{"id":19176,"date":"2026-01-03T17:15:30","date_gmt":"2026-01-03T17:15:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/03\/dimitar-penev-the-coach-who-led-bulgaria-to-the-1994-world-cup-semi-finals-dies-at-the-age-of-80\/"},"modified":"2026-01-03T17:15:30","modified_gmt":"2026-01-03T17:15:30","slug":"dimitar-penev-the-coach-who-led-bulgaria-to-the-1994-world-cup-semi-finals-dies-at-the-age-of-80","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/03\/dimitar-penev-the-coach-who-led-bulgaria-to-the-1994-world-cup-semi-finals-dies-at-the-age-of-80\/","title":{"rendered":"Dimitar Penev, the coach who led Bulgaria to the 1994 World Cup semi-finals, dies at the age of 80"},"content":{"rendered":"


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SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) – Dimitar Penev, the coach who led Bulgaria to the semifinals of the 1994 U.S. World Cup, has died. He was 80 years old.<\/p>\n

The Bulgarian Football Association announced Penev’s death on Saturday, saying he passed away after a long illness.<\/p>\n

Voted the best Bulgarian coach of the 20th century, Penev is one of the most prominent figures in Bulgarian football history.<\/p>\n

For Bulgaria, their fourth place finish at the 1994 World Cup remains their greatest success. The team’s good progress came to a halt with a 2-1 loss to Italy in the semifinals. They then lost to Sweden in the third place match.<\/p>\n

Penev was considered one of his country’s best defenders and played 364 league games for CSKA Sofia, scoring 25 goals. He won a total of 13 domestic trophies and was twice named Bulgaria’s Player of the Year.<\/p>\n

He played 90 games for the national team and represented Bulgaria in three World Cups (1966, 1970 and 1974).<\/p>\n

After retiring as a player in 1977, he coached CSKA Sofia, Al Yarmouk in Kuwait, and Al Nasr in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

AP Soccer: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/soccer<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n


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Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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