View source for Josef Bican

{{Short description|Austrian-Czech footballer (1913–2001)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Josef Bican
| image = Josef Bican 1940.jpg
| caption = Bican in 1940
| fullname = Josef Bican
| birth_date = {{birth date|1913|9|25|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Vienna]], [[Austria-Hungary]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|2001|12|12|1913|9|25|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Prague]], Czech Republic
| height = 1.78 m<ref>{{Cite web |last=Strack-Zimmermann |first=Benjamin |title=Josef Bican (Player) |url=https://www.national-football-teams.com/player/21817/Josef_Bican.html |access-date=2022-03-12 |website=national-football-teams.com|archive-date=5 March 2022  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220305123455/https://www.national-football-teams.com/player/21817/Josef_Bican.html |url-status=live}}</ref>
| position = [[striker (association football)|Striker]]
| youthyears1 = 1925–1928
| youthclubs1 = {{Interlanguage link|Hertha Vienna|de|3=ASV Hertha Wien}}
| youthyears2 = 1928–1930
| youthclubs2 = Schustek
| youthyears3 = 1930–1931
| youthclubs3 = Farbenlutz
| years1 = 1931
| clubs1 = Farbenlutz
| caps1 = 2
| goals1 = 2
| years2 = 1931
| clubs2 = Rapid Amateur
| caps2 = 0
| goals2 = 0
| years3 = 1931–1935
| clubs3 = [[SK Rapid Wien|Rapid Vienna]]
| caps3 = 49
| goals3 = 54
| years4 = 1935–1937
| clubs4 = [[FC Admira Wacker Mödling|Admira Vienna]]
| caps4 = 26
| goals4 = 18
| years5 = 1937–1948
| clubs5 = [[SK Slavia Prague|Slavia Prague]]
| caps5 = 219
| goals5 = 416
| years6 = 1948–1951
| clubs6 = [[MFK Vítkovice|FC Vítkovice]]
| caps6 = 58
| goals6 = 74
| years7 = 1951–1952
| clubs7 = [[FC Hradec Králové]]{{efn|name=Sokol Škoda}}
| caps7 = 26
| goals7 = 53
| years8 = 1952–1955
| clubs8 = [[SK Slavia Prague|Dynamo Prague]]
| caps8 = 32
| goals8 = 22
| years9 = 1957
| clubs9 = [[TJ Slovan Liberec|Slovan Liberec]]
| caps9 = 1
| goals9 = 0
| years10 = 1957
| clubs10 = [[Spartak Brno ZJŠ]]
| caps10 = 4
| goals10 = 2
| totalcaps = 417
| totalgoals = 641
| nationalyears1 = 1933–1936
| nationalteam1 = [[Austria national football team|Austria]]
| nationalcaps1 = 19
| nationalgoals1 = 14
| nationalyears2 = 1938–1949
| nationalteam2 = [[Czechoslovakia national football team|Czechoslovakia]]
| nationalcaps2 = 14
| nationalgoals2 = 12
| nationalyears3 = 1939
| nationalteam3 = [[Czech Republic national football team|Bohemia and Moravia]]
| nationalcaps3 = 2
| nationalgoals3 = 6
| manageryears1 = 1954–1956
| managerclubs1 = [[SK Slavia Prague|Dynamo Prague]]
| manageryears2 = 1956–1959
| managerclubs2 = [[TJ Slovan Liberec|Slovan Liberec]]
| manageryears3 = 1957–1958
| managerclubs3 = [[Spartak Brno ZJŠ]]
| manageryears4 = 1959–1960
| managerclubs4 = [[FC Zbrojovka Brno|TJ Spartak ZJS Brno]]
| manageryears5 = 1963–1964
| managerclubs5 = [[FK Příbram|TJ Baník Příbram]]
| manageryears6 = 1964
| managerclubs6 = [[FC Hradec Králové]]
| manageryears7 = 1967–1969
| managerclubs7 = [[SONP Kladno]]
| manageryears8 = 1969–1972
| managerclubs8 = [[KSK Tongeren]]
| manageryears9 = 1977
| managerclubs9 = [[SK Benešov|Benešov]]
}}

'''Josef''' "'''Pepi'''" '''Bican''' (25 September 1913 – 12 December 2001) was an [[Austrians|Austrian]] and [[Czechs|Czech]] professional [[Association football|footballer]] who played as a [[Forward (association football)#Striker|striker]]. He is regarded by some to be the greatest goalscorer in the history of the sport.<ref name=JW>{{Cite web |url=https://www.si.com/soccer/2021/02/02/josef-bican-goal-record-history-cristiano-ronaldo |title=Filling in the Blanks on (Possibly) the Greatest Goalscorer Ever and the Murkiness of His Total|editor=Sports Illustrated |author=Jonathan Wilson |date=2 February 2021 |accessdate=22 June 2021 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202143536/https://www.si.com/soccer/2021/02/02/josef-bican-goal-record-history-cristiano-ronaldo |archivedate=2 February 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-03-04 |title=Josef Bican: The Forgotten Man in Football History - But the Greatest Goalscorer of All Time |url=https://www.90min.com/posts/6569992-josef-bican-the-forgotten-man-in-football-history-but-the-greatest-goalscorer-of-all-time |access-date=2024-01-22 |website=90min.com}}</ref><ref name="fifa">{{Cite web|title=Welcome to FIFA.com News - The master of marksmen |url=https://www.fifa.com/news/the-master-of-marksmen|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925185644/https://www.fifa.com/news/the-master-of-marksmen|archive-date=25 September 2020|access-date=2020-12-22|publisher=FIFA}}</ref> He is considered by [[RSSSF]] as the [[List of footballers with 500 or more goals|third-most prolific goalscorer in history]] after [[Erwin Helmchen]] and [[Cristiano Ronaldo]], with over 950 goals scored in 624 official matches. He scored 591 goals in 301 official games for [[Slavia Prague]] across his 11-year playing career at the club.<ref>{{cite web |url =https://www.rsssf.org/players/prolific.html|title =Prolific Scorers Data |website =RSSSF |date =2025-07-26 |accessdate = 2025-07-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url =https://www.planetfootball.com/stats-tables/lionel-messi-cristiano-ronaldo-goalscoring-history-records-three-players-scored-more|title =The 3 players in football history to have scored more goals than Messi & Ronaldo |website = planetfootball.com |date =2024-09-01 |accessdate =2025-01-25 |archiveurl =https://web.archive.org/web/20250125055545/https://www.planetfootball.com/stats-tables/lionel-messi-cristiano-ronaldo-goalscoring-history-records-three-players-scored-more |archivedate =2025-01-25}}</ref>

Bican began his professional career at [[Rapid Vienna]] in 1931. After four years at Rapid, he moved to local rivals [[FC Admira Wacker Mödling|Admira Vienna]]. Bican won four league titles during his time in Austria,<ref name="TE">{{cite web|title=Josef Bican|date=26 December 2001 |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1366259/Josef-Bican.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190516203403/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1366259/Josef-Bican.html|archive-date=16 May 2019|access-date=2020-08-04}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=080. Josef Bican |url=https://www.myfootballfacts.com/world-football/legendary-players/josef-bican/ |access-date=2022-06-27 |website=My Football Facts|archive-date=3 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221003152834/https://www.myfootballfacts.com/world-football/legendary-players/josef-bican/ |url-status=live}}</ref> moved to Slavia Prague in 1937, where he stayed until 1948, and became the club's all-time top goalscorer.<ref name=RSSSF/> He later played for [[MFK Vítkovice|FC Vítkovice]], [[FC Hradec Králové]], and [[SK Slavia Prague|Dynamo Prague]], retiring in 1955 as the all-time top goalscorer in the [[Czechoslovak First League]] with 447 goals.<ref>[https://en.slavia.cz/clanek.asp?id=Star-History-Slavia-Top-Scorers-of-All-Times-604 Slavia Top Scorers of All Times] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200704204314/https://en.slavia.cz/clanek.asp?id=Star-History-Slavia-Top-Scorers-of-All-Times-604|date=4 July 2020}} SK Slavia Praha</ref> According to [[UEFA]], the governing body for European football, he is the leading all-time goalscorer in European top-flight leagues with 518 goals (447 in Czechoslovakia and 71 in Austria), narrowly ahead of Hungarian [[Ferenc Puskás]].<ref name=UEFA.com>{{Cite web |url=https://www.uefa.com/news-media/news/021c-0f8a782725dd-18b8d292d19d-1000--meet-europe-s-most-prolific-scorer-of-all-time/ |title=Meet Europe's most prolific scorer of all time |language=es |publisher=UEFA |date=4 December 2014 |access-date=18 February 2023 |archive-date=13 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513101609/https://www.uefa.com/insideuefa/national-associations/news/021c-0f8a782725dd-18b8d292d19d-1000--meet-europe-s-most-prolific-scorer-of-all-time/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Bican was a member of the Austrian ''[[Wunderteam]]'' of the 1930s and represented the nation at the [[1934 FIFA World Cup]], where they reached the semi-finals. He later switched allegiance to the [[Czechoslovakia national football team]], but a clerical error related to his transfer of national team precluded him from playing in the [[1938 FIFA World Cup]]. Bican was a tall and powerful player,<ref name=UEFA.com/> with the technical ability to play with both feet,<ref name="GT">{{Cite web|date=2017-06-06|title=Josef Pepi Bican – The Lonely Man at the Top|url=http://www.goaldentimes.org/josef-pepi-bican-the-lonely-man-at-the-top/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190516203350/http://www.goaldentimes.org/josef-pepi-bican-the-lonely-man-at-the-top/|archive-date=16 May 2019|access-date=2019-05-16|website=Goalden Times}}</ref> and had considerable pace. During his athletic prime, he was reportedly capable of running [[100 metres]] in 10.8 seconds, which was not far off the leading sprinters of his time.<ref name="fifa" />

After his retirement from playing, Bican became a manager, and coached various teams from the 1950s until the 1970s. In 1998, Bican was given a "Medal of Honour" by the [[International Federation of Football History & Statistics]] (IFFHS) for being among the world's most successful top division goalscorers of all time.<ref name="IFFHS">{{cite web |title=TOP DIVISION GOAL SCORERS OF ALL TIME : FERENC PUSKAS LEADS THE RANKING |publisher=[[International Federation of Football History & Statistics]] (IFFHS) |date=12 November 2017 |url=https://www.iffhs.com/posts/490|access-date=3 July 2020 |archive-date=4 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200704062002/https://www.iffhs.de/posts/490 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2000, the IFFHS awarded Bican the "Golden Ball" in recognition of his status as the greatest goalscorer of the 20th century. The award was based on how many times a player had been top scorer in his top division domestic league, a feat which Bican achieved 12 times.<ref name="TE" /><ref name=her>{{cite web|title=Josef Bican : world's greatest goalscorer|date=3 January 2002 |url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12226511.josef-bican-worlds-greatest-goalscorer/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200125215236/https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12226511.josef-bican-worlds-greatest-goalscorer/|archive-date=25 January 2020|access-date=2020-08-04}}</ref>

== Early life ==
Josef Bican was born in [[Favoriten]], [[Vienna]], [[Austria-Hungary]], to parents [[František Bican]] and Ludmila Kopecka, at Quellenstrasse 101. He was the second of three children, František, Josef and Vilík. His father was from [[Sedlice, Strakonice District|Sedlice]] in Southern [[Bohemia]], and his mother was a Viennese Czech. Josef's father František was a footballer who played for {{Interlanguage link|Hertha Vienna|de|3=ASV Hertha Wien}}. He fought in [[World War I]] and returned uninjured. However, František died at the early age of 30 in 1921 after refusing an operation to treat an infected [[kidney]] after an injury sustained during a football match. This was when František was just 10, Josef was 8 and Vilík was 3. Hertha Vienna officials gave František a nice funeral and told Ludmila that they would take care of her sons and would even give them an education. At first they visited the boys every day and would bring something to help out. However this soon changed as they would come every week, once a fortnight and within three months it was as if they had forgotten about the Bican family. Ludmila was stuck in a desperate situation, she sent Vilík to be looked after by his grandparents in Bohemia, until he was 14. Ludmila's life got harder as she had to work twice as hard as before, cleaning crayfish and washing dishes at a nearby restaurant. Most days she would have to get up at four in the morning to come home at ten, but sometimes even later.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů|date=1971|page=10|language=cs}}</ref>

The family's [[poverty]] meant that Bican initially had to play football without shoes, which helped him improve his ball control skills. Bican attended the [[Jan Amos Komenský]] school, a Czech school in Vienna. For entertainment František and Josef would make a football out of old material and sometimes Ludmila would be left without one stocking. On some days they would arrive at school with dirty clothes and foreheads due to playing football before school. They would play matches between classes and between schools, they had no time to study. Josef would play football so much that she had to lock him indoors to try and get him to study. The players at his school would whistle and call to Josef to get him to come to a match that day. He lived one story up, but this didn't stop him. He climbed out the window and played the game. The school team was victorious as the score was 12–2, Josef had scored 8 goals.

His older brother, František, was also a good footballer, as he started playing for Hertha Vienna, aged 11. However, František died tragically at 17. They had brought him home with a knife in his heart. They had told the Bican family that it was a very unfortunate accident that he had taken his own life. In situations like these Ludmila was normally brave, however this time she was scared and she sent Josef to live with Vilík and his grandparents.<ref name="Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů">{{Cite book|title=Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů|date=1971|page=11|language=cs}}</ref>

Working at Schustek parquet factory, Josef would work around the office and in the warehouse and earnt twenty shillings a week. In the spring of 1931 Farbenlutz attracted Bican to start working for them as he would earn 30 shillings a week.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{Cite book|title=Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů|date=1971|page=13|language=cs}}</ref>

==Early career==
In 1925, at the age of twelve, Bican was already playing in the youth set-up of {{Interlanguage link|Hertha Vienna|de|3=ASV Hertha Wien}}, his father's beloved club,<ref name=GT/> and also where his idol, [[Matthias Sindelar]] had begun his career.<ref name=JW/> At Hertha, he was coached by a former player that had played with his father. The Hertha Vienna pitch was only a few steps away from his house. Bican was the smallest of the boys there, however, his ability to score goals caught the attention of everyone around. One of the club’s officials was so impressed that he told him, “You’ll get a shilling every time you score.”<ref name=GT/> He scored two in his very first match.<ref name="Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů"/> Thus, football became a vital income to the poor Bican family.<ref name=GT/>

As his career slowed down at Hertha Vienna, due to him not playing for almost half a year, one of his friends invited him to play for Schustek. It was a parquet factory, small but profitable. At the age of 15, in the autumn of 1928, Bican made his debut for Schustek. Josef scored three goals in a 5–2 friendly victory over Nord Vienna.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> It is said that once his mother, who had come to watch him, was so annoyed about a foul her son received that she ran onto the pitch and beat the opponent with her umbrella.<ref name=GT/><ref name=JW/> In 1931 he would start playing for Farbenlutz and would not even train.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

Near to where Bican lived, [[Roman Schramseis]] also resided and after seeing Bican play on several occasions, Roman offered him the chance to train at [[SK Rapid Wien|Rapid Wien]]. “I already told [[Richard Kuthan]] about it.” In his first youth game for the club, he scored seven goals, and so he was promoted to the Amateur side, which was typically for 18- and 19-year-olds.<ref name=JW/> Bican was invited to watch a training session with the amateur team, but as soon as he and his friend watched the others play they got scared and headed home. The next Tuesday, Bican was to play a training game between the junior team and the amateur team. He played for the junior team and scored five goals as they won 7–2. On the Sunday of the same week, he was again invited to play for the adult team. Rapid Wien beat their opponents 4–2 with two goals from Bican.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů|date=1971|page=15|language=cs}}</ref> After three months, in June 1931, he was promoted to the Reserves.<ref name=JW/>

== Club career ==
=== Rapid Vienna ===
In 1931, when Bican first joined [[Rapid Vienna]], he received 150 [[Austrian schilling|schilling]]s, but, by the age of 20, Rapid wanted to keep him so much that they paid him 600 schillings. In 1931, for Rapid Vienna's Reserve team, Josef scored 30 goals in 16 games.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web |url=https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=wst&datum=19321209&query=%22Josef%22+%22Bican%22&ref=anno-search&seite=3 |title=ANNO, (Wiener) Sporttagblatt, Seite 3 |website=anno.onb.ac.at |date=9 December 1932 |access-date=17 March 2023 |archive-date=4 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404191343/https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=wst&datum=19321209&query=%22Josef%22+%22Bican%22&ref=anno-search&seite=3 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="GT"/> In his debut game against [[FK Austria Wien|Austria Wien]], club where [[Matthias Sindelar]] played, Bican scored four goals in a victory 5–3.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rapidarchiv.at/spieler/bican_josef.html |website=rapidarchiv.at |title=Josef Bican |language=German |accessdate=22 June 2021 |archive-date=22 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200222202417/http://rapidarchiv.at/spieler/bican_josef.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Bican recalls the game as this: "Sometime in the tenth minute, I received the ball from the right, in a large amount of space, went around [[Karl Gall (footballer)|Gall]] and with my left foot, I scored the first goal, into the corner. [[Franz Weselik|Weselik]] broke through and struck a shot that hit the cross bar, on the rebound I hooked the ball into the net, again, with my left foot. Before halftime, I scored my third goal, a nice, clean instep at full speed. My teammates rushed towards me and carried me to the center of the field. For my fourth, I luckily got past [[Hans Mock|Mock]] and only Gall was in front of me, he took me to the ground, but I was still able to shoot and score the decisive fifth goal. When the match was over, everyone was kissing me. But in the dressing room they had to cut open my sleeve, to get my shirt off me. I had finished the game with a swollen wrist. I didn't even notice it. The joy was greater than the pain".<ref>{{Cite book|title=Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů|date=1971|page=23|language=cs}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů|date=1971|page=24|language=cs}}</ref> In 1932 Josef scored 51 goals in 42 games for [[Rapid Vienna]]. 23 goals in 9 reserve team games and 28 goals in 33 first team games<ref name="auto"/> In 1933 Josef signed a contract to play a game for [[Wiener AC]], in which they beat [[SV Schwechat|Phonix Schwechat]] 6-2, with Josef scoring 4.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=tag&datum=19330603&query=%22Josef%22+%22Bican%22&ref=anno-search&seite=9 |title=ANNO, Der Tag, Seite 9 |website=anno.onb.ac.at |date=6 March 1933 |access-date=18 March 2023 |archive-date=14 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414182600/https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=tag&datum=19330603&query=%22Josef%22+%22Bican%22&ref=anno-search&seite=9 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Bican won the Austrian title with Rapid in 1934–35 and his first goalscoring accolade, but by the end of the season, he had been suspended after refusing to sign a new contract and Bican decided to go on strike. In total for Rapid Vienna, Josef played 156 games and scored 201 goals. Through one of his uncles, a deal was done with [[FC Admira Wacker Mödling|Admira Vienna]], at the time the most successful side in Austrian history. Rapid however, refused to release his registration, and Bican went nine months without playing a game. When he was allowed to leave, Bican won championships in both his seasons with the Vienna club, but his heart was set on his family's homeland.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů|date=1971|page=33|language=cs}}</ref>

=== Slavia Prague ===
During early January 1937, Bican left Admira Vienna to join Czech club [[SK Slavia Prague|Slavia Prague]], he signed a contract for them, despite being on a friendly tour of [[Egypt]]. His contract had already ended for Admira Vienna, in 1936, however he was still allowed to play for them. The Austrian Union needed Bican for an inter-state match, they demanded Bican to sign a contract at the beginning of December, if he did not do so, his old contract would be extended for a year. However, Bican did not back down and was adamant to leave.<ref>{{cite web |author=Ryan Pinkham |url=https://historyofsoccer.info/joseph-bican-footballs-greatest-showman |title=Josef Bican – Football's Greatest Showman  |website=History of Soccer |date=3 June 2023 }}</ref>

In his first season at the club, Bican was both the league's top scorer with 22 goals and the [[1938 Mitropa Cup]] with 10 goals, and although Slavia finished as runner-ups in the league, they won the cup after a 4–2 aggregate win over [[Ferencvárosi TC|Ferencváros]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesm/mit38.html |title=Mitropa Cup 1938 |work=[[RSSSF]] |accessdate=18 March 2023 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304051613/https://www.rsssf.com/tablesm/mit38.html |archivedate=4 March 2016 }}</ref> with Bican netting once in the first leg.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bdfutbol.com/en/p/p.php?id=485058 |title=Slavia Praha - Ferencváros (2 - 2) 04/08/1938 |website=www.bdfutbol.com |accessdate=18 March 2023 |archive-date=18 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318131127/https://www.bdfutbol.com/en/p/p.php?id=485058 |url-status=live }}</ref> The following season, in March 1939, [[Germany]] invaded Czechoslovakia and football split on similar lines, with Bohemian and Moravian clubs carrying their results from the Czechoslovak league into the new Bohemian-Moravian league. Bican was again the top scorer of the league, this time with 29 goals, but [[AC Sparta Prague|Sparta Prague]], Slavia's greatest rival, won the championship again.<ref name=JW/>

The third year (1941), Bican's won his first of four Championships along with the third of 10 consecutive goal scoring accolades. He played for Slavia throughout [[World War II]], while many of his football rivals were at war. In August 1941, Bican played in a friendly match against SK Mnichova Hradiste. In the first half, Slavia were 10-1 up with Bican scoring all 10 of the goals. Bican didn't play in the second half and the overall play was poor from Slavia, as the score ended 13-3. During eight league seasons he scored 328 goals, including 57 in 26 matches one particular season (1943–44).<ref>Pojizerské listy. Turnov: Müller a spol., 26.08.1941, 56(66). ISSN 1210-4965. Available also from: https://www.digitalniknihovna.cz/kvkli/uuid/uuid:0e9deded-79b0-4dd9-8341-5b194f70983b</ref><ref name=et>{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/beforegboot.html |title=European Topscorers by Season |date=18 February 2021 |website=[[RSSSF]] |accessdate=22 June 2021 |archive-date=31 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081231122820/http://www.rsssf.com/miscellaneous/beforegboot.html |url-status=live }}</ref> During the 1939–40 season, he set a world record for the longest goal-scoring streak in a European top division when he scored at least one goal for 19 games in a row, netting a total of 47 goals over his run that included [[Hat-trick#Association football|hat-tricks]] in 5 back-to-back league games. His record stood for 73 years until it was broken in 2013 by [[Lionel Messi]] (21 games in the [[La Liga|Spanish league]]).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.iffhs.com/posts/1841 |title=Bican:goal streak of 19 games |website=iffhs |date=21 May 2022 |accessdate=7 June 2022 |archive-date=26 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220526074717/https://www.iffhs.com/posts/1841 |url-status=live }}</ref> Three times in his career, Bican scored seven goals in a game.<ref name=7goalgames>{{cite news|first1=Luboš|last1=Jeřábek|first2=Jan|last2=Palička|url=http://fotbal.idnes.cz/brazilcovo-silenstvi-sedm-golu-za-zapas-fdz-/fot_zahranici.aspx?c=A071008_232658_fot_zahranici_ber|title=Brazilcovo šílenství: sedm gólů za zápas|language=cs|work=idnes.cz|date=7 October 2007|access-date=22 April 2012|archive-date=22 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180722155456/https://fotbal.idnes.cz/brazilcovo-silenstvi-sedm-golu-za-zapas-fdz-/fot_zahranici.aspx?c=A071008_232658_fot_zahranici_ber|url-status=live}}</ref> In a 1939–40 league match against [[SK Baťa Zlín|Zlín]], Bican found the net seven times as Slavia ran out 10–1 winners.<ref name=7goalgames/> During the 1940–41 season, Bican matched his feat of the previous season, again against Zlín, scoring seven times, as Slavia won by a 12–1 scoreline.<ref name=7goalgames/> It was [[1947–48 Czechoslovak First League|1947–48]] before Bican managed his third seven-goal match, as Slavia defeated [[SK České Budějovice|České Budějovice]] in a game which finished 15–1.<ref name=7goalgames/>

He was in the leagues that he played, the top-scorer 12 times during his 25-year professional career and Europe's and the world's top scorer in five consecutive seasons, from 1939–40 to 1943–44, a record that still stands.<ref name=et/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/worldtops.html |title=World League Topscorers 1889-2005 |date=18 February 2021 |website=[[RSSSF]] |accessdate=22 February 2021 |archive-date=21 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220721204539/https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/worldtops.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Last years ===
Several clubs were interested in signing Bican after the war ended.<ref name=jb>{{cite web |url=https://english.radio.cz/josef-pepi-bican-8046129 |website=english.radio.cz |title=Josef "Pepi" Bican |date=23 January 2002 |accessdate=22 June 2021 |archive-date=28 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228201452/https://english.radio.cz/josef-pepi-bican-8046129 |url-status=live }}</ref> Bican joined steel works Železárny Vítkovice. During 1952, he joined [[FC Hradec Králové]],{{efn|name=Sokol Škoda}} where he managed to score 53 goals in 26 matches.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.90min.com/in/posts/czech-fa-claims-cristiano-ronaldo-has-not-broken-josef-bican-s-goalscoring-record/partners/40776 |title=Czech FA Claims Cristiano Ronaldo Has Not Broken Josef Bican's Goalscoring Record |website=90min.com |date=21 January 2021 |access-date=18 March 2023 |archive-date=5 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205140633/https://www.90min.com/in/posts/czech-fa-claims-cristiano-ronaldo-has-not-broken-josef-bican-s-goalscoring-record/partners/40776 |url-status=live }}</ref> On 1 May 1953, the Communist Party forced him to leave the city and, therefore, the club. After being forced to leave, he returned to Slavia Prague, or, as it was known then, Dynamo Prague. He continued to play for Dynamo until retiring from playing at the age of 42 in 1955. He was the oldest player in the league at that time.<ref name=jb/>

== International career ==
On 29 November 1933, aged 20 years and 64 days, Bican made his debut for [[Austria national football team|Austria]] in a 2–2 draw against [[Scotland national football team|Scotland]].<ref name=EU>{{cite web|url=https://eu-football.info/_player.php?id=1869|title=Josef Bican, international footballer|website=Eu-football.info|access-date=18 February 2023|archive-date=18 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230218092956/https://eu-football.info/_player.php?id=1869|url-status=live}}</ref> He later played for them at the [[1934 FIFA World Cup|1934 World Cup]], when the Austrian ''[[Wunderteam]]'' reached the semifinals. His solitary goal in the tournament came in extra time of Austria's 3–2 win over [[France national football team|France]].<ref name=fifa/><ref name=RSSSF2>{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/bican-intlg.html |title=Josef Bican - International Goals |publisher=[[RSSSF]] |date=20 May 2017 |accessdate=18 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170520141225/http://www.rsssf.com/miscellaneous/bican-intlg.html |archive-date=20 May 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

At the time Bican was playing for Slavia Prague, he applied for Czechoslovak citizenship. However, when he eventually became a Czechoslovak citizen, he discovered that a clerical error meant he couldn't play at the 1938 World Cup. He scored two hat-tricks for [[Czechoslovakia national football team|Czechoslovakia]], including a four-goal haul against [[Romania national football team|Romania]] in the [[King Alexander's Cup#1937–38 Eduard Benes Cup|1937–38 Eduard Benes Cup]] in a 6–2 win.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://eu-football.info/_match.php?id=6106|title=CzechoSlovakia vs Romania, 4 December 1938|website=Eu-football.info|access-date=18 February 2023|archive-date=18 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230218092956/https://eu-football.info/_match.php?id=6106|url-status=live}}</ref> He also played for [[Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia|Bohemia & Moravia]] in two matches, both against [[Germany national football team |Germany]] and scoring a hat-trick in each of them. In total, he scored 32 goals in 35 international matches for three national teams (Austria, Czechoslovakia and Bohemia & Moravia).<ref name=EU/><ref name=RSSSF2/> His final national team appearance was for Czechoslovakia in a 3–1 defeat against [[Bulgaria national football team|Bulgaria]] on 4 September 1949, a few days short from his 36th birthday.<ref name=EU/><ref name=CMFS>{{CMFS player|BicanJosef}}</ref>

However, his success did have a disadvantage. Other members of the team became jealous of the tall, handsome Bican's success, and he was sometimes called abusive names, such as "Austrian bastard".<ref name="radio.cz">{{cite news|first=Ian|last=Willoughby|url=http://www.radio.cz/en/article/11870|title=Czechs in History: Josef "Pepi" Bican|work=Czech Radio|date=23 January 2002|access-date=8 May 2012|archive-date=28 December 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071228061755/http://www.radio.cz/en/article/11870|url-status=live}}</ref>

In addition to representing Austria, Czechoslovakia and the region of Bohemia & Moravia, Bican also played a number of fixtures playing for teams consisting of the best players from a league or town between 1939 and 1949. For the Bohemia-Moravia league team in 1939 he played six games scoring nine goals, for the Bohemia league team in 1940–1944 he played eight games scoring 11 goals, for [[Prague]] from 1938 to 1948 he played 12 games scoring 11 goals and [[Ostrava]] in 1950–51 he played ten games scoring 10 goals, bringing Bican's total number of official goals outside of club football to 67 goals in 69 games.<ref name=RSSSF>{{Cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/players/pbicandata.html |title=Prolific Scorers Data - Josef Bican - Additional Data |website=RSSSF |date=6 January 2022 |access-date=18 February 2023 |archive-date=11 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220711103150/https://www.rsssf.org/players/pbicandata.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Grandfather František and Grandmother Terezie were one of the poorest families of the town. Grandfather František’s second son Josef, died during the war and for financial support they took 50 koruna per month. The start of young Josef’s love for fishing came when Grandfather František took him and Vilík to a nearby river and the boys would fish either side of František.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Bican-Pět Tisíc Gólů|date=1971|page=12|language=cs}}</ref> His refusal is described in the book: "I was born in Vienna, but my father was Czech, just like my mother," he finally declared. "I always felt like a Czech, and if I did something else, my dad would turn in his grave!" Although the author was based on contemporary sources, he considers these words to be credible. "When I spoke to him, he always emphasized his Czechness," reveals Zikmund.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ruik.cz/okenko-minulosti-bican-proti-hitlerovi/|title=Okénko minulosti: Bican proti Hitlerovi|first=Stanislav|last=Hrabě|date=16 October 2020|access-date=14 February 2023|archive-date=10 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230910192727/https://www.ruik.cz/okenko-minulosti-bican-proti-hitlerovi/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Life after retirement==
[[Image:Bican pepi slavin4976.jpg|upright|thumb|Tombstone of Bican at Prague's [[Vyšehrad cemetery]]]]

[[Image: Josef Bican grave, December 2013.jpg|upright|thumb|Bican's grave, plus a headstone for his wife Jarmila, who died exactly ten years after him]]

[[K.S.K. Tongeren|Tongeren]]  hired him as a coach in 1968, where he had some success taking them from [[Belgian Fourth Division|Division 4]] to [[Belgian Second Division|Division 2]].

Around this time, [[Pelé]] was getting ready for his 1000th goal and many journalists were searching for another player who had scored a thousand goals. Former Austrian player [[Franz Binder|Franz "Bimbo" Binder]] suggested Bican, who he claimed to have scored over 5000 goals in all competitions.<ref name="radio.cz"/> When reporters asked Bican why he had not sought more attention for his goalscoring feats, he simply said, "who'd have believed me if I said I'd scored five times as many goals as Pelé?". However, statistics of his career were not kept properly and only counting goals in official matches, Bican scored at least 950 goals and 1813 including friendlies.<ref name=RSSSF/> Bican's goal-scoring feats are often forgotten because he did not make a big fuss about it in the media. His record is often overshadowed by Pelé's  1200 plus goal record, including goals in unofficial matches. But shortly before his death in 2001, IFFHS based on RSSSF statistics declared Bican with 643 league goals, the most prolific scorer of the 20th century.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://english.radio.cz/legendary-footballer-pepi-bican-inducted-czech-fas-hall-fame-8542748 |title=Josef Bican |date=25 September 2013 |access-date=4 August 2020 |archive-date=23 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200723221653/https://english.radio.cz/legendary-footballer-pepi-bican-inducted-czech-fas-hall-fame-8542748 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=JB>{{cite web |url=https://english.radio.cz/legendary-footballer-pepi-bican-inducted-czech-fas-hall-fame-8542748 |title=Legendary footballer Pepi Bican inducted in Czech FA's Hall of Fame |date=25 September 2013|access-date=9 August 2020 |archive-date=23 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200723221653/https://english.radio.cz/legendary-footballer-pepi-bican-inducted-czech-fas-hall-fame-8542748 |url-status=live}}</ref> This was judged by the number of times a player had been top scorer in his top-tier domestic league. Bican managed this feat 12 times, more than any other player in football history, a record that still stands.<ref name=TE/>

In the 1990s, Bican spoke to Czech TV about the difficulty of scoring during his era: "When I talk to young reporters, they always say, 'Mr Bican, scoring was easier back in your day.' But I ask them, 'How come? Look, are there opportunities today?' And they tell me, 'Of course there are, many of them'. And I say, 'There you go. If there weren't opportunities, it would be difficult. But if there are, scoring is the same as it was a hundred years ago, and will be the same in a hundred years' time, too. It will always be the same."<ref name=fifa/><ref name=JB/><ref name=her/> Bican further stated: "Everybody would agree that a chance should be a goal. If I got five chances, I scored five goals – if I got seven then it was seven."<ref name=UEFA.com/>

"Bican was incredibly unlucky at the height of his career. There was no World Cup in 1942 or 1946 because of the war. If the 1942 edition had taken place, for example, he would surely have become more widely known. Perhaps he might even have been as famous as Pele", Radovan Jelinek, sports historian said about him.<ref name="fifa"/>

==Death==
After suffering from heart problems for several months,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cripps |first=Simon |date=2013-07-22 |title=Remembering Josef 'Pepi' Bican, once Europe's greatest goalscorer |url=https://thesefootballtimes.co/2013/07/22/josef-pepi-bican-europes-greatest-goalscorer/ |access-date=2024-08-17 |website=These Football Times |language=en-GB}}</ref> Bican died in Prague on 12 December 2001 at the age of 88,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-12-09 |title=Josef Bican, among football's greatest scorers, died 20 years ago |url=https://english.radio.cz/josef-bican-among-footballs-greatest-scorers-died-20-years-ago-8736229 |access-date=2023-03-15 |website=Radio Prague International |language=en |archive-date=15 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315115924/https://english.radio.cz/josef-bican-among-footballs-greatest-scorers-died-20-years-ago-8736229 |url-status=live }}</ref> and was buried in [[Vyšehrad Cemetery|Vyšehrad cemetery]].

On 25 September 2013, which would have been Bican's 100th birthday, Slavia Prague commemorated him by wearing shirts that featured a replica of his signature on them.<ref name=UEFA.com/>

== Career statistics ==
=== Club ===
<!----------------------------- PLEASE DO NOT EDIT THESE CAREER STATISTICS ----------------------------------
 – ALL THE FIGURES HAVE BEEN VERIFIED WITH THE BELOW REFERENCES AND FOOTBALL ASSOCIATIONS - ON THE WHOLE MATCH THE RSSSF'S WORK IN 2021. BICAN TOTAL GOALS IS +950 IF YOU INCLUDED HIS INTERNATIONAL GOALS.
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------->
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition<ref>[http://www.rapidarchiv.at/spiele/1932.html Rapid Wien] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210120233701/http://www.rapidarchiv.at/spiele/1932.html |date=20 January 2021 }} - [http://www.slavia.cz/zobraz.asp?t=bican-pepi Slavia Praha] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210428055040/http://www.slavia.cz/zobraz.asp?t=bican-pepi |date=28 April 2021 }} - [http://www.historical-lineups.com/mitropa-cup.html HistoricalLineups] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126073109/http://www.historical-lineups.com/mitropa-cup.html |date=26 November 2020 }} - [https://web.archive.org/web/20110818024050/http://iffhs.de/?b4a390f03be4ac07cda17b45fdcdc3bfcdc0aec28d6d12 IFFHS] - [https://books.google.com/books?id=4ErKtwjzyv8C Český a československý fotbal] - [https://www.rsssf.org/players/pbicandata.html RSSSF - Bican data] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220711103150/https://www.rsssf.org/players/pbicandata.html |date=11 July 2022 }} - {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20181225170448/http://arfts.com/ ARFTS]}}-  - {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20180816092136/http://arfts.com/player.php?id=4 ARFTS3]}} - [http://arfsh.com/ ARFSH] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190715224221/https://arfsh.com/player.php%3Fid%3D4 |date=15 July 2019 }} - [https://arfsh.com/article?id=118 ARFSH2] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210705222644/https://arfsh.com/article?id=118 |date=5 July 2021 }}</ref>
|-
!rowspan="2"|Club
!rowspan="2"|Season
!colspan="3"|League
!colspan="2"|Cup
!colspan="2"|Other
!colspan="2"|Total
|-
!Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals
|-
|Farbenlutz
|1931
|VAFÖ
|2||2||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||2||2
|-
|Rapid Wien Amateur
|1931–32
|
|colspan="2"|—||2||3||colspan="2"|—||2
|3
|-
|rowspan="5"|[[SK Rapid Wien|Rapid Wien]]
|1931–32
|rowspan="4"|1
|8||10||3||3||colspan="2"|—||11||13
|-
|1932–33
|16||11||2||6||colspan="2"|—||18
|17
|-
|1933–34
|22||29||5||5||3||1||30||35
|-
|1934–35
|3||4||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||3||4
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!49!!54!!12!!17!!3!!1!!64!!72
|-
|rowspan="3"|[[FC Admira Wacker Mödling|Admira Wien]]
|1935–36
|rowspan="2"|1
|15||8||3||2||2||2||20||12
|-
|1936–37
|11||10||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||11||10
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!26!!18!!3!!2!!2!!2!!31!!22 
|-
|rowspan="14"|[[SK Slavia Prague|Slavia Prague]]
|1936–37
|rowspan="3"|1
|colspan="2"|—||1||4||colspan="2"|—||1||4
|-
|1937–38
|19||26||0||0||1||4||20||30
|-
|1938–39
|20||29||2||2||8||10||30||41
|-
|1939–40
|rowspan="5"|1
|22||50||3||5||1||1||26||56
|-
|1940–41
|22||38||5||11||4||7||31||56
|-
|1941–42
|22||45||5||10||3||8||30||63
|-
|1942–43
|20||39||1||0||3||7||24||46
|-
|1943–44
|26||57||1||3||5||16||32||76
|-
|1944–45
|rowspan="5"|1
|9||16||6||20||colspan="2"|—||15||36
|-
|1945–46
|16||31||colspan="2"|—||1||1||17||32
|-
|1946–47
|23||44||colspan="2"|—||1||1||24||45
|-
|1947–48
|13||20||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||13||20
|-
|1948–49
|7||21||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||7||21
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!219!!416!!24!!55!!27!!55!!270!!526 
|-
|rowspan="4"|[[MFK Vítkovice|Sokol Vítkovice Železárny]]
|1949
|2
|17||44||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||17||44
|-
|1950
|rowspan="2"|1
|23||22||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||23||22
|-
|1951
|18||8||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||18||8
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!58!!74!!0!!0!!0!!0!!58!!74 
|-
|[[FC Hradec Králové]]{{efn|name=Sokol Škoda|The club was known as Sokol Škoda by 1952.}}
|1952
|2
|26||53||4||7||colspan="2"|—||30||60
|-
|rowspan="4"|[[Dynamo Praha]]
|1953
|rowspan="3"|1
|10||7||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||10||7
|-
|1954
|14||11||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||14||11
|-
|1955
|8||4||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||8||4
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!32!!22!!0!!0!!0!!0!!32!!22
|-
|[[TJ Slovan Liberec|Slovan Liberec]]
|1957
|3 
|1||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||1||0
|-
|[[FC Zbrojovka Brno]]
|1957
|4 
|4||2||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||4||2
|-
!colspan="3"|Career total
!417!!641!!43!!81!!32!!58!!492!!780
|}

{{notelist}}

===International===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Appearances and goals by national team and year
|-
!National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals
|-
| rowspan="5" |[[Austria national football team|Austria]]
|1933||2||1
|-
|1934||6||5
|-
|1935||5||3
|-
|1936||6||5
|-
!Total!!19!!14
|-
| rowspan="5" |[[Czechoslovakia national football team|Czechoslovakia]]
|1938||6||8
|-
|1947||4||4
|-
|1948||2||0
|-
|1949||2||0
|-
!Total!!14!!12
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[Bohemia and Moravia]]
|1939||1||3
|-
!Total!!1!!3
|-
!colspan="2"|Career total!!34!!29
|}

:''Scores and results list Austria's, Czechoslovakia's and Bohemia and Moravia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Bican goal.''

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ List of international goals scored by Josef Bican
|-
!scope="col"|No.
!scope="col"|Date
!scope="col"|Venue
!scope="col"|Opponent
!scope="col"|Score
!scope="col"|Result
!scope="col"|Competition
|-
!colspan="7"|Austria goals<ref name=RSSSF2 />
|-
| style="text-align:center"|1 || 10 December 1933 || [[Olympic Stadium (Amsterdam)|Olympic Stadium]], Amsterdam, Netherlands || {{fb|NED}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || [[Friendly (association football)|Friendly]]
|-
| style="text-align:center"|2 || rowspan="2"|11 February 1934 || rowspan="2"|[[Charmilles Stadium]], Geneva, Switzerland || rowspan="2"|{{fb|SUI}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|3–2 || rowspan="2"|[[Central European International Cup|1933–35 Dr. Gero Cup]]
|-
| style="text-align:center"|3 || style="text-align:center"|3–2
|-
| style="text-align:center"|4 || rowspan="2"|15 April 1934 || rowspan="2"|[[Hohe Warte Stadium]], Vienna, Austria || rowspan="2"|{{fb|HUN|1920}} || style="text-align:center"|4–2 || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|5–2 || rowspan="2"|Friendly
|-
| style="text-align:center"|5 || style="text-align:center"|5–2
|-
| style="text-align:center"|6 || 27 May 1934 || [[Stadio Olimpico di Torino|Stadio Benito Mussolini]], Turin, Italy || {{fb|FRA}} || style="text-align:center"|3–1 || style="text-align:center"|3–2 || [[1934 FIFA World Cup]]
|-
| style="text-align:center"|7 || rowspan="3"|6 October 1935 || rowspan="3"|[[Ernst-Happel-Stadion|Praterstadion]], Vienna, Austria || rowspan="3"|{{fb|HUN|1920}} || style="text-align:center"|1–1 || rowspan=3 style="text-align:center"|4–4 || rowspan="3"|1933–35 Dr. Gero Cup
|-
| style="text-align:center"|8 || style="text-align:center"|2–2
|-
| style="text-align:center"|9 || style="text-align:center"|3–4
|-
| style="text-align:center"|10 || 19 January 1936 || [[Estadio Metropolitano de Madrid]], Madrid, Spain || {{fb|ESP|1931}} || style="text-align:center"|3–3 || style="text-align:center"|5–4 || Friendly
|-
| style="text-align:center"|11 || 26 January 1936 || [[Campo da Constituição]], Porto, Portugal || {{fb|POR}} || style="text-align:center"|3–1 || style="text-align:center"|3–2 || Friendly
|-
| style="text-align:center"|12 || 22 March 1936 || Praterstadion, Vienna, Austria || {{fb|TCH}} || style="text-align:center"|1–1 || style="text-align:center"|1–1 || [[Central European International Cup|1936–37 Dr. Gero Cup]]
|-
| style="text-align:center"|13 || rowspan="2"|5 April 1936 ||rowspan="2"|Praterstadion, Vienna, Austria ||rowspan="2"|{{fb|HUN|1920}} || style="text-align:center"|1–1 || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|3–5 || rowspan="2"|Friendly
|-
| style="text-align:center"|14 || style="text-align:center"|2–3
|-
!colspan="7"|Czechoslovakia goals<ref name=CMFS/><ref name=RSSSF2/>
|-
| style="text-align:center"|1 || rowspan="3"|7 August 1938 || rowspan="3"|[[Råsunda Stadium]], Stockholm, Sweden || rowspan="3"|{{fb|SWE}} || style="text-align:center"|2–0 || rowspan=3 style="text-align:center"|6–2 || rowspan="3"|Friendly
|-
| style="text-align:center"|2 || style="text-align:center"|3–0
|-
| style="text-align:center"|3 || style="text-align:center"|5–2
|-
| style="text-align:center"|4 || 28 August 1938 || [[Stadion Kranjčevićeva|Stadion Concordije]], Zagreb, [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]] || {{fb|Kingdom of Yugoslavia}} || style="text-align:center"|2–0 || style="text-align:center"|3–1 || [[1937–38 Eduard Benes Cup]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablest/tarilorvecine38.html |title=Eduard Benes' Cup 1937/38 |accessdate=28 January 2021 |website=[[RSSSF]] |date=21 May 2022 |archive-date=14 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414181349/https://www.rsssf.org/tablest/tarilorvecine38.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| style="text-align:center"|5 || rowspan="4"|4 December 1938 || rowspan="4"|[[AC Sparta Stadion]], [[Prague]], [[Czechoslovakia]] || rowspan="4"|{{fb|ROU|1866}} || style="text-align:center"|1–2 || rowspan="4" style="text-align:center"|6–2 || rowspan="4"|1937-38 Eduard Benes Cup
|-
| style="text-align:center"|6 || style="text-align:center"|3–2
|-
| style="text-align:center"|7 || style="text-align:center"|4–2
|-
| style="text-align:center"|8 || style="text-align:center"|6–2
|-
| style="text-align:center"|9 || rowspan="2"|11 May 1947 || rowspan="2"|AC Sparta Stadion, Prague, Czechoslovakia || rowspan="2"|{{fb|YUG|1945}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|3–1 || rowspan="2"|Friendly
|-
| style="text-align:center"|10 || style="text-align:center"|3–1
|-
| style="text-align:center"|11 || rowspan="2"|31 August 1947 || rowspan="2"|AC Sparta Stadion, Prague, Czechoslovakia || rowspan="2"|{{fb|POL|1927}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|6–3 || rowspan="2"|Friendly
|-
| style="text-align:center"|12 || style="text-align:center"|2–0
|-
!colspan="7"|Bohemia and Moravia goals<ref name=CMFS/><ref name=RSSSF2/>
|-
| style="text-align:center"|1 || rowspan="3"|12 November 1939 || rowspan="3"|[[Olympic Stadium (Wrocław)|Hermann Göring Stadium]], [[Wrocław]], [[Nazi Germany]] || rowspan="3"|{{fb|GER|Nazi}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || rowspan="3" style="text-align:center"|4–4 || rowspan="3"|Friendly
|-
| style="text-align:center"|2 || style="text-align:center"|3–0
|-
| style="text-align:center"|3 || style="text-align:center"|4–2
|}

== Style of play ==
After a game for [[Rapid Vienna]] against [[Austria Vienna]], an author in the [[Austria]]n newspaper Montagblatt, wrote: "Bican is not the conductor with a great concept. His game is excessive, his assists are difficult to achieve due to their unsaved accuracy."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=wnm&datum=19320613&query=%22Josef%22+%22Bican%22&ref=anno-search&seite=9|title=ANNO, Wiener Neueste Nachrichten, 1932-06-13, Seite 9|website=anno.onb.ac.at|access-date=14 February 2023|archive-date=14 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214113342/https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=wnm&datum=19320613&query=%22Josef%22+%22Bican%22&ref=anno-search&seite=9|url-status=live}}</ref>

After an [[FC Admira Wacker Mödling|Admira Vienna]] game against [[:de:SC Red Star Penzing|Red Star Vienna]], in 1936, an author in the [[Austria]]n newspaper Montagblatt, wrote: "The most mentioned player on the field was undeniably Bican, not only because of his transfer issues, but also for his truly remarkable performances. His dribbling, fine ball control, and deceiving his opponents were a real feast for the eyes of the spectators. After all, this time Bican was also his team's most successful player, scoring three goals."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=wst&datum=19361210&seite=2&zoom=100&query=%22Josef%22+%22Bican%22&ref=anno-search|title=ANNO, (Wiener) Sporttagblatt, 1936-12-10, Seite 2|website=anno.onb.ac.at|access-date=28 February 2023|archive-date=28 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228233215/https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=wst&datum=19361210&seite=2&zoom=100&query=%22Josef%22+%22Bican%22&ref=anno-search|url-status=live}}</ref>

Recalling Bican, his former Slavia team-mate [[Ján Andrejkovič]] said: "Pepi was a player with all the qualities of a star. Excellent technique with left or right foot, outstanding headers, perfect positional play, precise passing and, above all, an incredible goalscorer."<ref name=UEFA.com/>

In 1940, a journalist for [[Slavia Prague]] wrote, "Bican is undeniably one of our best footballers. We can boldly say that he is one of the best centre forwards in Europe. What he lacks, in perhaps hardness, he makes up for in his unique ball technique. During his time in [[Prague]], Bican has proven to be world class many times."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.digitalniknihovna.cz/mzk/view/uuid:f421d46e-435d-11dd-b505-00145e5790ea?page=uuid:71c4f4f5-435f-11dd-b505-00145e5790ea&fulltext=Bican | title=Digitální knihovna Kramerius | access-date=29 May 2023 | archive-date=29 May 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230529104548/https://www.digitalniknihovna.cz/mzk/view/uuid:f421d46e-435d-11dd-b505-00145e5790ea?page=uuid:71c4f4f5-435f-11dd-b505-00145e5790ea&fulltext=Bican | url-status=live }}</ref>

==Honours==
'''Rapid Wien'''
* [[List of Austrian football champions|Austrian Championship]]: [[1934–35 Austrian football championship|1934–35]]

'''Admira Wien'''
* [[List of Austrian football champions|Austrian Championship]]: [[1935–36 Austrian football championship|1935–36]], [[1936–37 Austrian football championship|1936–37]]

'''Slavia Prague'''
*[[Czechoslovak First League]]: [[1939–40 Národní liga|1939–40]], [[1940–41 Národní liga|1940–41]], [[1941–42 Národní liga|1941–42]], [[1942–43 Národní liga|1942–43]], [[1946–47 Czechoslovak First League|1946–47]], [[1948 Czechoslovak First League|1948]]
*[[Czechoslovak Cup]]: 1940–41, 1941–42
*Central Bohemian Cup: 1940–41, 1943, 1944
*Liberty Cup: 1945
*[[Mitropa Cup]]: [[1938 Mitropa Cup|1938]]

'''Sokol Vítkovice Železárny'''
*Czechoslovak Second League: 1949

'''FC Hradec Králové'''
*Czechoslovak Second League: 1952

'''Czechoslovakia'''
* [[King Alexander's Cup|Eduard Benes Cup]]: [[King Alexander's Cup#1937–38 Eduard Benes Cup|1938]]

'''Individual'''
*[[List of Austrian football champions|Austrian Championship]] Top Scorer: [[1933–34 Austrian football championship|1933–34]]<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.austriasoccer.at/data/nat/statsn/1930_1939/o1__wien_i__liga__1933_3406.htm | title=Fussball in Österreich Fussball Statistik | access-date=16 September 2022 | archive-date=20 September 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920163318/http://www.austriasoccer.at/data/nat/statsn/1930_1939/o1__wien_i__liga__1933_3406.htm | url-status=live }}</ref>
*[[Czechoslovak First League]] Top Scorer: [[1937–38 Czechoslovak First League|1937–38]], [[1938–39 Czechoslovak First League|1938–39]], [[1939–40 Národní liga|1939–40]], [[1940–41 Národní liga|1940–41]], [[1941–42 Národní liga|1941–42]], [[1942–43 Národní liga|1942–43]], [[1943–44 Národní liga|1943–44]], [[1945–46 Czechoslovak First League|1945–46]], [[1946–47 Czechoslovak First League|1946–47]], [[1948 Czechoslovak First League|1948]], [[1950 Czechoslovak First League|1950]]
*Czechoslovak Second League Top Scorer: 1949, 1952
*Top scorer in European leagues: 1939–40, 1940–41, 1941–42, 1942–43, 1943–44

==See also==
* [[List of men's footballers with 500 or more goals]]
* [[List of world association football records]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{FIFA player}}
* {{FACR player|new_id=29328|old_id=BicanJosef}}

{{Austria Squad 1934 FIFA World Cup}}
{{Mitropa Cup top scorers}}
{{Austrian Football Bundesliga top scorers}}
{{Czechoslovak First League top scorers}}
{{SK Slavia Prague managers}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bican, Josef}}
[[Category:Austria men's international footballers]]
[[Category:Austrian men's footballers]]
[[Category:Czechoslovakia men's international footballers]]
[[Category:Czechoslovak men's footballers]]
[[Category:Czech men's footballers]]
[[Category:1934 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:SK Rapid Wien players]]
[[Category:FC Hradec Králové players]]
[[Category:SK Slavia Prague players]]
[[Category:MFK Vítkovice players]]
[[Category:Czechoslovak football managers]]
[[Category:Czech football managers]]
[[Category:SK Slavia Prague managers]]
[[Category:FC Slovan Liberec managers]]
[[Category:FC Zbrojovka Brno managers]]
[[Category:FK Příbram managers]]
[[Category:FC Hradec Králové managers]]
[[Category:SK Kladno managers]]
[[Category:Footballers from Vienna]]
[[Category:Dual internationalists (men's football)]]
[[Category:Austrian people of Czech descent]]
[[Category:Austrian expatriate sportspeople in Czechoslovakia]]
[[Category:Czech people of Austrian descent]]
[[Category:1913 births]]
[[Category:2001 deaths]]
[[Category:Men's association football forwards]]
[[Category:Burials at Vyšehrad Cemetery]]
[[Category:20th-century Austrian sportsmen]]