Olaf Marschall is a retired German

Germans

The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

 footballer and a football sports manager.

Club career

Marschall's career started in the GDR at BSG Chemie Torgau and was soon transferred to 1. FC Lok Leipzig. There, he rose to stardom, becoming one of the most prolific scorers in the East German league and collecting caps for the East German soccer squad. Marschall was regarded as a strong header which deft ballhandling skills, allowing him to play center-striker, hole and offensive midfield with equal effectiveness.

In the wake of the German reunification

German reunification

German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...

 he joined Austrian outfit SCN Admira/Wacker in 1990 to stay on in Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

's Bundesliga

Austrian Bundesliga

The Austrian Football Bundesliga is the highest-ranking national league club competition in Austrian football. It is the competition which decides the Austrian national football champions, as well the country's entrants for the various European cups run by UEFA.The Austrian Bundesliga, which began...

, until he joined Dynamo Dresden

Dynamo Dresden

SG Dynamo Dresden are a German association football club, based in Dresden, Saxony. They were founded in 1950, as a club affiliated with the East German police, and became one of the most popular and successful clubs in East German football, winning eight league titles...

 to help the East German outfit escape relegation from the German Bundesliga in 1993–1994. In 1994 joined 1. FC Kaiserslautern

1. FC Kaiserslautern

1. Fußball-Club Kaiserslautern, also known as 1. FCK, FCK or simply Kaiserslautern, is a German association football club based in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate. On 2 June 1900, Germania 1896 and FG Kaiserslautern merged to create FC 1900...

 and established himself as one of the elite scorers in the Bundesliga. He won the German Cup in 1996 and in 1998 the Bundesliga title.

International career

Looking back on a remarkable scoring record in 1997–1998, Marschall was nominated for the German squad

Germany national football team

The Germany national football team is the football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association , which was founded in 1900....

 and took part in the 1998 FIFA World Cup

1998 FIFA World Cup

The 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th FIFA World Cup, was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. France was chosen as host nation by FIFA on 2 July 1992. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final...

.

In the latter stages of his career, the slower-footed, but still header-strong Marschall was occasionally used as a defender. He played with 1. FC Kaiserslautern

1. FC Kaiserslautern

1. Fußball-Club Kaiserslautern, also known as 1. FCK, FCK or simply Kaiserslautern, is a German association football club based in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate. On 2 June 1900, Germania 1896 and FG Kaiserslautern merged to create FC 1900...

 until 2002, scoring 60 goals in 176 Bundesliga games.

Managing career

His professional career was followed by a job in the management of the then 1. Bundesliga side 1. FC Kaiserslautern

1. FC Kaiserslautern

1. Fußball-Club Kaiserslautern, also known as 1. FCK, FCK or simply Kaiserslautern, is a German association football club based in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate. On 2 June 1900, Germania 1896 and FG Kaiserslautern merged to create FC 1900...

 alongside executive Rene C. Jäggi. Ahead of the 2006–2007 he joined Al-Nasr Sports Club Dubai to work as assistant-manager under manager Rainer Hollmann.