A look back to the early 1960s: I was five or six, a small boy holding my father’s hand on the way to the Neckar Stadium in the quiet little town upstream. Not the VfB, not big‑stage football. It was the 2nd Amateur League and for me, it felt like the top of the world.
My hero wore the number 10. “Esposito.” One of the many “guest workers” who had come from Italy or Spain. Men who worked long shifts in factories and still brought an elegance to the pitch that made me, as a child, stand in awe. Calm on the ball, intelligent in their play, a touch of the wider world in a small town.
Fast‑forward to the late 1970s. I was playing myself by then and not too badly. The city tournament, part of the annual festival, where teams from clubs, companies, administration and parishes competed. I played for “St. Michael,” the Catholic parish where I was active.
And suddenly, there he was again. The number 10 from back then. Together with me on the pitch. Now in his forties or older, but still an excellent footballer. The same calm, the same composure. A role model who never raised his voice. Someone who carried himself with dignity in victory and offered comfort in defeat. Someone who showed that attitude has no age.
What I take from this today: Role models often shape us without ever knowing it. They reappear later in life as people who show us how to move through the world. With calm. With respect. With an eye for others.
There’s a truth in this for our working lives as well: Generations don’t thrive against each other, but with each other when they truly see one another. The experience of the older ones offers orientation. The energy of the younger ones provides momentum.
Just like on the pitch back then: one brings composure, the other speed. One brings vision, the other courage. And together, something emerges that only becomes possible when differences connect rather than divide.
And now I’m curious: Who was your number 10 and for whom could you be that person today.
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I’m Bernd Scharbert, and I write about the lessons football can teach us about leadership and the business world. I also support and advise leaders who want to strengthen their intercultural leadership skills.
If you’re curious to dive deeper, feel free to explore my book „Prepare for Landing: Leitlinien für interkulturalle Führung“ (Transl. Guiding Principles for Intercultural Leadership). It’s available in German language in bookstores across Germany and in the online shop of Verlag Barbara Budrich, also as eBook.
