Fadil Vokrri


Fadil Avdullah Vokrri was a Kosovan and Yugoslav football administrator and player.
Arguably one of Kosovan greatest footballers, he was the president of the Football Federation of Kosovo from 16 February 2008 until his death on 9 June 2018.

Early life

Born in Podujevo, SFR Yugoslavia, Vokrri was known for his Diego Maradona-like approach with quick movement and strong shooting. He won a number of international caps for the former Yugoslavia in the mid-1980s and was unlucky to not win more caps where he was one of Yugoslavia's favourite football talents. He played in a star-studded lineup that included Agim Cana, Edmond Rugova and Fadil Muriqi, as well as other Kosovan players who were part of the Golden Generation in the 1980s. Vokrri's FC Prishtina went on to beat Red Star Belgrade at Marakana and record a historic away victory for the Kosovan team.

Club career

Vokrri scored a total of 121 goals and had 363 club appearances, he began his career at the age of 16 years old at Llapi. He then moved to Prishtina in 1980 and played there until 1986, scoring 55 goals and making 172 appearances. Vokrri was very successful with Partizan from Belgrade where he scored 18 goals and had 55 appearances. He was key to both the team claiming the 1986–87 Yugoslav First League title, and their successful run in the 1988–89 Yugoslav Cup, notably scoring in the final as Partizan won 6–1 against Velež Mostar.
In between the two trophy successes, Italian giants Juventus F.C. showed interest in signing Vokrri. However, as he hadn't completed the then-compulsory two years' military service, he was unable to travel abroad, and so had to turn down the offer. He eventually completed the requirements for military service while playing for Partizan, fulfilling light tasks during the week around training and in between matches.
He also played for Nîmes Olympique, Fenerbahçe where he played for the successful coach Guus Hiddink. Vokrri was a favourite of Fenerbahçe fans but was not as productive as he was with FC Prishtina and Partizan because of his older age.

Post-retirement

After the Kosovo War ended, Vokrri returned in his country and became the sporting director of Prishtina. On 16 February 2008, he was elected as the president of the Football Federation of Kosovo for a 4-year mandate.

Personal life

Vokrri and his wife Edita had two sons, Gramozi and Albert and a daughter named Albana. He had a degree in the Faculty of Management and Business. Apart from his native Albanian, he was also fluent in French, Serbo-Croatian and Turkish. On 17 May 2018, he earned his Albanian passport.

Death

On 9 June 2018, Vokrri suffered a heart attack while he was exercising and died on his way to the emergency room. Later that day, the Prishtina City Stadium was renamed to the Fadil Vokrri Stadium in his honour.
Vokrri was given a state funeral on 10 June 2018 and was buried at the Pristina city graveyard. Kosovo President Hashim Thaçi marked the day as a national day of mourning, with all flags lowered at half mast across Kosovo, and at embassies all over the world.

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals

No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
112 September 1984Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland0–16–1Friendly
220 October 1984Zentralstadion, Leipzig, East Germany2–22–31986 FIFA World Cup qualification
31 February 1985Maharaja's College Stadium, Kochi, India0–11–31985 Nehru Cup
41 May 1985Stade Municipal, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg0–10–11986 FIFA World Cup qualification
514 October 1987Grbavica Stadium, Sarajevo, SFR Yugoslavia1–03–0UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying
614 October 1987Grbavica Stadium, Sarajevo, SFR Yugoslavia2–03–0UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying

Honours

;Partizan