Jerzy Engel Jr.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 20 November 1979 | ||
| Place of birth | Warsaw, Poland | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Polonia Warsaw | |||
| Managerial career | |||
| 2000–2001 | Polonia Warsaw II | ||
| 2002–2003 | Legionovia Legionowo | ||
| 2003–2004 | Błękitni Stargard | ||
| 2004 | Radomiak Radom | ||
| 2005–2006 | ŁKS Łomża | ||
| 2006 | Polonia Warsaw | ||
| 2007–2008 | Radomiak Radom | ||
| 2010 | Anorthosis Famagusta U21 | ||
| 2012 | APOEL Nicosia U21 | ||
| Polonia Warsaw (sports director) | |||
| 2015 | Polonia Warsaw (head of scouting) | ||
| 2021 | Mazowsze Grójec | ||
| 2021–2022 | KS Warka | ||
| 2022–2025 | Mazowsze Grójec | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Jerzy Engel Jr. (born 20 November 1979) is a Polish professional football manager and former player.
He followed in his father's Jerzy Engel's footsteps into management after his playing career was cut short by injury. Like his father, his career was associated for the most part with Polonia Warsaw, as a player, as a manager, and other non-playing roles.
After initial sucesses as a young manager, winning promotions to the second tier with Radomiak Radom and ŁKS Łomża in 2004 and 2006 respectively, he was sentenced for his role in the large-scale match-fixing scandal. He subsequently moved to Cyprus to lead youth academies and returned to Polonia in non-playing roles. After a four-year ban, he returned to coaching but in the lower divisions.
Career
[edit]Playing career
[edit]As a player, Engel Jr. represented several teams including Polonia Warsaw. However, due to a shoulder injury, he was forced to end his playing career prematurely.[1]
Management career
[edit]Early successes
[edit]He received his first coaching position with the reserve team of Polonia Warsaw.[1] He left the Warsaw team as the club's financial situation began to deteriorate.[1] He then coached the Fourth Division side Legionovia Legionowo and later the Third Division team Błękitni Stargard Szczeciński. At the end of the 2003–2004 season, he took over as the head coach of Radomiak Radom, replacing Włodzimierz Andrzejewski[2] leading them[3] to promotion to the Second Division.[1]
He became an assistant coach to Marek Motyka at second tier Polonia Warsaw.[1] Motyka had previously coached Stilon Gorzów that was relegated from the second tier after losing the playoff to Radomiak.[1] This role marked the beginning of his collaboration with his father, who was the club's sporting director at the time.[1]
During the 2005–06 season, Engel Junior coached ŁKS Łomża and achieved promotion to the second tier with them.[1]
However, in the following seasons, due to conflicts with the club's management, he left the team early in the following season.[1] On 14 August 2006, he was appointed the new coach of Polonia Warsaw, replacing the dismissed Andrzej Wiśniewski.[1] His tenure at Polonia lasted until 23 October 2006, when he was replaced by Waldemar Fornalik.[1] On 4 July 2007, Engel Jr. returned to coach Radomiak, which was then competing in the fourth tier.[1]
Corruption scandal
[edit]Engel Jr. was arrested by the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau for alleged involvement in football-related corruption during the 2003–04 third division season.[4] He was later released on a 30,000zł bail.[4] He was close friends with Andrzej Blacha and Dariusz Wdowczyk both of whom were also heavily involved in the corruption scandal.[5][6] On 5 June 2008, Engel Jr. denied the charges at a press conference, asserting his innocence and commitment to fair play.[4]
Non-managerial postions
[edit]Engel Jr. was sports director at Polonia,[7] as well head of scouting during the club's rebuilding in 2015 when his father was planning to take over the club.[8]
He was offered running the Anorthosis Famagusta youth academy in October 2010.[9] In the summer of 2012, he became technical director of APOEL Nicosia's youth academy.[10] during his time there APOEL earned a tie with Real Madrid in the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League.[11]
Sentencing for involvement in match-fixing
[edit]In December 2013, the District Court in Kielce found him guilty of rigging matches in favor of Korona Kielce during the 2003–04 season.[12] Engel Jr. received an 18-month suspended sentence and a three-year probation period, along with a ban from professional football activities.[12] Despite his continued denials[5] the court ruled that he played a key role in the corruption scheme, facilitating bribes between coaches and referees.[12] The verdict was not final, and he continued his coaching career until the court's decision.[12] Investigators subsequently requested the suspension of his coaching license.[4]
Return
[edit]Engel Jr. made a comeback to football after the four-year ban in January 2021, when he regained his coaching license. [13] and was subsequently hired by Mazowsze Grójec.[13] However his tenure was unsuccessful as the club was relegated from the fifth tier.[14]
After a subsequent stint at KS Warka, he returned to Mazowsze once more on 1 December 2022.[15][14][16]
Personal life
[edit]Jerzy Engel Jr. is the son of international footballer manager Jerzy Engel.
He attended school in Cyprus whilst his father managed Apollon Limassol, APOP Paphos and New Salamis.[9]
In November 2017, Engel Jr. alongside his father, achieved a notable betting record at the Służewiec horse racing track, where together they won 140,000zł during the races, setting an all-time record for the venue.[17]
Honours
[edit]ŁKS Łomża
- III liga, group I: 2005–06[18]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Jerzy Engel junior: Mam poczucie nie skończonej pracy", zw.com.pl (in Polish), Życie Warszawy, 4 June 2008
- ^ Grzegorz Stępień (6 May 2004), "Jerzy Engel jr zastąpi Włodzimierza Andrzejewskiego", Sport.pl (in Polish)
- ^ Marek Wiatrak (10 February 2004), "Rozmowa z Jerzy Engel jr", Sport.pl (in Polish)
- ^ a b c d Łukasz Majchrzyk (6 June 2008), "Jerzy Engel jr zaprzecza zarzutom", rp.pl (in Polish), Rzeczpospolita
- ^ a b Antoni Bugajski; Krzysztof Świercz (27 February 2010), "Engel jr: Nie byłem totalnym wariatem" [Engel jr: I wasn't completely crazy], Przegląd Sportowy Onet (in Polish), Onet.pl
- ^ stawiam.pl (23 July 2012), "Jerzy Engel junior: w Anglii byłbym milionerem", onet.pl (in Polish), Przegląd Sportowy
- ^ S.Leibhin (11 January 2021), "Engel jr wraca na ławkę trenerską", dumastolicy.pl (in Polish), Duma Stolicy
- ^ Wąs (25 April 2015), "Jerzy Engel przejmie Polonię? Już działa w jej sprawie", onet.pl (in Polish), Przegląd Sportowy
- ^ a b Wojciech Święch (11 October 2010), "Jerzy Engel jr znalazł pracę na Cyprze", SportoweFakty WP (in Polish), Wirtualna Polska
- ^ futbolnews.pl (31 July 2012), Jerzy Engel junior znalazł angaż w APOEL-u Nikozja
- ^ Paweł Kapusta (16 March 2012), "Engel junior: Z Realem bez strachu" [Engel junior: With Real no fear], pilkanozna.pl (in Polish), Piłka Nożna
- ^ a b c d bug, JR (9 December 2013), "Jerzy E. junior, syn Jerzego Engela, skazany za korupcję!" [Jerzy E. junior, son of Jerzy Engel, has been sentenced for corruption!], fakt.pl (in Polish), Fakt
- ^ a b Jarosław Koliński (9 March 2021), "Nie mam się czego wstydzić" [I have nothing to be ashamed of], Przegląd Sportowy Onet (in Polish), Onet.pl
- ^ a b "Jerzy Engel Junior: Mam poczucie nie skończonej pracy", grojec24.net (in Polish), Grojec24, 5 January 2023
- ^ Sylwester Szymczak (5 December 2022), "Jerzy Engel junior wraca na ławkę trenerską. Ponownie poprowadzi Mazowsze Grójec", gol24.pl (in Polish), Gol24
- ^ "Jerzy Engel jr zastąpił Mariusza Lisieckiego na stanowisku trenera Mazowsza", grojec24.pl (in Polish), Grojec24, 1 December 2025
- ^ bk (20 November 2017), "Jerzy Engel i jego syn zgarnęli fortunę. Rekord wszech czasów" [Jerzy Engel and his son have made a fortune. All-time record], Sport.pl (in Polish)
- ^ "III liga 2005/2006, grupa: 1 (Warmia i Mazury, Podlasie, Łódzkie, Mazowsze)". 90minut.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 19 June 2025.
- 1979 births
- Living people
- Footballers from Warsaw
- Polish men's footballers
- Polonia Warsaw players
- Polish football managers
- Polonia Warsaw non-playing staff
- Polonia Warsaw managers
- Radomiak Radom managers
- ŁKS Łomża managers
- I liga managers
- II liga managers
- Polish expatriate football managers
- Expatriate football managers in Cyprus
- Polish expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus
- Polish sports executives and administrators
- Polish football executives
- 20th-century Polish sportsmen