Emil Walter

Emil Walter Burkhard (7 April 1900 – 1 March 1952) was a German footballer who played as a defender for FC Barcelona. Considered by some as Spain's best defender in the 1920s, he captained Barça to its first La Liga title in 1929.

Club career Early career Born in the Baden-Württemberg city of Pforzheim on 7 April 1900, Walter began playing football with his team, celebrating his first major victory with them against the local gymnasium. In 1916, the 16-year-old Walter made his senior debut with his hometown club Germania Brötzingen, with whom he achieved promotion to the Kreisliga in 1920. In an interview to Mundo Deportivo in 1950, he stated that he "came to Spain with purely commercial activities", but soon began playing for Figueres, where he won a Girona championship.

FC Barcelona His precise passing, horse lungs, and exceptional shooting power impressed Barcelona's coach Jack Greenwell in a friendly match against them in 1922, so Greenwell invited him to a trial that Walter passed, but was then unable to sign him because he still had to do his job at the metal company in Figueres. The following year, on 12 April 1925, Walter started for Barça in a friendly against Uruguayan side Nacional Montevideo at Les Corts, which ended in a 2–2 draw.

Walter (standing, fourth from right) with the Barcelona squad that won the 1928 Copa del Rey. Walter stayed at Barça for seven years, from 1924 until 1931, helping his side win a further two Copa del Rey titles in 1926 and 1928, six Catalan championships, and the inaugural edition of the Spanish top-flight in 1929. He was considered Spain's best defender in the 1920s; for instance, on the occasion of Barça's tour of South America in 1928, the journalists of the Argentinian sports magazine El Gráfico described him as one of Barcelona's great figures.

International career As a Barça player, Walter was eligible to play for the Catalan national team, making his debut at the inauguration of the Montjuïc Stadium, on 20 May 1929, against Bolton Wanderers.

Managerial career After returning to Germany, Walter coached his former club, Germania Brötzingen, until 1935, when he took over RSV 09 Hückeswagen, leading them to the championship in the 2nd district league, thus achieving promotion to the next level. After a brief stint in the Bergisches Land region and Gaggenau, he returned to his hometown, Pforzheim, in 1941. During the World War II, he was with the German troops on the Pyrenees border when he suddenly defected and grabbed his officer's motorcycle to travel to the Montjuïc Stadium to reunite with his good friend Picard.

The turmoil caused by the War brought hardship to the Walter family, so some of his former Barça teammates and friends organized a relief fund for him in 1947, which was supported with a special stamp (without postal value) that was issued in 1948. At Barça's invitation, Walter and his wife traveled to Catalonia in March 1950, being greeted by a large crowd at the train station on 15 March, and taking the kick-off for a tribute match between Barça and Espanyol at Les Corts on 26 March 1950, which 40,000 people attended.

Death Walter died of cancer in Pforzheim, on 1 March 1952, at the age of 51.

Honours Barcelona La Liga: 1929 Copa del Rey: 1925, 1926, 1928 Campionat de Catalunya (6): 1924–25, 1926–27, 1927–28, 1929–30, 1930–31, 1931–32