Switzerland Soccer Leon Walker, 1980 (b/w photo)

National football coach Leon Walker, taken in Bellinzona on 19 February 1980. The former Swiss national coach Leon Walker died in Sion on Sunday, 29 October 2006, at the age of 69 after a long illness. Leon Walker has made a great contribution to Swiss football as a player, coach and official. Walker coached the Swiss national team a total of 16 times between May 1979 and December 1980. Like most of his predecessors and successors, however, he was not able to qualify for a final round of the European Championships or the World Championships. After his active career, the Valaisan was put at the disposal of the Swiss Football Association (SFV) in various batches as a functionary. As a player, Walker became Swiss champion four times with the Young Boys at the end of the fifties and cup winner once and also played a national match with the national team during this time. Later he played for FC Sion and FC Luzern.