Emotional Eriksson performance
Terminally ill coaching legend moves audience to tears
January 23, 2024, 6:05 p.m
Swedish sports greats bow to long-time football coach Sven-Göran Eriksson, who recently made public his serious and incurable cancer. Warm words also come from old companions from England.
The legendary trainer Sven-Göran Eriksson, who was seriously ill with cancer, was honored by the assembled sports elite in his Swedish homeland. At the Swedish sports gala Idrottsgalan on Monday evening in Stockholm, the long-time football coach received a long standing ovation, and in a video clip, companions such as former England internationals John Terry and Wayne Rooney addressed warm words to the 75-year-old.
Many in the audience were close to tears when “Svennis”, as he is affectionately known by his compatriots, came on stage. “You make me cry,” said Eriksson before presenting the nominees for Sweden’s Coach of the Year. He then presented the award to the German coach of the Swedish national biathlon team, Johannes Lukas.
Eriksson is considered the greatest football coach in Swedish history. In 1982 he surprisingly won the UEFA Cup with IFK Göteborg, and later coached top international clubs such as Benfica Lisbon, AS Roma and Manchester City. He was the first foreigner ever to coach England from 2001 to 2006. Almost two weeks ago, Eriksson made it public in an interview on the Swedish radio station SR P1 that he was terminally ill with pancreatic cancer and, in the best case scenario, had another year to live.
The Swedish athletes of the year are honored every year at Idrottsgalan. Pole vault world record holder Armand Duplantis was once again named best athlete, and swimmer Sarah Sjöström was honored as athlete of the year. The most important prize of the evening, the Jerring Prize chosen by the Swedish population, went to cross-country skier Ebba Andersson at the climax of the gala.