Luděk Mikloško, legendary Czechoslovakia and Baník goalkeeper, has died

Luděk Mikloško, former goalkeeper of the Czechoslovak and Czech national teams and one of the most celebrated Czech footballers in the history of the English Premier League, has passed away. For the past four years he had been battling cancer, and at the end of 2024 he announced he was stopping treatment.

Doctors first diagnosed Mikloško with cancer four years ago — a tumour was initially found on his thigh and removed, but a new growth later appeared in his stomach. Radiotherapy helped at first, but subsequent tumours required chemotherapy, which the former goalkeeper decided to refuse.

"I want to live a normal life"

"I decided against chemotherapy because I want to live normally. When they told me what it would mean — roughly six months without work, without seeing my colleagues, without travelling — I said no, that's not what I want," said the Prostějov-born keeper, who made 42 appearances for the Czechoslovak and Czech national teams.

At the end of 2024, Mikloško attended West Ham's match against Liverpool and announced he was ending his treatment. "I'm still working, I'm around the players and the staff, I'm pretty busy. I try to keep it that way. I always want to be doing something, to stay active and be around football as much as possible — that's what I love," said the man who was the first Czech footballer to truly make his mark in the English Premier League.

From Baník to England

Mikloško began his career at Baník Ostrava, which he joined in 1976 at the age of fifteen — although, by his own admission, he never wanted to be a goalkeeper and only agreed to it at fourteen, persuaded to make use of his physical build. Over eight seasons as the club's first-choice keeper, he played 211 matches for Baník and kept 81 clean sheets.

In January 1990, the goalkeeper moved to England to join West Ham, where he was named the club's Player of the Season in 1991. In total, he kept 142 clean sheets in top-flight football, placing him sixth among goalkeepers by that measure in the League's Goalkeepers' Union rankings.

In 2022, Mikloško returned to Baník, this time as sporting director. His first move was to sack head coach Pavel Vrba and replace him with Pavel Hapal. He was so devoted to his new role that he even had a sofa brought into his office at the Bazaly stadium so he could occasionally sleep there. "I owe the club an incredible amount," Mikloško said in a documentary made for the club's website.

Around Prague, based on reporting by sport.cz