Career
He is currently working as football expert on television Povlsen started playing football in local town Viby, but moved on to Danish top-flight club AGF Aarhus in 1984. In 1985 he was awarded the Danish 1st Division Revelation of the Year. He moved abroad in 1986, when he signed for Spanish club Castilla CF, the reserve team of multiple European champions Real Madrid.
After only a year at CF Castilla, Povlsen moved on to 1. in Germany, where he played alongside fellow Dane Morten Olsen.
Povlsen did not play more than three matches for Köln in the 1989-1990 season though, as he was bought by Dutch club in 1989. He moved back to Germany, where he settled down at in 1990.
Povlsen experienced his greatest success while at Dortmund, and quickly became a fan favourite. However, in an April 1993 game for Dortmund against 1.
, he tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the knee, and was out for recovery until October of the same year, when he made his come-back against Wattenscheid 09.
In an September 1994 match in the DFB-Pokal tournament against 1. Football Club Kaiserslautern he suffered a cruciate ligament injury in his other knee, and though he had a short appearance in March 1995 against Eintracht Frankfurt, and thus was a part of the 1994-1995 Bundesliga winning Dortmund side, Povlsen had to terminate his career as his knee injuries forced him to retire. Povlsen played all five matches in the tournament, and scored once in the semi-final penalty shootout against Netherlands, after an intense battle of nerves with Dutch keeper Hans van Breukelen, Povlsen"s former PSV teammate.
He was a constant part of the national football team from his debut in 1987 until he retired.
A knee injury ended his career in March 1995. Following his retirement, Flemming Povlsen became a sports director at Danish 1st Division club Football Club Aarhus in December 2001.
As the club underwent economical downsizing in November 2002, Povlsen offered to step down, which the club accepted. He played lower league football in Brabrand and later switched to the old-boys team in his childhood club Aarhus GF. In March 2005, he became part of the coaching staff at Danish Superliga club Air Corps Horsens.
In July 2009 he joined as Assistant Coach to Randers Football Club but resigned on 6 October 2009 when Manager John Jensen was sacked.
He is also teaching teenage kids at a football school called Hessel Gods Fodboldkostskole in Jutland.