Mark Schwarzer is an Australian footballer born on October 6, 1972 in North Richmond, New South Wales. This international goalkeeper was born to the German couple Hans-Joachim and Doris who settled in Australia in 1968. He is married to Paloma and has a son and a daughter, called Julian and Amaya, respectively.
Mark Schwarzer made his maiden international appearance for Australia as part of its Under-17 team in 1989. He was also part of the Under-20 team in 1990-91 and has played 8 games for it. He was picked for the senior national team in 1993 and his debut for it came in the 1994 World Cup qualifier against Canada in Edmonton. In the return leg that was played in Sydney, Mark Schwarzer was at his best and saved two penalties for Australia to help it advance to the final phase of the qualifying rounds. He also gave an impressive performance in Australia’s qualifiers for the 2006 Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup against Uruguay, saving two penalties to help Australia to a 4-2 win. He made two appearances in Australia’s group matches at the World Cup Finals against Japan and Brazil as well as in the match against Italy in the Round of 16. Mark Schwarzer also appeared in all the matches in 2007 Asian Cup. At the 2010 World Cup qualifier against China played in March 2008, he saved an 89th minute penalty kick from Shao Jiayi.
Mark Schwarzer began his professional football career at 19 with the Marconi Stallions Football Club (FC) in the National Soccer League. He went on to play in a number of clubs, including Dynamo Dresden, FC Kaiserslautern and Bradford City, before joining Middlesbrough FC in April 1997. Mark Schwarzer made his first appearance for it in the League Cup semifinals against Stockport Country FC and went on to play in the finals against Leicester City. He was also a member of the team that won the 2004 League Cup, defeating Bolton Wanderers. In the final match of the 2004-05 season against Manchester City, Mark Schwarzer saved a Robbie Fowler penalty and helped his team draw the match. This result also gave Middlesbrough a seventh-place finish in the final league table besides ensuring a qualification for the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Cup.
Mark Schwarzer sustained a fractured cheekbone but he turned up wearing a protective mask to face Sevilla at the UEFA Cup final. He beat Dutch footballer Dennis Bergkamp’s Premier League record of being the longest-serving foreigner at one club in a 1-0 victory for Middlesbrough against Portsmouth on December 29, 2007.
On May 21, 2008, Mark Schwarzer signed a two-year contract with Fulham FC on the expiry of his eleven-year contract with Middlesbrough. He made his debut for Fulham in a game against Hull City and followed it up with an appearance in a 1-0 home win against Arsenal.
