Who is Predrag Mijatović

Predrag Mijatović is a Montenegrin former footballer and football executive, born in 1969 in Titograd, today's Podgorica. During the 1990s, he was one of the best forwards in Europe, achieving his greatest fame in the colors of Partizan, Valencia, and Real Madrid. His goal in the 1998 Champions League final against Juventus remains one of the most important moments in the history of the Madrid club.Besides his playing career, Mijatović is also known for his work in executive roles, above all as sporting director of Real Madrid, and in recent years as an official of FK Partizan. Below is a detailed biography covering his early life, football career, greatest achievements, and private life.

Early Life and Childhood

Predrag Mijatović was born on January 19, 1969, in Titograd, then part of SR Montenegro within SFR Yugoslavia. He grew up in Podgorica's Masline neighborhood. He began playing football at the local club FK Kom, and then continued his development in the ranks of FK Budućnost of Podgorica, the club where he spent the formative years of his football education.Already in his youth he showed exceptional talent for the game, and his peers and teammates from that period, such as Dejan Savićević, Dragoljub Brnović, and Branko Brnović, also later became prominent players for the Yugoslav national team. Together with them, Mijatović was a member of the Yugoslav youth national team that won the 1987 FIFA World Youth Championship (Under-20) in Chile.

Education

There is not enough publicly available, verifiable information about Predrag Mijatović's formal, non-football education for this to be stated with certainty. What is known is that his football education began at the FK Kom football school, and continued in the youth ranks of FK Budućnost of Podgorica, where he came up through all the youth categories before stepping into senior football.

Beginning of His Career

Mijatović made his debut for Budućnost's first team in the 1986/87 season. By 1990, he had played 73 league matches for the club and scored 10 goals. In the 1987/88 season, under coach Stanko Poklepović, he became a permanent member of the first team, and that same year, as a member of the Yugoslav youth selection, he won the World Youth Championship in Chile.At the end of 1989, Mijatović came close to a transfer to Split's Hajduk, with whom he had already agreed on the details of the move and received an advance of 50,000 German marks at the time. Due to the complex political situation in Yugoslavia at the time, as well as advice from Podgorica, he abandoned the move to Split and returned the money he had received. Instead, he accepted an offer from Partizan, whose then-president, Mirko Marjanović, convinced him to join the Belgrade club. Partizan paid one million German marks for his transfer, at the time the largest transfer fee in Yugoslav football.Although he scored on his debut for Partizan, against his former club, Budućnost, he spent most of his first half-season at the new club adjusting to his new surroundings, and did not score again for the rest of the 1989/90 season.

Rise to Fame

In the seasons that followed, Mijatović became Partizan's undisputed leader. Under coach Ivica Osim, in the 1991/92 season he led the black-and-whites to win the Yugoslav Cup, defeating the then European champions, Red Star Belgrade. That same year, he was named Footballer of Yugoslavia. In total, he played 133 matches for Partizan and scored 50 goals across all competitions, leaving the club in 1993 as champion of the 1992/93 season.In the summer of 1993, he moved to Spain's Valencia, where he made 128 appearances and scored 68 goals across all competitions. In the 1995/96 season, he had his best season in Valencia's colors, with 28 goals in 40 La Liga matches, for which he was named the best foreign player in the Spanish league that season. That year, he also reached the runner-up title with Valencia.His brilliant performances at Valencia did not go unnoticed, and in the summer of 1996, despite strong protests from Valencia's fans, he became a member of Real Madrid.

Greatest Successes

At Real Madrid, Mijatović reached the peak of his career. In the 1996/97 season, he won the Spanish championship and the Spanish Super Cup, and already in his first year at the club he delivered brilliant performances, including a goal in the win over Barcelona in El Clásico in December 1996. That same year, 1997, he was named the second-best footballer in Europe in the French magazine France Football's Ballon d'Or poll, behind Brazilian forward Ronaldo and ahead of Zinedine Zidane.The peak of his career came on May 20, 1998, in the Champions League final at the Amsterdam Arena, when Mijatović scored the winning goal in Real Madrid's 1:0 victory over Juventus. That goal brought the Madrid club the European champion's title after a full 32 years of waiting, since its last title in 1966. That same year, Mijatović also won the Intercontinental Cup with Real.After three seasons at Real Madrid, in which he played 118 matches and scored 36 goals across all competitions, Mijatović moved to Italy's Fiorentina in 1999, with whom he won the Italian Cup. He continued his career at Levante, where he ended his professional playing career in 2004, after being slowed by long-term injuries.At the international level, Mijatović played a total of 73 matches and scored 27 goals for the national team of Yugoslavia, later Serbia and Montenegro. He was the Yugoslav national team's top scorer in qualifying for the 1998 World Cup, scoring seven of his fourteen qualifying goals in the playoff two-legged tie against Hungary, which Yugoslavia won by an aggregate score of 12:1. He played at the 1998 World Cup in France, where he scored against Germany, as well as at the 2000 European Championship in Belgium and the Netherlands, alongside teammates from his youth days such as Savićević and Davor Šuker.

Private Life

Predrag Mijatović is married to Aneta Milićević. The couple had a son, Andrej, who died on June 3, 2009, at the age of fifteen, after a long illness. News of Andrej Mijatović's death was announced at the time on Real Madrid's official website, along with expressions of condolence to the family.After ending his playing career in 2004, Mijatović continued to live in Valencia, the city where he spent a significant part of his career, and worked for a time as a football agent.

Trivia

Mijatović was part of the generation of Yugoslav footballers who won the 1987 FIFA World Youth Championship in Chile, together with Dejan Savićević and Davor Šuker. At Real Madrid, he renewed his attacking partnership with Davor Šuker, with whom he had played back in Yugoslavia's youth national team. He was supposed to play at the 1992 European Championship, but the Yugoslav national team was suspended due to United Nations sanctions stemming from the wars in the former Yugoslavia. After his playing career, from 2006 to 2009 he served as sporting director of Real Madrid, where he was credited with bringing in players such as Fabio Cannavaro, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Marcelo, and Gonzalo Higuaín. In October 2024, he was appointed vice president of FK Partizan, a position from which he resigned in June 2026.

Awards and Recognition

Footballer of the Year in Yugoslavia: 1992, 1993, and 1998 Best Foreign Player in the Spanish La Liga: 1995/96 season Runner-up for the Ballon d'Or: 1997 Best Eastern European Footballer of the Season (ADN award): 1997 Spanish champion with Real Madrid: 1996/97 season Spanish Super Cup winner with Real Madrid: 1997 Champions League winner with Real Madrid: 1997/98 season Intercontinental Cup winner with Real Madrid: 1998 Italian Cup winner with Fiorentina Yugoslav Cup and championship title winner with Partizan

Legacy and Influence

Predrag Mijatović is regarded as one of the best footballers to come out of the former Yugoslavia, and is remembered in particular as a symbol of the generation that, from the late 1980s through the 1990s, made its mark on European football, alongside players such as Dejan Savićević and Davor Šuker. His goal in the 1998 Champions League final is still considered one of the most important goals in the history of Real Madrid, as it ended the club's thirty-two-year wait for a European title.At Partizan, he is still regarded today as one of the greatest players in the club's history, while his time at Valencia is remembered as one of the most prolific periods in the career of that club's goalscorers. Through his later work as sporting director of Real Madrid and as an official of FK Partizan, Mijatović has remained present in the football world even after ending his playing career, passing on his experience to younger generations of football executives.

Biography — Frequently Asked Questions

When was Predrag Mijatović born? Predrag Mijatović was born on January 19, 1969, in Titograd, today's Podgorica.How old is Predrag Mijatović? Predrag Mijatović was born in 1969, which means he is currently 57 years old.Which clubs did Predrag Mijatović play for? Over the course of his career, he played for Budućnost of Podgorica, Partizan, Valencia, Real Madrid, Fiorentina, and Levante.What is Predrag Mijatović best known for? He is best known for the winning goal in the 1998 Champions League final against Juventus, with which Real Madrid won the European title after 32 years.Did Predrag Mijatović win the Ballon d'Or? He did not win the Ballon d'Or, but in 1997 he finished second in that poll, behind Ronaldo and ahead of Zinedine Zidane.How many goals did Predrag Mijatović score for the national team? For the national team of Yugoslavia, later Serbia and Montenegro, he played 73 matches and scored 27 goals.Was Predrag Mijatović sporting director of Real Madrid? Yes, he served as sporting director of Real Madrid from 2006 to 2009.Was Predrag Mijatović an official of FK Partizan? Yes, in October 2024 he was appointed vice president of FK Partizan, a position from which he resigned in June 2026.Who were Predrag Mijatović's teammates from the youth national team? Alongside Mijatović, part of Yugoslavia's championship-winning generation of 1987 included Dejan Savićević and Davor Šuker, with whom he later also shared part of his club career.Is Predrag Mijatović married? Yes, he is married to Aneta Milićević, with whom he had a son, Andrej, who died in 2009.

Conclusion

Predrag Mijatović is one of the most significant footballers to come out of the former Yugoslavia, whose career was defined by his time at Partizan, Valencia, and Real Madrid. His goal in the 1998 Champions League final has remained remembered as one of the pivotal moments in the history of the Madrid club, while finishing second for the Ballon d'Or in 1997 confirmed that he was, at the time, among the best footballers in the world. After ending his playing career, Mijatović has remained active in football, first as sporting director of Real Madrid, and later as an official of FK Partizan, leaving his mark off the pitch as well.