31st October 1970 is a milestone date in the history of German football. On this day, the DFB officially wrote women’s football into the laws of the game. With this in mind, various women’s national team players are looking back at their own beginnings. Today is the turn of Dzsenifer Marozsan (28), who took her first steps with DJK Burbach.
DFB.de: Ms. Marozsan, you lived the first four years of your life in Budapest. Had you already played football in Hungary, too?
Dzsenifer Marozsan: Unfortunately I don’t really have any memories, as I was simply too young. But there are lots of photos of me from that time, and you can almost always see me with a ball at my feet. My passion for this sport was there early. It obviously comes from my father being a professional player, and my brother always loved to play football too, so it developed within me as well.
DFB.de: You and your family came to German when you were four, when your father joined 1. FC Saarbrücken. What role did football play in your life from there?
Marozsan: Thanks to football, I settled in pretty quickly in my new surroundings. I still remember being seven or eight and kicking a ball about with my friends on a small field behind DJK Burbach’s facilities. One day a youth coach from the club came over. They asked me whether I would be interested in joining in with training to see if I enjoyed club football. I just said yes straight away, without even asking my mum…
DFB.de: ...who wasn’t always enamoured with the idea of you playing football.
Marozsan: Yeah, that’s how it was. Back then, she didn’t know how serious football actually was for me. As a girl, she didn’t want me to just play with the lads. My mum tried everything to keep me away from football.
DFB.de: Like what?
Marozsan: I had a lot of piano lessons. I danced. I did it all as I was told, but as soon as I got back home I grabbed my ball and headed to the pitch with the boys. My mum then realised that football is my thing, that I love football, so she accepted it and has supported me massively ever since. I’m grateful for that.
DFB.de: How was it for you to be the only girl in a team of boys?
Marozsan: I was lucky, to be honest, because the lads fully accepted me basically from day one. I had good guys around me, who enjoyed playing football with me.
DFB.de: How do you look back on your time with DJK Burbach?
Marozsan: It was amazing. I recently went back home for a few days – I used the opportunity to go for long walks with my dog. Among other places we went past the pitch where I played for years. Sadly it looks like nobody uses it anymore. That’s a shame, because I think that everything starts on the streets. I had some really good times there and I love looking back on that period. After school I always picked up my ball and headed over there. I still remember that I had to be home by the time the streetlights came on – only then did I do my homework!
DFB.de: Could you say that you grew up on that football pitch?
Marozsan: Yeah, definitely. I spent my entire childhood there. I played there until I was 14.
DFB.de: What did a weekend of football in the Marozsan household look like?
Marozsan: We spent a lot of time together around football, but sometimes my parents couldn’t be there because they worked a lot. Luckily I was always able to travel to away games – with other families, for example. They sometimes took long detours to make sure that we could play football. That was great fun.
DFB.de: Are you still in touch with any of your teammates from back then?
Marozsan: Not regularly, but every now and then I am. I still get a few messages, which makes me really happy. These days, I unfortunately don’t have the opportunity to just go for a kickabout wherever I want. The risk of getting injured is just too high.
DFB.de: You then moved to Saarbrücken in 2003. Is that where professional football began for you?
Marozsan: Yeah, since then I’ve only played with other women. But that wasn’t a problem for me – it was a step up, even. Because I’d only played with boys up to that point I was already strong physically and athletically, which gave me an advantage. I learned a lot in Burbach. Sometimes I played with lads who were five, six, or seven years old than me. I didn’t have any other choice but to find a way to exert myself. That was really helpful for my career. I felt really comfortable there and played my first Bundesliga match at age 15. Saarbrücken was a springboard for me.
DFB.de: A springboard to 1. FFC Frankfurt.
Marozsan: It was a lot more demanding there, because expectations were really high. It also wasn’t easy on a personal level, as it was basically the first time in my life where I had been all alone. My family stayed in the Saarland while I lived in Frankfurt. But it was also a really important experience for me.
DFB.de: You have played for Olympique Lyon since 2016. Are you currently part of the best women’s team in the world?
Marozsan: We have won the Champions League four times in a row. It’s amazing to be able to share a pitch with the best players in the world every day. It was a long road for me to get here. I am ridiculously happy and thankful that it’s turned out like this. I just feel really lucky.
DFB.de: On top of that you have also played over 100 matches for Germany.
Marozsan: That makes me proud as well. I pulled on the Germany kit for the first time in October 2010, almost exactly ten years ago. What’s happened since then has been simply unbelievable. I have so many happy memories of this time – it just makes me proud to have achieved everything that I have.
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31st October 1970 is a milestone date in the history of German football. On this day, the DFB officially wrote women’s football into the laws of the game. With this in mind, various women’s national team players are looking back at their own beginnings. Today is the turn of Dzsenifer Marozsan (28), who took her first steps with DJK Burbach.
DFB.de: Ms. Marozsan, you lived the first four years of your life in Budapest. Had you already played football in Hungary, too?
Dzsenifer Marozsan: Unfortunately I don’t really have any memories, as I was simply too young. But there are lots of photos of me from that time, and you can almost always see me with a ball at my feet. My passion for this sport was there early. It obviously comes from my father being a professional player, and my brother always loved to play football too, so it developed within me as well.
DFB.de: You and your family came to German when you were four, when your father joined 1. FC Saarbrücken. What role did football play in your life from there?
Marozsan: Thanks to football, I settled in pretty quickly in my new surroundings. I still remember being seven or eight and kicking a ball about with my friends on a small field behind DJK Burbach’s facilities. One day a youth coach from the club came over. They asked me whether I would be interested in joining in with training to see if I enjoyed club football. I just said yes straight away, without even asking my mum…
DFB.de: ...who wasn’t always enamoured with the idea of you playing football.
Marozsan: Yeah, that’s how it was. Back then, she didn’t know how serious football actually was for me. As a girl, she didn’t want me to just play with the lads. My mum tried everything to keep me away from football.
DFB.de: Like what?
Marozsan: I had a lot of piano lessons. I danced. I did it all as I was told, but as soon as I got back home I grabbed my ball and headed to the pitch with the boys. My mum then realised that football is my thing, that I love football, so she accepted it and has supported me massively ever since. I’m grateful for that.
DFB.de: How was it for you to be the only girl in a team of boys?
Marozsan: I was lucky, to be honest, because the lads fully accepted me basically from day one. I had good guys around me, who enjoyed playing football with me.
DFB.de: How do you look back on your time with DJK Burbach?
Marozsan: It was amazing. I recently went back home for a few days – I used the opportunity to go for long walks with my dog. Among other places we went past the pitch where I played for years. Sadly it looks like nobody uses it anymore. That’s a shame, because I think that everything starts on the streets. I had some really good times there and I love looking back on that period. After school I always picked up my ball and headed over there. I still remember that I had to be home by the time the streetlights came on – only then did I do my homework!
DFB.de: Could you say that you grew up on that football pitch?
Marozsan: Yeah, definitely. I spent my entire childhood there. I played there until I was 14.
DFB.de: What did a weekend of football in the Marozsan household look like?
Marozsan: We spent a lot of time together around football, but sometimes my parents couldn’t be there because they worked a lot. Luckily I was always able to travel to away games – with other families, for example. They sometimes took long detours to make sure that we could play football. That was great fun.
DFB.de: Are you still in touch with any of your teammates from back then?
Marozsan: Not regularly, but every now and then I am. I still get a few messages, which makes me really happy. These days, I unfortunately don’t have the opportunity to just go for a kickabout wherever I want. The risk of getting injured is just too high.
DFB.de: You then moved to Saarbrücken in 2003. Is that where professional football began for you?
Marozsan: Yeah, since then I’ve only played with other women. But that wasn’t a problem for me – it was a step up, even. Because I’d only played with boys up to that point I was already strong physically and athletically, which gave me an advantage. I learned a lot in Burbach. Sometimes I played with lads who were five, six, or seven years old than me. I didn’t have any other choice but to find a way to exert myself. That was really helpful for my career. I felt really comfortable there and played my first Bundesliga match at age 15. Saarbrücken was a springboard for me.
DFB.de: A springboard to 1. FFC Frankfurt.
Marozsan: It was a lot more demanding there, because expectations were really high. It also wasn’t easy on a personal level, as it was basically the first time in my life where I had been all alone. My family stayed in the Saarland while I lived in Frankfurt. But it was also a really important experience for me.
DFB.de: You have played for Olympique Lyon since 2016. Are you currently part of the best women’s team in the world?
Marozsan: We have won the Champions League four times in a row. It’s amazing to be able to share a pitch with the best players in the world every day. It was a long road for me to get here. I am ridiculously happy and thankful that it’s turned out like this. I just feel really lucky.
DFB.de: On top of that you have also played over 100 matches for Germany.
Marozsan: That makes me proud as well. I pulled on the Germany kit for the first time in October 2010, almost exactly ten years ago. What’s happened since then has been simply unbelievable. I have so many happy memories of this time – it just makes me proud to have achieved everything that I have.
