Peter Schmeichel

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Born in Gladsaxe, Copenhagen, Schmeichel is 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) tall and weighed close to 100 kg (220 lb; 15 st 10 lb) during his playing days, and wore specially-made size XXXL football shirts. A fierce competitor, he often loudly criticised perceived mistakes by his defenders. Unusually for a goalkeeper, he scored 11 goals during his career, including one for the national team. He was also the most capped player for Denmark, playing 129 games between 1987 and 2001, until he was overtaken by Simon Kjær in 2023. In addition to Euro 92, he played for his country at the 1998 FIFA World Cup and three more European Championship tournaments. He captained the national team in 30 matches. He also represented Gladsaxe-Hero, Hvidovre, Brøndby, Sporting CP, Aston Villa and Manchester City in a career that lasted from 1981 until 2003 and yielded 24 trophies.

In Their Own Story

On 6 August 1991, Manchester United signed Schmeichel for £505,000, a price manager Alex Ferguson later called the "bargain of the century." Although virtually unknown outside Denmark at the time, he immediately helped the club win the Football League Cup in his first season. The following year, his 22 clean sheets guided United to their first Premier League title in 26 years. Tensions occasionally flared; in January 1994, after squandering a 3-0 lead against Liverpool, Schmeichel had a row with Ferguson and "said the most horrible things," leading the manager to consider selling him until an apology was overheard by teammates. His career at Old Trafford concluded in glory with the Treble. In March 1997, he was cleared of racism allegations following a confrontation with Ian Wright after a match against Arsenal.

Reader's Guide

Schmeichel was born in the Søborggård parish of Gladsaxe, Denmark, to Antoni Alexander 'Tolek' Schmeichel (1933–2019), a Polish jazz musician, and Inger, a Danish nurse. He held Polish citizenship until November 1971 when he, his father, and his three sisters became Danish citizens. He inherited his middle name – Bolesław – from his great-grandfather. He spent his early years in the town of Buddinge, Copenhagen, and began his football career playing for a team in the adjacent suburb of Høje-Gladsaxe. His first match came on 7 August 1972 at the age of 8. After a two-and-a-half-year unbeaten run, Schmeichel was approached by BK Hero, a team from a few divisions above Høje-Gladsaxe and with one of the largest youth football schemes in Denmark. BK Hero merged with Gladsaxe BK in 1979 to form Gladsaxe-Hero BK, and Schmeichel was presented with the opportunity to play for the Zealand FA's junior representative team. Before becoming a professional footballer, Schmeichel had to work a number of jobs to make ends meet. His first job came in the dyeing department of a textile factory, but safety concerns led to his resignation. He then spent 12 months as a cleaner at an old people's home, before taking up an office job with the World Wildlife Fund. He originally worked in the organisation's shops, but three weeks after he joined, the store manager left and Schmeichel was promoted to the position of sales manager. Soon after, Schmeichel was called upon to do his four months of compulsory military service. However, this coincided with Hvidovre's summer training camp in Portugal, which he was permitted to go on with the proviso that he completed his military service the following month. Nevertheless, the delicate organisational situation that arose between the WWF, the Danish defence department and Hvidovre prompted Schmeichel to give up working for the WWF. A job with his father-in-law's flooring firm came next, until he realised that his knees could not support his 15 stone (95 kg) frame for eight hours a day, and he was offered a job with the advertising firm owned by Hvidovre's chairman, Niels Erik Madsen. This was to be his last job outside football, as he was offered a contract with Brøndby the following spring.

Did You Know?

• Schmeichel was voted the IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper in 1992 and 1993.
• He scored 11 goals during his career, including one for the national team.
• He was the most capped player for Denmark until Simon Kjær overtook him in 2023.
• His son Kasper was also a professional goalkeeper, known for playing for Celtic, Leicester City, and the Denmark national team.