Franz Beckenbauer

Der Kaiser: The emperor of German football.

Franz Anton Beckenbauer (11 September 1945 – 7 January 2024) was a German professional football player, manager, and official. Nicknamed "der Kaiser" (the Emperor), he is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential players of all time. Beckenbauer was a versatile player who started out as a midfielder, but made his name as a centre-back. He is often credited as having invented the role of the modern sweeper (libero).

Quick Facts

Major honours with bayern

3 European Cups
5 Bundesliga titles
2 DFB-Pokals

Lore & Background

Twice named European Footballer of the Year, Beckenbauer appeared 103 times for West Germany, playing in three FIFA World Cups and two European Championships. He is one of eleven players to have won the FIFA World Cup, the European Cup, and the Ballon d'Or. He is one of three men, along with Brazil's Mário Zagallo and France's Didier Deschamps, to have won the World Cup as a player and as a manager; he lifted the World Cup trophy as captain in 1974, and repeated the feat as a manager in 1990. He was the first captain to lift the World Cup and European Championship at the international level and the European Cup at the club level. At club level with Bayern Munich, Beckenbauer won the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1967 and three consecutive European Cups from 1974 to 1976. The latter feat made him the first player to win three European Cups as captain of his club.

Reader's Guide

Beckenbauer made his debut with Bayern in a Bundesliga promotion play-off match on the left wing against FC St. Pauli on 6 June 1964. In his first season in the Regionalliga Süd, 1964–65, the team won the league and was eventually promoted to the Bundesliga. Bayern won the German Cup in 1966–67 and the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1967. Beckenbauer became team captain for the 1968–69 season and led his club to their first league title. During his tenure, Bayern won three league championships in a row from 1972 to 1974 and a hat-trick of European Cup wins (1974–76). He also played for New York Cosmos (winning the Soccer Bowl in 1977, 1978, and 1980) and Hamburger SV (winning the Bundesliga in 1981–82).