Memorial Page for Georg Koch

Georg Koch (born 3 February 1972 in Bergisch Gladbach; died 4 March 2026) was a German football goalkeeper and later a goalkeeping coach and team manager. He made 213 Bundesliga appearances and 165 appearances in the German second division. Many of his matches came with Fortuna Düsseldorf; his other clubs included Arminia Bielefeld, 1. FC Kaiserslautern, Energie Cottbus, MSV Duisburg, PSV Eindhoven, Dinamo Zagreb and Rapid Wien.

Training and Fortuna Düsseldorf

Koch was born in Bergisch Gladbach and came through youth teams in the Rhineland, including Bayer 04 Leverkusen. After SpVgg Erkenschwick, he joined Fortuna Düsseldorf in 1991. Following his first appearances late in 1992, he became Fortuna's regular goalkeeper. He stayed after relegation to the then third-tier Oberliga and was part of the side that returned first to the second division and then, in 1995, to the Bundesliga.

Bundesliga and clubs abroad

After his Düsseldorf years, Koch moved to PSV Eindhoven in 1997 and returned to Germany later that year. At Arminia Bielefeld, 1. FC Kaiserslautern, Energie Cottbus and MSV Duisburg, he remained a goalkeeper with many appearances in Germany's top two divisions. With Kaiserslautern he reached the 2003 DFB Cup final; with Duisburg he won promotion to the Bundesliga in 2005. Later he played for Dinamo Zagreb and Rapid Wien.

Rapid Wien

At Rapid Wien, Koch began the 2008/09 season as cover for the injured Helge Payer. On 24 August 2008, during the Vienna derby against Austria Wien, a firecracker thrown from the away section exploded close to him. Koch suffered hearing trauma, balance problems and tinnitus. The consequences prevented a stable return to professional football, and in 2009 he ended his playing career.

Work after playing

After his years as a player, Koch continued to work in football. He held roles as sporting director, coach and goalkeeping coach, later also at Viktoria Köln. He had been involved in Viktoria's youth academy since 2020, became goalkeeping coach of the third-division first team in summer 2021 and later worked as team manager. In May 2023 he stepped back for health and private reasons.

Later years

Georg Koch was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in April 2023 and made the diagnosis public in May 2024. He died on 4 March 2026 at the age of 54. Fortuna Düsseldorf, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, 1. FC Kaiserslautern, Rapid Wien, Viktoria Köln and other clubs paid tribute to a goalkeeper whose career led from the Rhineland to Eindhoven, Zagreb and Vienna.