Jan Urban (; born 14 May 1962) is a Polish professional football manager and former player who played as a striker. He is currently the manager of the Poland national team.

His professional career was closely associated with Górnik Zabrze and Osasuna, and he coached both clubs in later years.

Urban represented Poland at the 1986 World Cup.

Club career Urban was born in Jaworzno, being one of six children in an underprivileged mining family. In his country he played for Zagłębie Sosnowiec and Górnik Zabrze, winning three Ekstraklasa championships in a row with the latter to which he contributed with a combined 38 goals, including a career-best 17 in 1987–88.

In the summer of 1989, Urban moved to Spain and joined CA Osasuna, going on to be one of the Navarre team's most important players of the following decade. He scored 13 goals in 34 games in his second season to help the club finish in a best-ever fourth position in La Liga, thus qualifying to the UEFA Cup; this included a hat-trick against Real Madrid on 30 December 1990, in a 4–0 away win.

Urban started the 1994–95 campaign with Osasuna in the second division, but returned to the top flight with Real Valladolid in the winter transfer window. He closed out his career at 36 after one-season stints with CD Toledo (also Spain, second level), VfB Oldenburg (Germany) and former side Górnik.

International career Urban earned 57 caps for Poland over six years, netting seven goals in the process. He was selected to the 1986 FIFA World Cup squad, appearing in all four matches (three starts) as the national team reached the round of 16 in Mexico.

Managerial career Beginnings in Spain Urban settled in Pamplona after retiring, and begun his coaching career in the city, being in charge of Osasuna's youth academy. He then worked with the reserves of Osasuna in division three, moving to the offices after two seasons and leaving the club in June 2007.

Legia Warsaw and Poland's assistant coach In the summer of 2007, Urban took over as head coach of Legia Warsaw, being responsible for signing three Osasuna players to the team, including Iñaki Astiz. He won the 2007–08 Polish Cup and the 2008 Polish Super Cup. During the UEFA Euro 2008 tournament, he served as an assistant for the Poland national team. On 14 March 2010, Urban was sacked by Legia.

Polonia Bytom, Zagłębie Lubin and return to Legia Urban took charge of Polonia Bytom on 29 October 2010. He then signed with fellow league club Zagłębie Lubin on 10 March 2011. On 30 May 2012, he returned for a second spell with Legia, which lasted until 19 December of the following year. He won the double in the 2012–13 season, guiding Legia to achieve both the 2012–13 Ekstraklasa championship and the 2012–13 Polish Cup.

Return to Osasuna Urban returned to Osasuna after seven years, being appointed first-team manager on 3 July 2014 after their top-flight relegation. He was dismissed the following 28 February, with the side 16th after four consecutive losses.

Lech Poznań

In October 2015, Urban returned to Poland's top tier, taking over Lech Poznań. He was the cup runner-up and Super Cup winner in 2016, but was sacked on 29 August that year.

Śląsk Wrocław Urban was hired by Śląsk Wrocław on an 18-month deal on 5 January 2017. On 18 February 2018, he was shown the door after losing eight of the last 13 games, and was replaced by Tadeusz Pawłowski.

Górnik Zabrze On 27 May 2021, it was announced that Urban would take over as manager of Ekstraklasa club Górnik Zabrze immediately, replacing Marcin Brosz for the 2021–22 season. On 14 June 2022, it was announced he would be leaving the club the following day.

Despite a tumultuous exit from Górnik, he was reinstated as manager on 18 March 2023. In spite of a limited budget and frequent sales of well-performing players, he guided the club to sixth and fifth-place finishes in the league, leading Urban to be linked with a return to Legia Warsaw and taking over the Poland national team. On 15 April 2025, with the club sitting in 7th after three consecutive losses, Urban was sacked by Górnik.

Poland national team On 16 July 2025, Urban was appointed as manager of the Poland national team, succeeding Michał Probierz. The appointment followed Probierz’s resignation in June 2025, which came after a dispute with captain Robert Lewandowski, who had been stripped of the armband and subsequently refused to play under him. The Polish Football Association president, Cezary Kulesza, described the selection of Urban as a carefully considered decision and “the right choice” to restore stability and help the team reach its potential. Upon his unveiling, Urban stressed the importance of rebuilding trust and communication within the squad, announcing plans to meet individually with senior players, including Lewandowski and Piotr Zieliński. His immediate objective was to stabilise the team and prepare Poland for the remainder of their qualification campaign for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Urban made his debut as Poland manager on 4 September 2025 in a World Cup qualifier against the Netherlands, followed by a home match against Finland on 7 September 2025. The opening game ended in a 1–1 draw, with Matty Cash scoring the equaliser in the 80th minute. Urban guided Poland to a second-place finish in the group stage, qualifying them for the second round. After winning 2–1 over Albania at home, Urban suffered his first loss as Poland manager in the play-off final on 31 March 2026, a 2–3 away defeat to Sweden. Minutes after the game, Cezary Kulesza announced that Urban's contract had been extended.

Career statistics + Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsPoland1985100198611019871021988100198982199010199173Total577

Scores and results list Poland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Urban goal.

+ List of international goals scored by Jan UrbanNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 18 March 1987 Municipal Stadium, Rybnik, Poland 1–0 3–1 Friendly2 24 March 1987 Olympic Stadium, Wrocław, Poland 3–1 4–1 Friendly3 7 February 1989 Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica 4–2 4–2 Friendly4 12 April 1989 Polish Army Stadium, Warsaw, Poland 2–1 2–1 Friendly5 17 April 1991 Polish Army Stadium, Warsaw, Poland 2–0 3–0 UEFA Euro 1992 qualifying6 14 August 1991 Municipal Stadium, Poznań, Poland 1–0 1–5 Friendly7 16 October 1991 Municipal Stadium, Poznań, Poland 3–3 3–3 UEFA Euro 1992 qualifying

Managerial statistics

+ Managerial record by team and tenure TeamNationFromToRecord Osasuna B1 July 200330 June 2005Legia Warsaw3 June 200714 March 2010Polonia Bytom29 October 201010 December 2010Zagłębie Lubin10 March 201130 October 2011Legia Warsaw30 May 201219 December 2013Osasuna3 July 201428 February 2015Lech Poznań12 October 201529 August 2016Śląsk Wrocław5 January 201719 February 2018Górnik Zabrze27 May 202114 June 2022Górnik Zabrze18 March 202315 April 2025Poland16 July 2025PresentTotal—

Honours Player Górnik Zabrze Ekstraklasa: 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88 Polish Super Cup: 1988

Individual Ekstraklasa Hall of Fame: 2025

Manager Legia Warsaw Ekstraklasa: 2012–13 Polish Cup: 2007–08, 2012–13 Polish Super Cup: 2008

Lech Poznań Polish Super Cup: 2016

Individual Polish Coach of the Year: 2013 Ekstraklasa Coach of the Season: 2012–13 Ekstraklasa Coach of the Month: November 2012, May 2023, March 2024, April 2024

See also List of foreign La Liga players

References

External links