Everyone here at SV Werder Bremen mourns the loss of honorary player Gerhard ‘Gerd’ Zebrowski, who has sadly passed away a few days after his 80th birthday.
Everyone here at SV Werder Bremen mourns the loss of honorary player Gerhard ‘Gerd’ Zebrowski, who has sadly passed away a few days after his 80th birthday.
Gerhard Zebrowski, who was born in Bremen on 25th April 1940, joined the Green Whites from TuS Walle and began his Werder career by playing for the Oberliga side from 1959 (71 games, 24 goals). Overall, the striker went on to make 145 Bundesliga appearances for SV Werder (founded in 1963), scoring 40 goals. Zebrowski lifted the DFB Pokal with his boyhood club in 1961, as well as being a part of the side that won the club’s first ever German top flight title in 1965. The attacker contributed eleven goals in the famous title winning season.
Quick, tricky, clever, an eye for goal and at a height of just 5’6, Zebrowski was a nightmare for defenders. He was a real team player, both on and off the pitch, and a joy for anyone to be around. His talent earned himself a call up into the German national youth team. Zebrowski left the club in 1969, joining TuS Bremerhaven 93, before finishing his career at SV Hemelingen in 1972.
Even after he hung up his boots, Gerhard Zebrowski was still heavily involved in the club: firstly, due to his partnership with former teammate Klaus Matischak, but also later on as he was responsible the stadium program, the ‘Werder-Echo’, in the 1970s and 80s. In 2014 SV Werder announced him, along with the other members of the 1965 championship winning side, as an honorary player. Gerhard Zebrowski stayed in his hometown of Bremen for his entire life and lived in the Grolland district with his wife.
“Winning the German Championship in 1965 holds a special place in the history of SV Werder Bremen, as does everyone who was involved with it. In Gerd Zebrowski, we have lost both a world class player and an exceptional person from the championship winning side,” said Werder President and Managing Director Dr. Hubertus Hess-Grunewald. “As someone from Bremen, he identified perfectly with SV Werder. This was also shown by the fact that he was a member of the club right up until his death; 67 years in total. Just a few days ago we were able to celebrate his achievements on his milestone birthday. The fact that we are mourning his death just a few days later truly saddens us. SV Werder Bremen will always remember Gerd Zebrowski.”
