Professional poker player who brought Italy to its knees

Italy’s failure to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup has dominated headlines — yet the journey of the man who guided Bosnia to the tournament is every bit as compelling.

Sergej Barbarez, once a prolific Bundesliga striker with 85 goals for clubs like Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen, stepped into management for the very first time when he took charge of his national team in April 2024. After ending his playing days with Leverkusen in 2008, he made it clear a year later that coaching Bosnia was his ultimate ambition.

Mamma Mia, here we go again! Italy out of the World Cup for the third straight time!

However, the Bosnian FA initially looked elsewhere. Determined to be ready when the opportunity came, Barbarez obtained his UEFA Pro Licence in January 2011 — but had to wait more than a decade before finally landing the role.

So what filled those years? Surprisingly, the former forward turned to professional poker. First spotted at a tournament in Prague in 2012, he spent much of the following decade competing at the tables.

His last recorded tournament appearance came in May 2022, when he finished fifth at a Eureka Poker Tour event in the Czech Republic, earning $2,928. Earlier in his poker stint, he had secured winnings exceeding $20,000 on three separate occasions, including back-to-back successes in 2017. His best finishes were two third-place results.

Back in football, Barbarez has now made his mark. Leading a Bosnia side driven by the evergreen Edin Dzeko, still going strong at 40, he guided the team to second place in their World Cup qualifying group behind Austria. They then overcame both Wales and Italy in dramatic penalty shootouts during the playoffs to seal their spot at the tournament.