Béla Réthy commented on a football game for the last time at the World Cup in Qatar, then retirement beckons. With him goes not just a commentator, but sports history.
Five hours until kick-off. Wouldn’t he like to change his clothes slowly? Béla Réthy, in jeans and flip-flops, his hair tousled as if he had just woken up, which cannot be entirely ruled out since Réthy is never averse to napping, laughs into the conference room: “The working day begins when Béla Réthy puts on sturdy shoes. ” He cuts out an index card, front for the Brazilians, back for the Serbs. In the past, 30 or more years ago, he had pre-formulated lots of slips of paper and often whole paragraphs, which he read out word for word in the switchboard to gain certainty. He doesn’t anymore. One sheet is enough for him today. Is it enough for him to be Béla Réthy?