Israeli football woke up this morning (Sunday) to sad news: the former goalkeeper, Haim Levin, passed away at the age of 87. He left behind four daughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and his funeral will take place at 17:00 in Nes Harim.
Levin is considered one of the best goalkeepers in Israeli football and the most successful years of his career were at Maccabi Tel Aviv, where he arrived in the early 1960s. Before that he played for Hapoel PT, Hapoel KPS, Hapoel Hadera and Maccabi Haifa.
Levin, who was chosen as Israel’s player of the season in the 1964/65 season, won the title with Maccabi Tel Aviv for the second time in a row.
Haim Levin receives a blessing from Yaakov Shahar (Noam Moreno)
He left Maccabi Tel Aviv in 1969 and later in his career, the former goalkeeper played for Beitar Jerusalem, Maccabi Netanya and Hapoel Jerusalem. Levin played in the top league almost until the age of 40. Levin played for the Israeli team 22 times and participated in the Olympic Games in Mexico in 1968.
Maccabi Tel Aviv said: “The Maccabi Tel Aviv family bows its head upon learning of the death of the former goalkeeper, Haim Levin, who died this morning at the age of 87. He kept the goal for Maccabi Tel Aviv in 214 games and made 22 appearances for the Israeli national team, including in the Olympics Mexico 1968. We are strengthening the Levin family at this time so that they will know no more sorrow. May their memory be blessed.”
The late Haim Levin in the uniform of Maccabi Tel Aviv (Archive of the Football Association)
Maccabi Haifa said goodbye: “Participating in the sorrow of the Levin family. Haim played for Maccabi Haifa in the late 1950s and made 56 appearances in the team’s uniform. In the 1980s, Levin returned to Maccabi Haifa, this time as a goalkeeper coach for the senior team and the youth department. He worked with, among others, Avi Ran, Nir Davidovich, Sagi Strauss, Eric Shmueli, Dodo Avatt and other goalkeepers and won the team’s first championships with Maccabi. He raised generations of goalkeepers at Maccabi and oversaw what was crowned as the ‘factory for goalkeepers.'”
The Football Association said: “We express our sorrow for the passing of Haim Levin, the goalkeeper of the Israel national team in the past. Levin made 22 appearances in the national uniform. The debut was in a match against Brazil in May 1963, the last match was in April 1969 against Austria. Levin was the team’s goalkeeper at the 1968 Mexico Olympics in the games against Ghana, El Salvador, Hungary and Bulgaria in the quarter-finals.”
the chairman of the association, Shino Zoartz, He said: “We are saying goodbye to a legendary goalkeeper and a wonderful person, who was an inspiration to many generations. Beyond his great success in the Maccabi Tel Aviv uniform and his contribution to other clubs, Levin was a central part of the team that represented Israel in an honorable way at the 1968 Mexico Olympics, the first ever for which the soccer team qualified our. Of blessed memory”.
Haim Levin (Archives of the Football Association) Haim Levin catches the ball (Archives of the Football Association)
