Mark Schwarzer ( , ; born 6 October 1972) is an Australian former professional football player 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 represented
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
at international level from 1993 to 2013, and was selected for both the
2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
and
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
s.
Having progressed through the youth ranks of Colo Cougars,
Penrith, Blacktown Association and
Marconi Stallions
Marconi Stallions Football Club is an Australian semi-professional association football club based in Fairfield, Sydney, New South Wales. The club has been crowned Australian champion four times.
The Stallions are the soccer team of Club Marc ...
, Schwarzer turned professional for
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its ...
side Marconi Stallions in 1990. After making 58 appearances for the club, he moved to German
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...
side
Dynamo Dresden
Sportgemeinschaft Dynamo Dresden e.V., commonly known as SG Dynamo Dresden or Dynamo Dresden, is a German association football club based in Dresden, Saxony.Grüne, Hardy (2001). Enzyklopädie des deutschen Ligafußballs 7. Vereinslexikon. Kasse ...
in 1994, appearing twice, and then to Bundesliga side
1. FC Kaiserslautern
1. Fußball-Club Kaiserslautern e. V., also known as 1. FCK, FCK (), FC Kaiserslautern (), K'lautern or colloquially Lautern (), is a German sports club based in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate. In addition to Association football, football ...
in 1995, appearing four times. Schwarzer joined then-second-tier side
Bradford City in 1996 and made 16 appearances before joining
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
club
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...
in February 1997. He made 445 appearances for Middlesbrough, but decided to leave the club in May 2008. He then switched to Premier League side
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
, and made 218 appearances for the club until he moved to
Chelsea in 2013. He was the first – and, to date, only – non-Briton to have made more than 500 Premier League appearances (making him the highest-appearing non-Briton in the Premier League's history), and also the oldest player to have played in the knockout stages of the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
. He joined
Leicester City on a free transfer in January 2015 and left the club at the end of their
2015–16 Premier League-winning season.
Having played for Australia at
under-17 and
under-20 level, Schwarzer made his full international debut in a World Cup qualifying match against
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
in 1993 as a substitute after
Robert Zabica was sent off in the 17th minute. During the course of his international career, he won a total of 109
caps
Caps are flat headgear.
Caps or CAPS may also refer to:
Science and technology Computing
* CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters
* Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...
for his country. He became Australia's most capped male player when he surpassed
Alex Tobin's appearance record in January 2011.
Personal life
Schwarzer was born in
North Richmond, a semi-rural suburb in north-western
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, and attended Richmond North Public School and Colo High School. He played for the local
soccer
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 ...
club the Colo Cougars. His parents, Hans-Joachim and Doris, emigrated to Australia from
Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...
,
West Germany
West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...
in 1968.
He speaks fluent
German.
[
In 2009, Schwarzer was awarded the Medal of the ]Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...
.[The Age (2009)]
Australia Day honours
. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
In June 2007, Schwarzer branched out from his football career and co-wrote "Megs and the Vootball Kids" with Neil Montagnana-Wallace. The short children's novel focused on the titular 'Megs', aka Edward Morison, during his move from his home country of England to Australia. While finding his feet, Megs befriends a quirky Hungarian cleaner who works at the primary school. The novel saw success and was followed by four sequels: "Megs, Scarves and Sombreros," "Megs and the Complete Left Foot," "Megs and the Crazy Legs," and "Megs and the Wonder Strike."
After rejecting offers from A-League
A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...
clubs Sydney FC
Sydney Football Club, commonly known as Sydney FC, is a professional association football, soccer club based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. They compete in the top-tier men's league in Australia, the A-League Men. Established in 2004, ...
and Perth Glory
Perth Glory Football Club is an Australian professional Association football, soccer club based in Perth, Perth, Western Australia. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under Professional sports league organi ...
in 2016, Schwarzer retired at age 43, joining Optus Sport
Optus Sport is an Australian group of list of sports television channels, sports channels, owned by Optus launched on 13 July 2016. Optus created the service after it outbid Foxtel for the Premier League, English Premier League broadcasting righ ...
as a panellist via video link on the now defunct ''Countdown to Kickoff'' program. Schwarzer was later involved in the network's coverage of UEFA Euro 2020
The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the Anniversary#Latin-derived numerical names, quadrennial international men's association footb ...
, and regularly appears as a guest on the station's GegenPod podcast. He also published non-football article on ''The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...
'' on behalf with other author.
Schwarzer's son, Julian, is a goalkeeper for the Welsh club Newtown AFC. As Schwarzer's wife (Julian's mother) has Filipino nationality, the younger Schwarzer is eligible to play for the Philippines national football team
The Philippines national football team () represents the Philippines in men's international association football, football, governed by the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) and has been playing internationally since 1913.
Prior to World W ...
.
Club career
Early career
Schwarzer's first club was Colo Cougars in Richmond, New South Wales
Richmond is a historic town in northwest Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. Richmond is in the local government area of the City of Hawkesbury and is part of the Sydney metropolitan area. It is located 19 metres above sea level on the alluvia ...
. He started his professional career at age 19 with Marconi Stallions
Marconi Stallions Football Club is an Australian semi-professional association football club based in Fairfield, Sydney, New South Wales. The club has been crowned Australian champion four times.
The Stallions are the soccer team of Club Marc ...
in the National Soccer League
The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its ...
. He left the Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
-based club to play in Germany in 1994 with Dynamo Dresden
Sportgemeinschaft Dynamo Dresden e.V., commonly known as SG Dynamo Dresden or Dynamo Dresden, is a German association football club based in Dresden, Saxony.Grüne, Hardy (2001). Enzyklopädie des deutschen Ligafußballs 7. Vereinslexikon. Kasse ...
and 1. FC Kaiserslautern
1. Fußball-Club Kaiserslautern e. V., also known as 1. FCK, FCK (), FC Kaiserslautern (), K'lautern or colloquially Lautern (), is a German sports club based in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate. In addition to Association football, football ...
. He then travelled to England to play for Bradford City in 1996, where he eventually joined Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...
in February 1997.
Middlesbrough
Schwarzer made his debut for Middlesbrough against Stockport County in the League Cup semi-finals on 26 February 1997. He featured in the final against Leicester City, which ended as a 1–1 draw, but was injured for the replay. He also played in the 1998 League Cup final against Chelsea, but was unable to prevent Middlesbrough from slipping to a 2–0 defeat. He was part of the side, however, who beat Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...
2–1 to win the final six years later, despite making an error described by BBC Sport
BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC, providing national sports coverage for BBC BBC Television, television, BBC Radio, radio and BBC Online, online. The BBC holds the television and radio UK broadcasting rights to several sports, broadc ...
as a "howler" which allowed Kevin Davies a consolation goal for Bolton.
In the last match of the 2004–05 season against Manchester City
Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...
, he saved a Robbie Fowler penalty in stoppage time to preserve a 1–1 draw. The draw was sufficient to put Middlesbrough in seventh in the final league table and ensure qualification for the UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
; had Fowler converted the penalty, Manchester City would have qualified for the UEFA Cup at Middlesbrough's expense.
Schwarzer was granted a transfer request by Middlesbrough on 6 January 2006 and sought to join a new club, but he withdrew his request on 20 January 2006, and rejoined the team. A fractured cheekbone sustained against 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 ...
, however, looked like it had ruled Schwarzer out for the rest of the season, but he returned for the UEFA Cup final against Sevilla
Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula.
Seville ...
, albeit playing with a protective mask. When he played in Middlesbrough's 1–0 victory over Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...
on 29 December 2007, he became the Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
's longest-serving foreigner at one club, surpassing Dennis Bergkamp
Dennis Nicolaas Maria Bergkamp (; born 10 May 1969) is a Dutch professional Association football, football coach and former Football player, player who was most recently the Assistant manager of Ajax. Originally a wide midfielder, Bergkamp was ...
's record of 315 matches. Schwarzer's final Middlesbrough appearance came in an 8–1 victory over Manchester City on the final day of the 2007–08 Premier League season, after he had made 446 appearances in all competitions.
Fulham
Schwarzer's contract with Middlesbrough expired in June 2008, and although he was offered a new contract, manager Gareth Southgate
Sir Gareth Southgate (born 3 September 1970) is an English professional Association football, football manager and player, who played as a Defender (association football), defender and midfielder.
A Crystal Palace F.C., Crystal Palace Crystal ...
had to plan a future with a new goalkeeper as, on 21 May 2008, Schwarzer signed a two-year contract at Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
, ending an 11-year association with the Teesside club. Schwarzer revealed in an interview with '' The World Game'' that he had received offers from Bayern Munich and Juventus
Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...
but declined their offers because they could not guarantee him the position as the number-one goalkeeper.
Schwarzer made his Fulham debut in a 2–1 defeat to newly promoted Premier League side Hull City, but he followed up by keeping a clean sheet in his next match in a 1–0 win at home to Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
and played every minute of the 2008–09 season. He kept ten clean sheets during the 2008–09 season in all competitions.
Schwarzer's contribution was important as his performances lead Fulham to a seventh-place finish and a place in Europe for the next season, after the club had only just avoided relegation during the 2007–08 season. He received the Fulham Player of the Year 2008–09 in his first year at the club. He was also named the Premier League's Player of the Month for February 2010, in which he only conceded one goal in his team's two wins and two draws that month, making him the first Australian to do so.
He played an important role in Fulham reaching the Europa League final in 2010, but Schwarzer lost his second European final with a narrow defeat to Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), commonly referred to as Atlético Madrid or simply Atlético, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid that plays in La Liga. The club play their home game ...
.
Following his performances during the 2009–10 season, Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger
Arsène Charles Ernest Wenger (born 22 October 1949) is a French former association football, football Manager (association football), manager and football player, player who is currently serving as FIFA's Chief of Global Football Development. ...
attempted to sign Schwarzer. It was reported that a bid of around £2 million in May 2010 had been made for Schwarzer and a second bid of around the same value had been made in August 2010; however both were rejected by Fulham.
On 13 August 2010, Fulham manager Mark Hughes
Leslie Mark Hughes (born 1 November 1963) is a Welsh association football, football coach and former player who is the head coach of club Carlisle United F.C., Carlisle United.
During his playing career he usually operated as a Forward (asso ...
revealed that Schwarzer had handed in a transfer request, which Hughes had rejected. On 31 August 2010, it was reported that Arsenal had made a last-ditch bid of around £4 million to bring Schwarzer to the Emirates Stadium
The Emirates Stadium (known as Arsenal Stadium for UEFA competitions) is a association football, football stadium in Holloway, London, England. It has been the home stadium of Arsenal F.C., Arsenal Football Club since its completion in 2006. ...
before the transfer window closed, however Hughes denied that any approach was made.
Schwarzer signed a contract extension with Fulham on 18 January 2012, committing himself to the club until at least the summer of 2013.
Schwarzer made a notable injury-time penalty save against Mikel Arteta in November 2012 to help Fulham earn a 3–3 draw against Arsenal. In April 2013, he made his 500th Premier League appearance in a game against Arsenal, and became the first non-British or Irish player to do so in the process.
On 5 June 2013, Schwarzer announced he was leaving Fulham following the arrival of Maarten Stekelenburg. He said, "I've been hearing that for a while," he said of Stekelenburg's arrival. "It's no great surprise and I'll be looking for another club." Schwarzer was one of 12 players released by Fulham at the end of the 2012–13 Premier League season.
Chelsea
On 9 July 2013, Schwarzer signed a one-year contract with Fulham's West London rivals Chelsea on a free transfer. He has been quoted saying, "It's one of the biggest and best clubs in the world, and it's an honour to sign for Chelsea. I didn't take much convincing to come here." He made his competitive debut in a 2–0 away victory over Swindon Town
Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system.
Founded as Swindon A ...
in the League Cup. In Schwarzer's second appearance with Chelsea, he kept another clean sheet, as Chelsea eliminated Arsenal from the League Cup in a 2–0 victory on 29 October.
On 11 December, Schwarzer became the oldest player to debut in the UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
aged 41 years and 65 days, when he kept his third clean sheet in three appearances for Chelsea, in a 1–0 home victory over Steaua București, a result that confirmed Chelsea's progression to the knockout round as first in their group.
Schwarzer became the oldest player to represent Chelsea in the Premier League when he played against Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...
on 19 April 2014, aged 41 years and 195 days old. He became the club's oldest ever player by some margin, overtaking Graham Rix, who last played for Chelsea at the age of 37 years and 203 days. On 22 April, he replaced the injured Petr Čech
Petr Čech (; born 20 May 1982) is a Czech former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper and current ice hockey player who plays as a goaltender for Oxford City Stars. He has ...
in the first half of a Champions League semi-final against Atlético Madrid, and kept the score at 0–0. On 27 April, he started against Liverpool
Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
at Anfield
Anfield is a Association football, football stadium in the area of Anfield (suburb), Anfield, Liverpool, England, which has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since its formation in 1892. The stadium has a seating capacity of 61,276, making it the ...
, a crucial game for Chelsea to stay in the title race. He kept a clean sheet and made some outstanding saves to deny Liverpool from equalising, with Chelsea winning the game 2–0. His clean sheet against Liverpool was his 150th Premier League clean sheet, a feat only two other goalkeepers have achieved so far, those goalkeepers being Čech and David James.
Schwarzer was included on the list of players released by Chelsea at the end of the season
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...
, but he eventually signed a new one-year contract with the club, on 30 June 2014.
Although Schwarzer did not make any league appearances in the 2014–15 season before his move to Leicester City, Chelsea manager José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix (; born 26 January 1963) is a Portuguese professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player, who is currently the head coach of Süper Lig club Fenerba ...
stated that he would receive a replica winner's medal for his contributions that season and was welcomed back for a celebration dinner at the end of the season.
Leicester City
On 6 January 2015, Schwarzer moved to Premier League side Leicester City on a free transfer as cover for the injured Kasper Schmeichel, after signing an 18-month deal. Chelsea manager José Mourinho praised Schwarzer's contribution to his former club, and stated that Chelsea would miss him. Schwarzer made his competitive debut for Leicester on 24 January in a 2–1 away win over Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...
in the fourth round of the season's FA Cup, becoming Leicester's oldest ever player in doing so. He made his Premier League debut for Leicester one week later in a 3–1 loss to Manchester United
Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
at Old Trafford
Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and is the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,197, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after W ...
. Schwarzer made eight appearances in his first season at the King Power Stadium
King Power Stadium is a football stadium in the city of Leicester, East Midlands, England, and the home of Leicester City. The stadium opened in 2002 as the Walkers Stadium and has a capacity of 32,259. The club attracted worldwide attenti ...
, of which six were in their successful campaign to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
Schwarzer made no league appearances in the 2015–16 Premier League
The 2015–16 Premier League (known as the Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons) was the 24th season of the Premier League, the top English professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1992, and the ...
season, when Leicester became champions, making him ineligible for a winner's medal (minimum five league games required). In spite of this, he still became the first player since Eric Cantona to be in the championship winning squad at different clubs in successive seasons.
Schwarzer was released from Leicester after the end of 2015–16 season at the age of 43.
International career
Schwarzer made his international debut for Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
against Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
in Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...
in a 1994 World Cup qualifier in 1993. He came on as a substitute for Milan Blagojevic after first-choice Robert Zabica was sent off 15 minutes into the match. In the return leg in Sydney, he made headlines when he saved two penalties to send Australia to the final phase of qualifying against Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
. Schwarzer did not play in these matches, and Australia were defeated 2–1 on aggregate.
He was instrumental in Australia's qualification for the 2006 World Cup, in the play-off 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 ...
. After Uruguay won the first leg 1–0 in Montevideo
Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...
, Australia won 1–0 in Sydney on 16 November 2005. In the penalty shoot-out, Schwarzer saved two penalties to see Australia victorious 4–2.
At the World Cup finals, he played the first two games in Australia's group matches, conceding a controversial goal against Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, and two goals against 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 ...
. In the third match, he was replaced by Zeljko Kalac, but after Kalac's disappointing performance, he was reinstated for the round of 16 match against Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. Although correctly predicting the direction of Francesco Totti
Francesco Totti (; born 27 September 1976) is an Italian former professional Association football, footballer who played solely for AS Roma, Roma and the Italy national football team, Italy national team. He was a technically gifted and creati ...
's injury-time penalty, he was unable to save it.
Schwarzer played in all of Australia's matches at the 2007 AFC Asian Cup. Despite making two good saves in the opening match against Oman
Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
, which finished as a 1–1 draw, he made an error which led to a goal in the 3–1 loss to Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
. In the quarter-final, he could not match Japanese goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi during the penalty shootout, which saw the Socceroos get knocked out of the competition in their debut at the tournament.["Schwarzer on wrong foot for first time", 25 July 2007](_blank)
. Retrieved 25 July 2007 Schwarzer said that the penalty shootout in the Asian Cup quarter-finals was the first penalty shoot-out in his career that he had ever lost.
Schwarzer saved an 89th-minute Shao Jiayi penalty against China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
in Australia's 0–0 draw in the 2010 World Cup qualifier in March 2008, continuing his record of stopping penalty kicks. He received his second yellow card of the campaign against Qatar
Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...
in Doha
Doha ( ) is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor (city), Al Khor and Lusail, it is home to most of the country's population. It ...
, in which Australia were 3–1 winners, leading to his suspension for the following match against China.
Schwarzer made several vital saves to secure Australia's Asian Cup Qualifier 2–1 comeback win over Oman in Muscat
Muscat (, ) is the capital and most populous city in Oman. It is the seat of the Governorate of Muscat. According to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the population of the Muscat Governorate in 2022 was 1.72 million. ...
after conceding from his penalty save rebound.
He was the country's first-choice keeper for all three matches of the group stage in the 2010 World Cup in a group composed of Australia, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, Ghana
Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
and Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
. In the first match, Australia were crushed, 4–0, by the Germans, but they recovered with a 1–1 draw against Ghana in the next game. In the final match, Australia beat Serbia, 2–1, thus finishing third in the group with four points, just missing out on qualification to the round of 16 on goal difference with Ghana.
After the tournament, Schwarzer declared his interest in playing at the 2014 World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...
, at which time he would be 41 years old. On 5 November 2013, however, he announced his retirement from international level. Schwarzer's goalkeeping position was succeeded by Mitchell Langerak, and later with Mathew Ryan in Australia's association football team.
Career statistics
Club
International
Honours
Marconi Stallions
*National Soccer League
The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its ...
: 1992–93
Middlesbrough
*Football League Cup
The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England.
Orga ...
: 2003–04; runner-up: 1997–98
Australia
*FIFA Confederations Cup
The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBO ...
: 3rd place, 2001
The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
*AFC Asian Cup
The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second-oldest c ...
: runner-up 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 ...
*OFC Nations Cup
The OFC Men's Nations Cup, known as the OFC Nations Cup before the 2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup, 2024 edition, is the primary association football competition contested by the senior list of men's national association football teams, men's natio ...
: 2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
Individual
* FFA Australian Football Awards: Footballer of the Year: 2009, 2010
*Football Media Association Australia International Player of the Year: 2009
* Australian Professional Football Association Player of the Year: 2010
*Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
's Greatest Ever Team: 2012
* Premier League Player of the Month: February 2010
*Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
Player of The Year: 2008–09
* Football Australia Hall of Fame: 2021
Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
* Alex Tobin OAM Medal: 2014
* Order of Australia Medal: 2009
Records
Middlesbrough
* Most international appearances while a Middlesbrough player: 53
Chelsea
* Chelsea oldest all-time player: 41 years and 218 days
Leicester City
*Leicester City oldest all-time player: 43 years and 32 days
Australia
*Australia all-time top appearance maker: 109
*Australia all-time most clean sheets: 44
*Longest Australia career: 20 years, 38 days
*Australia oldest all-time player: 40 years and 336 days
See also
* List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps
In association football, a cap is traditionally awarded in international football to a player making an official appearance for their national team. This article lists all men's football players who have played in 100 or more official internat ...
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwarzer, Mark
1972 births
Living people
Australian people of German descent
Sportsmen from New South Wales
Soccer players from Sydney
Australian men's soccer players
Men's association football goalkeepers
Marconi Stallions FC players
Dynamo Dresden players
1. FC Kaiserslautern players
Bradford City A.F.C. players
Middlesbrough F.C. players
Fulham F.C. players
Chelsea F.C. players
Leicester City F.C. players
National Soccer League (Australia) players
Bundesliga players
English Football League players
Premier League players
Australia men's youth international soccer players
Australia men's under-20 international soccer players
Australia men's international soccer players
2001 FIFA Confederations Cup players
2004 OFC Nations Cup players
OFC Nations Cup–winning players
2005 FIFA Confederations Cup players
2006 FIFA World Cup players
2007 AFC Asian Cup players
2010 FIFA World Cup players
2011 AFC Asian Cup players
FIFA Men's Century Club
Australian expatriate men's soccer players
Expatriate men's footballers in Germany
Expatriate men's footballers in England
Australian expatriate sportspeople in Germany
Australian expatriate sportspeople in England
Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia