Rajko

Rajko Mitić started playing football in the meadows of the Belgrade settlement of Košutnjak, and in 1940, in a match against the Vitez team from Zemun, in which he scored five goals, he recorded his first senior appearance for the BSK team. The following year, after the outbreak of the Second World War in Serbia, his sports development stagnated until 1944, when he continued to play football together with Đajić and Jezerkić. He wore the red and white jersey for a full fourteen seasons, from its founding on March 4, 1945, until November 1958, when he said goodbye to his favorite jersey in the cup final against Velež from Mostar (4:0). He was the captain of Crvena zvezda, which he led to six championship titles (1946, 1951, 1953, 1956, 1957 and 1959), while he "raised" two less trophies in the national cup. On April 7, 1958, the great sportsman and the first star of our "constellation" did something that is still talked about today. Namely, in the championship match against Split, about twenty minutes before the end, an oyster that flew from the auditorium hit Boro Kostić in the head, after which Rajko Mitić withdrew the team from the field. Because of this, the FSJ disciplinary court punished all the players of our team except Beara and Kostić with a one-month suspension.

He was a great ace, a football player and a gentleman in football boots, respected and loved throughout the country. His popularity grew into legend and transcended the time in which he played. He was celebrated as the unforgettable captain of Crvena zvezda, one of the conductors and the best scorers of the national team, which he gave a special stamp to for a whole decade. A great opponent of unsportsmanlike play and incorrect fighting, he never pulled the opponent's shirt, nor did he put his foot down. For Rajko, the football field was never a competition in strength, but a space for playing and demonstrating skills. He simply loved football, transferring love and fair play to his club and national team mates, opponents, and fans. He was respected and unique because of his exceptional human and sporting virtues.

For the national team of Yugoslavia, he played 59 games and scored 32 goals, and made his debut on May 9, 1946 in Prague, when the "blues" beat Czechoslovakia 2:0. In that match, he was among the scorers. He participated in two Olympic Games in 1948 in London and in 1952 in Helsinki and won silver medals. He was a participant in two World Championships in 1950 in Brazil and in 1954 in Switzerland. He played his last national team match on September 29, 1957 against Romania in Bucharest.

After the end of his career, from 1960, and for the next six years, Mitić was at the head of the professional staff of Crvena zvezda, and after that he was the federal captain-selector of the Football Association of Yugoslavia for three years. He achieved his greatest success as a selector in 1968 in Italy at the European Championship when the team led by Dragan Džajić was vice-champion.

In addition to football, his great love was journalism, so even during his active playing days he was a commentator for the Belgrade "Sport", and later devoted himself completely to journalism, working in the magazine "Tempo", in which he remained active even after his retirement in 1983. Since 1983, he devoted himself to voluntary work in Crvena zvezda, where he was a member of the innermost management for a long time and was president of the club's assembly for two terms. He was active in the club council and the veterans section.

The grandmaster of football left the stage of life on March 29, 2008, leaving behind an indelible mark on our club and our country. Since December 21, 2014, by decision of the club's Assembly, and at the suggestion of the fans, the Crvene zvezda stadium has been named after Rajko Mitić. From November 18, 2017, a bust of the first Zvezda's star was placed in front of the stadium.