Alfredo Di Stefano, was an Argentina-born player widely considered one of the greatest footballers of all time, get to know his brief bio, career, position, trophies, and achievements, and more.
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Di Stefano is also widely remembered as the only recipient of the prestigious Super Ballon d’Or award.
Who Is Footballer Alfredo Di Stefano? The Super Ballon d’Or Winner
While playing for Real Madrid, Di Stefano led the Spanish giants to five consecutive European Cup triumphs. Those five wins were also notably the first five editions of the tournament.
Alfredo Di Stefano Brief Bio
Alfredo Di Stefano, full name Alfredo Stéfano Di Stéfano Laulhé was born in Barracas, a Buenos Aires neighborhood on July 4, 1926. Di Stefano’s father was an Italian-Argentine immigrant who had arrived from Sicily. As a child, Di Stefano played street football and later joined his brother to play in the Club Social y Deportivo Unión Progresista.
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Early Career
Di Stefano made his first notable move when he joined River Plate’s second team in 1944. After playing there for his first season, Di Stefano’s performances soon took him up to the senior team. The Argentine legend helped River Plate secure the Argentine top-flight league in 1945.
Following his success at River Plate, Di Stefano got loaned out to Huracan before making a return to River Plate once again for the 1947-49 seasons. Di Stefano then went on to join the Millonarios F.C. from 1949–1953.
Move To Real Madrid
Following his success in South America, Di Stefano signed up with Spanish giants Real Madrid. The move was a controversial one as Barcelona were previously the first club to contact River Plate to sign him.
Di Stefano enjoyed a lot of success at Real Madrid and he became one of the greatest players in history. With his help, the Los Blancos achieved five consecutive European Cup wins from 1956 to 1960. By the end of his time at Real Madrid, Di Stefano had scored 216 goals in 282 matches.
Trophies And Achievements
Throughout his career, Di Stefano won the Ballon d’Or on two occasions, in 1957 and 1959. He also won the Pichichi trophy, an award given to Spain’s highest goalscorer on 5 occasions, during the 1954, 1956, 1957, 1958, and 1959 seasons.
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Besides this, he won many league as well as cup trophies with different clubs throughout his professional career. Alfredo Di Stefano is also the only player to have ever won the prestigious Super Ballon d’Or award. He received the award in 1989 for being the best footballer in the last three decades.
Life Post Retirement
Following his retirement from professional football, Di Stefano took up a new career as a coach. Stefano had a long coaching career, and managed clubs like Boca Juniors, River Plate, Real Madrid, Sporting CP, and Valencia. The legendary footballer passed away on July 7, 2014 aged 88.
