Jakub Smug (23 February 1914 – 3 November 2010) was a Polish

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 defender.

Biography

Smug was born in Ustrzyki Dolne, then part of the Austrian Empire just before the outbreak of World War 1. After the war, the area where he grew up in became the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 7 October 1918 and 6 October 1939. The state was established in the final stage of World War I ...

. At some point, he moved to

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

to work in a factory. During his time at the factory, he was approached and asked to play for Świteź Lwów, with whom in his first game, aged 17, he scored both of the goals as Świteź beat Hasmonea Lviv 2–1. In 1936, he spent time in the army, afterwards playing with Pogoń Stryj from 1936 until 1939, as well as making appearances for the Lviv national team. During World War II, Smug spent his time in Stanisławów (''now called

Ivano-Frankivsk Ivano-Frankivsk (, ), formerly Stanyslaviv, Stanislav and Stanisławów, is a city in western Ukraine. It serves as the administrative centre of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast as well as Ivano-Frankivsk Raion within the oblast. Ivano-Frankivsk also host ...

'') and occasionally had to go into hiding. After the war, he played with

Polonia Bytom Polonia Bytom () is a Polish football club based in Bytom. Founded in 1920, the team won two List of Polish football champions, championships, in 1954 Ekstraklasa, 1954 and 1962 Ekstraklasa, 1962. As of the 2025–26 I liga, 2025–26 season, th ...

, which after a tour of Poland with the club he decided he wanted to live closer to his brother in

Gdynia Gdynia is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With an estimated population of 257,000, it is the List of cities in Poland, 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in the Pomeranian Voivodeship after Gdańsk ...

, so moved to

Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...

and played with

Lechia Gdańsk Lechia Gdańsk () is a Polish football (soccer), football club based in Gdańsk. As of the 2025–26 Ekstraklasa, 2025–26 season, they compete in the Ekstraklasa. The club was founded in 1945 by people Polish population transfers (1944–1946 ...

. He made his Lechia debut on 27 July 1947 against HCP Poznań. Most of his early Lechia appearances were in play-off games or in national cup competitions. It was not until 1949 when Smug played in the league for Lechia, playing three times in the

I liga I liga (, ), currently named Betclic I liga due to its sponsorship by Betclic, is the men's second professional association football division of the Polish football league system, below the Ekstraklasa and above the II liga via promotion/rel ...

, the top league in Poland. His first I liga game was a 5–3 win against

Ruch Chorzów Ruch Chorzów () is a Polish professional association football, football club based in Chorzów, Upper Silesia. It is one of the most successful football teams in Poland, having won fourteen List of Polish football champions, Polish Championship ...

, the club's first win in the top division. His final appearance for Lechia came on 13 November 1949 against Polonia Bytom. Lechia lost the game 8–0, which still stands as the club's record defeat. After football, Smug continued to hold close links with Lechia Gdańsk, and in May 2010 he was honoured with a star on Lechia's "Avenue of Stars", a way the club has commemorated Lechia Gdańsk legends. He died on 3 November 2010, aged 96. His funeral took place on 6 November, and he is buried in the Łostowickie Cemetery, Gdańsk.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smug, Jakub 1914 births 2000 deaths People from Bieszczady County Footballers from Subcarpathian Voivodeship Men's association football defenders Polish men's footballers Polonia Bytom players Lechia Gdańsk players Lechia Gdańsk II players Ekstraklasa players 20th-century Polish sportsmen