UEFA mourns death of Michel Daphinoff
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
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Michel Daphinoff, who served UEFA between 1961 and 1990 – most notably as assistant to general secretaries Hans Bangerter and Gerhard Aigner – has died aged 85.
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The former assistant UEFA general secretary Michel Daphinoff has passed away at the age of 85.
Michel Daphinoff joined UEFA in May 1961 as assistant to the European governing body's then general secretary Hans Bangerter. He had previously worked as international secretary for the Bulgarian Football Union (BFS) from 1950 to 1961. He also operated as secretary of the Bulgarian International Olympic Committee, acting in this capacity as attache to the Bulgarian delegation at the Olympic Games in 1952, 1956 and 1960.
A gifted linguist, Michel Daphinoff was put in charge of UEFA's financial matters and he served under five UEFA presidents – Ebbe Schwartz (Denmark), Gustav Widerkehr (Switzerland), Artemio Franchi (Italy), Jacques Georges (France) and Lennart Johansson (Sweden). He worked as Hans Bangerter's representative and then as assistant to Gerhard Aigner after the latter took over as UEFA general secretary in January 1989. He retired at the end of 1990.
Michel Daphinoff was responsible for the coordination of numerous UEFA committees, and was hugely respected among the European football community for his kind nature and professional diligence.
