Ebbe Sand facts for kids

Ebbe Sand (born 19 July 1972) is a famous former football player from Denmark. He was a talented forward who played for top clubs. These included Brøndby IF in Denmark and FC Schalke 04 in Germany.

He was the top scorer in the German Bundesliga league in 2001. Ebbe also won the German Cup, called the DFB-Pokal, in 2001 and 2002 with Schalke. He played for the Danish national team in two FIFA World Cup tournaments. These were in 1998 and 2002. He also played in the European Championships in 2000 and 2004.

At the 1998 World Cup, he scored a goal just 16 seconds after coming into the game. This was the fastest World Cup goal ever scored by a substitute player! He played 66 games for Denmark and scored 22 goals. After retiring from playing, he worked as a talent scout and football director.

Biography

Ebbe Sand was born in Aalborg, Denmark. He grew up in Hadsund. He started playing football for his hometown club, Hadsund BK. His twin brother, Peter Sand, also played there.

Ebbe moved to Copenhagen to study building engineering. He and his brother decided to try out for Brøndby IF. For three years, Ebbe played only a few games. He was an attacking midfielder back then.

In 1995, Sand finally got a chance to play regularly. He quickly became well-known. His brother Peter did not play for Brøndby. However, Peter played professionally for other clubs.

National breakthrough

In his first full season, Ebbe scored 12 goals in 29 games. He helped Brøndby win the Danish Superliga title. Brøndby won the league again in 1997 and 1998. The year 1998 was especially good for Ebbe and his team.

Sand won the Danish Golden Boot award. He scored 28 goals in 33 games. He also helped Brøndby win the Danish Cup. This meant they won both the league and the cup, which is called "the Double."

Ebbe played his first game for the Denmark national football team on 22 April 1998. It was against Norway. Because of his amazing 1998 season, he was chosen to play for Denmark in the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

He played in all five of Denmark's matches at the World Cup. He scored his first goal for Denmark against Nigeria. This goal was very special to him. He came into the game as a substitute. He ran past the defenders and Michael Laudrup passed him the ball. Ebbe headed the ball past a Nigerian defender and scored. It took only 16 seconds from when he entered the game until he scored. This is still a World Cup record. After this, he was named Danish Player of the Year.

Club career abroad

After the 1998 World Cup, Sand played one more season for Brøndby. He scored another 19 goals. Then, in 1999, he moved to the German club Schalke. This transfer cost 10 million DEM. At that time, it was the most expensive player sale by a Danish club.

Sand with Schalke in 1999

Sand's first year in Germany was successful. He scored 14 goals. However, Schalke only finished 13th in the Bundesliga that year. He scored four goals in the qualification games for the Euro 2000 tournament. He played twice for Denmark at the tournament.

The 2000–01 season was much better for Sand and Schalke. Schalke finished second in the Bundesliga. They almost won the championship, but another team scored a late goal. Even so, they qualified for the UEFA Champions League. They also won the DFB-Pokal, the German Cup.

Sand scored 22 goals that season. He shared the title of top scorer in Germany with Sergej Barbarez. He won the Danish Player of the Year award again in 2001. Schalke won the DFB-Pokal again in 2002. Sand scored 11 goals that season. For the national team, he scored nine goals in ten games to help Denmark qualify for the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

His last years at Schalke were less successful in terms of goals. He scored six and eight goals in the next two seasons. For Denmark's run in the Euro 2004, Sand missed the final game due to an injury. After this, he decided to stop playing for the national team. He wanted to focus his last playing years on Schalke.

In July 2005, he announced that the next season would be his last for Schalke. After seven years in Germany, he would move back to Denmark. He planned to work at the Danish Superliga club Silkeborg IF. He was even chosen as team captain for his final season at Schalke. He ended his Schalke career on 13 May 2006. He scored a goal in his last game against VfB Stuttgart. The fans gave him a standing ovation when he left the field.

Management career

After he stopped playing football, Sand joined Silkeborg IF in different roles. He then became a forwards coach for the Denmark National Team. Later, he worked as an advisor for Schalke 04.

On 31 October 2018, he was named the Director of Football for Brøndby IF. He started this job on 1 January 2019. Soon after, he made the tough decision to let go of the head coach, Alexander Zorniger. This was because the team had a series of bad results.

On 10 July 2019, Brøndby IF announced a new director of football. They offered Sand a different position, but he decided not to take it. So, he left the club.

Sand briefly managed the Danish national team on 11 November 2020. This was because the main coach, Kasper Hjulmand, was sick with COVID-19. In his only match as manager, Sand led Denmark to a 2–0 win against Sweden.

Honours

Brøndby IF

• Danish Superliga: 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98
• Danish Cup: 1997–98

Schalke 04

• DFB-Pokal: 2000–01, 2001–02
• UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2003
• DFL-Ligapokal: 2005

Individual

• Danish Superliga top scorer: 1997–98 (28 goals)
• Danish Footballer of the Year: 1998, 2001
• Bundesliga top scorer: 2000–01 (22 goals, shared with Sergej Barbarez)

See also

In Spanish: Ebbe Sand para niños