Mircea Lucescu died, the Romanian coach was 80 years old
He was the first coach to qualify the Romanian national team for a European championship, in 1984
Mircea Lucescu has died at the age of 80. "The University Emergency Hospital in Bucharest announced that today, Tuesday 7 April 2026, at around 20:30, Mr Mircea Lucescu was declared deceased. Mr Mircea Lucescu was one of Romania's most successful football coaches and players, the first to qualify the Romanian national team for a European championship in 1984. Entire generations of Romanians grew up with his image in their hearts, as a national symbol. May God rest his soul!', reads the SUUB press release. Mircea Lucescu was the third most successful coach in football history, with 35 trophies in his trophy cabinet, second only to Pep Guardiola, coach of Manchester City (40 trophies). The first place is occupied by Sir Alex Ferguson, who managed to win 49 trophies, most of them at Manchester United (38). During his coaching career, Lucescu has led the Turkish national team, Zenit, Shakhtar Donetsk, Dinamo Kiev, Beşiktaş, Galatasaray, Rapid, Inter, Reggiana, Brescia, AC Pisa, Dinamo, the Romanian national team and Corvinul Hunedoara. His last experience was on the bench of the national team. Mircea Lucescu's last match as a coach was Turkey-Romania 1-0, played on 26 March 2026, in the semi-finals of the World Cup play-offs. The best results of his coaching career were achieved at Shakhtar Donetsk. He won eight Ukrainian championships, six national cups and seven Super Cups. A special mention for the Romanian coach is winning the Uefa Cup in the 2008-09 season after the final against Werder Bremen (2-1 in extra time). Mircea Lucescu has coached 303 matches in European competitions, more than half (152) in the Champions League.
