trayectoria: 2021

Manager

León *

: 1970–71, 1971–72 * Campeón de Campeones: 1970–71, 1971–72 Atletas Campesinos *Segunda División: 1979–80 Individual *

Mexican Primera División Liga MX, also known as Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Mexico and the highest level of the Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Liga Mayor (1943–1949) and also as Primera Divi ...

Best Coach: 1975–76

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carbajal, Antonio 1929 births 2023 deaths Men's association football goalkeepers Mexican football managers Olympic footballers for Mexico Footballers at the 1948 Summer Olympics 1950 FIFA World Cup players 1954 FIFA World Cup players 1958 FIFA World Cup players 1962 FIFA World Cup players 1966 FIFA World Cup players Mexico men's international footballers Club León footballers Footballers from Mexico City Atlético Morelia managers Real Club España footballers Liga MX players Mexican men's footballers 20th-century Mexican sportsmen