FILE - Bulgaria's coach Dimitar Penev gestures on the touchline during their Group G Euro 2008 qualifying soccer match between The Netherlands and Bulgaria at the Arena stadium, in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Saturday Sept. 8, 2007. (AP Photo/Ermindo Armino, File)
January 03, 2026 - 12:00 AM
SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Dimitar Penev, the Bulgarian coach who guided his country’s team to the semifinals at the 1994 World Cup in the United States, has died. He was 80.
The Bulgarian Football Union announced Penev's death on Saturday saying he died after a prolonged illness.
Penev, who was named the best Bulgarian coach of the 20th Century, is one of the most celebrated figures in Bulgarian soccer history.
Bulgaria's fourth-place finish at the ‘94 World Cup remains its biggest success. The team’s impressive run was halted in the semifinals with a 2-1 loss to Italy. It then lost to Sweden in the third-place match.
Regarded as one of his country’s best defenders, Penev played 364 league matches and scored 25 goals for CSKA Sofia. He won a total of 13 domestic trophies and was twice voted Bulgarian Footballer of the Year.
He made 90 appearances for the national team and represented Bulgaria at three World Cups (1966, ‘70 and ’74).
After retiring as a player in 1977, he coached CSKA Sofia, as well as Kuwaiti team Al-Yarmouk, and Saudi club Al-Nassr.
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