Florian Albert Ballon d’Or – Hungary 2017
Magyar Posta issued 300 Forint commemorative stamp on 15 Sep 2017 to mark the joyful event when Flórián Albert (1941-2011) was awarded the Ballon d’Or 50 years ago. Two hundred thousand copies of the stamp designed by the graphic artist Barnabás Baticz were produced by ANY Security Printing Company.
Football has been the most popular sport in the world for many long years. In Hungary in the period following the early 1950s when the Mighty Magyars, the Golden Team, assailed the peaks of the sport, the question arose of whether there would or could ever be a new generation – or even a single player – who would be able to play football to such a high standard again.
Out of this new generation Flórián Albert appeared at the end of the 1950s as the first footballer with outstanding skills. He played for the same team, Ferencváros, for the whole of his career between 1952 and 1974. He was the top scorer on three occasions and won four Hungarian league championships and one People’s Republic of Hungary Cup. He was a member of the team which won the Fairs Cup, the forerunner of the UEFA Cup, defeating the Italian team Juventus 1-0 in 1965. He was chosen Footballer of the Year in Hungary in 1966 and 1967.
Stamp Digest 