The German Sub was born on this day in 1965 in Schopfheim, West Germany. He made 65 appearances for the Lads, 39 of which were from the bench, scoring 11 goals.
Hauser might’ve been born in a small town on the Weisse, but it was on Wearside that he made a name for himself, going down in history as the top flight's first ever German player. After leaving school he played for local side Sportclub Schopfheim until FC Basel came in for the young German prospect. Hauser played at highest level of Swiss football and fitted straight into a team which would go on to win the league in 1981. Hauser excelled up top, becoming the league’s top scorer that year. This incredible form caught the eye of Rainer Ohlhauser, who offered him a contract for the senior team.
He scored on his senior debut in a 2-2 draw with FC ST Gallen at home. The young German started the next match, finding the back of the net in that game too, in another draw against Winterthur. Still just 17, In 1983, he won the Uhrencup scoring a goal in the semi final against FC Grenchen. Hauser was naturally one of the first names on the team sheet and a key player for Basel. Over 155 games, Thomas Hauser managed to score over 70 times, though not all of his goals were in competitive games, owing to the brevity of the Swiss league season.
After a period of 6 years, a financially troubled Basel let Hauser leave for local rivals, Old Boys. Hauser would then move on to Young Boys and then finally, he would finish his career as part of the Beastie Boys in a left field move that shocked Swiss football. With the Beastie Boys, he would steer the group away from their sound of the mid 80's with the1989 album 'Pauls Boutique', often described as a landmark moment in Hip Hop history.
If only that were true. Instead, Hauser actually spent only a brief time at Old Boys before securing a move to us for £200,000 in 1989, becoming our first ever German player. He would go on to bludgeon defences in order to rescue vital points. He would have to fight for his right to be in the starting eleven, coming into a side that relied on Marco Gabbiadini and Colin Pascoe for goals
Hauser would come on for Gabbers in his first game back against Hull. On a yellow card and with a goal already to his name, our mercurial talent made way for the German, who had a chance to get acclimatised to The New Style of English football.
This substitute appearance would set the tone for much of his Sunderland career, a bit part player who had to be content with appearances largely from the bench. His full debut came in a defeat to Chelsea and his first goal was at Oldham, quickly followed by a goal the next week against Shrewsbury. Interestingly, his goal against Port Vale in late December 1989 and his goal against Hull meant that he scored our last goal of the 1980’s and our first in the 1990’s.
Another interesting fact is that he was also the first ever non British player to represent Sunderland at Wembley as well as the first ever outfield German player to play at our national stadium (domestically of course). When we went up to the 1st Division, Hauser was also the first German to score in the top flight, when he scored his only goal of the season against Southampton in April.
An injury against Bristol City effectively cut short his career and he struggled to get over the pain it brought for the rest of his time at the club . The U Boat was effectively sunk , never really recovering from his Achilles injury. Undergoing rehab, he signed for a club in Holland, SC Cambuur where he finished his career, settling down there. He still follows the club over there and even has a SAFC tattoo on his arm.
