Günter Fronzeck, born 29 September 1937, is a former

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who played for 1. FC Magdeburg and predecessor SC Aufbau Magdeburg in East Germany's top flight, the

DDR-Oberliga The DDR-Oberliga (English: ''East German Premier League'' or ''GDR Premier League'') was the top-level association football league in East Germany. Overview Following World War II, separate sports competitions emerged in the Allied-occupied G ...

. He won three national cup titles with his team. Defender and defensive midfielder Fronzeck joined Oberliga side SC Aufbau in 1963, almost 26 years old. He had played for the second-biggest football force in the city, BSG Turbine Magdeburg, beginning play in the fourth tier Bezirksliga Magdeburg. During his time there, Turbine won promotion to the third-tier 2nd DDR-Liga in 1959, and the second-tier

DDR-Liga The DDR-Liga (English: GDR League or ''East German League'') was, prior to German reunification in 1990, the second level of football competition in the DDR (Deutsche Demokratische Republik or German Democratic Republic, commonly East Germany), bei ...

in 1962. Fronzeck had his greatest success with his new club, though. At the end of his first season Fronzeck played in the final of the

FDGB-Pokal The FDGB-Pokal (Freier Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund Pokal or Free German Trade Union Federation Cup) was an elimination football tournament held annually in East Germany. It was the second most important national title in East German football af ...

, East German's national cup competition. Playing as a left midfielder, he helped his team beat favorites

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3–2. One year later, the Magdeburg side reached the final again, beating

SC Motor Jena FC Carl Zeiss Jena () is a German football club based in Jena, Thuringia. Founded in 1903, it was initially associated with the optics manufacturer Carl Zeiss. From the 1960s to the 1980s it was one of the top-ranked clubs in East Germany, won t ...

2–1, with Fronzeck playing center back. After an unsuccessful 1965–66 season that ended in the club's relegation, Fronzeck had to play in the second-tier DDR-Liga again. He appeared in 26 of the 30 matches and saw his team return to the Oberliga immediately. After a respectable third place in the 1967–68 season and a successful 1968–69 season that saw the club fight for the championship until the final matchday — Magdeburg finished third again — Fronzeck won his final title. 1. FC Magdeburg beat

FC Karl-Marx-Stadt Chemnitzer Fußballclub e.V. is a German association football club based in Chemnitz, Saxony. The club competes in Regionalliga Nordost, the fourth tier of German football. The roots of the club go back to its establishment as Chemnitzer BC 193 ...

4–0 to win their third FDGB-Pokal, with Fronzeck filling the rightback position. By winning the cup, Magdeburg had qualified for the

European Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...

as well. During Fronzeck's time, the club played thirteen matches on European level, with Fronzeck appearing in ten of them. The club went furthest in the 1965–66 season when they met holders

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

in the quarter-finals. Fronzeck played in both matches that saw Magdeburg eliminated 1–2 on aggregate. When 34-year-old Fronzeck ended his active career after the 1971–72 season, he had played in 201 competitive matches for SC Aufbau and 1. FC Magdeburg. Among those were 137 Oberliga matches and 28 FDGB-Pokal matches. As he was a defensive player, he only scored 8 goals.

Honors

: 3 ** Winner

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...

1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fronzeck, Gunter 1937 births Living people German men's footballers East German men's footballers Men's association football defenders 1. FC Magdeburg players DDR-Oberliga players