Lev Ivanovich Yashin (Russian: Лев Иванович Яшин; 22 October 1929 – 20 March 1990) was a Soviet professional footballer considered by many to be the greatest goalkeeper in the history of the sport.

Yashin earned status for revolutionising the goalkeeping position by imposing his authority on the entire defence.

[3][7][8] His performances made an indelible impression on a global audience at the 1958 World Cup, the first to be broadcast internationally.

[11][12] He also kept over 270 clean sheets in his career, winning a gold medal at the 1956 Olympic football tournament,[13] and the 1960 European Championships.

[3] He was additionally named posthumously to the Ballon d'Or Dream Team in 2020, a greatest all-time XI, and was voted the best goalkeeper of the 20th century by the IFFHS.

[17] In 2019, France Football established the Yashin Trophy for the best performing goalkeeper, and is awarded alongside the Ballon D'Or.

Yashin also played goalie for the Dynamo ice hockey team during those early years of trying to break into the senior squad.

[22] Yashin's club teammate, rival and mentor was Alexei "Tiger" Khomich, the keeper of the Soviet national team, who had become famous for his role in Dynamo Moscow’s British tour.

[9] The 1958 World Cup, played in Sweden, put Yashin on the map for his performances, with the Soviet Union advancing to the quarter-finals.

Facing a Brazil team that featured Garrincha and a 17 year old Pelé in attack, Yashin's performance prevented the score from becoming a rout.

[27] In 1962, despite suffering two concussions during the tournament, he once again led the team to a quarter-final finish, before losing to host country Chile.

[29] The Soviet Union's game against Colombia finished in a 4–4 draw, which led the French newspaper L'Équipe to predict the end of Yashin's career.

One of his best performances that year was the 1963 England v Rest of the World football match, where he made a number of spectacular saves.

From that point onward he was known to the world as the "Black Spider" because he wore a distinctive all-black outfit and because it seemed as though he had eight arms to save almost everything.

[9] Always ready to give advice to his comrades, Yashin even made a fourth trip to the World Cup finals in 1970, held in Mexico, as the third-choice back-up and an assistant coach.

Lev Yashin's FIFA testimonial match was held at the Lenin Stadium in Moscow with 100,000 fans attending and a host of football stars, including Pelé, Eusébio and Franz Beckenbauer.

Considered by many in the sport to be the greatest goalkeeper in the history of the game,[2] Yashin was an imposing presence in goal due to his tall stature, and was highly regarded for his athleticism, agility, positional sense, bravery, and exceptional reflexes, which enabled him to produce acrobatic and spectacular saves.

[3] “Yashin revolutionised the role of goalkeeper like no other before him, by always being ready to act as an extra defender” and by “starting dangerous counter-attacks with his positioning and quick throws”.A vocal and authoritative figure between the posts, Yashin is known for revolutionising the goalkeeping position:[3][4][7] he shouted orders at his defenders, came off his line to intercept crosses, and also ran out to meet onrushing attackers, done at a time when goalkeepers spent the 90 minutes standing in the goal waiting to be called into action.

[3] When asked what his secret was, he would reply that the trick was "to have a smoke to calm your nerves, then toss back a strong drink to tone your muscles.