Uli Stein

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Lore & Background

Stein began his career in 1978 with Arminia Bielefeld. After two years, he moved to Hamburger SV where he played from 1980 to 1987. From 1987 to 1994 he played for Eintracht Frankfurt, but in 1994 he returned to Hamburger SV. One year later, he transferred to Arminia Bielefeld again. He retired during the 1996–97 season. He won the DFB-Pokal in 1987 with Hamburger SV and won two German Bundesliga titles, in 1982 and 1983. The highlight of his career was winning the European Cup in 1983. He would also go on to win the DFB-Pokal with Eintracht Frankfurt in 1988. In the DFB-Pokal in the 1986–87 season, in a tie between Hamburger SV and FC Augsburg in the Rosenaustadion, he was given the red card and as he left the pitch, he showed his middle finger to Augsburg's supporters. A more serious incident occurred in 1987 when he punched Jürgen Wegmann of Bayern Munich. Because of this incident, he was fired by Hamburger SV. He then joined Eintracht Frankfurt, where he played until 1994, when he was fired again. During this period he became one of the most popular goalkeepers ever to have played for the club.

In Their Own Story

The 1987–88 DFB-Pokal final was the crowning moment for Uli Stein at Eintracht Frankfurt. After being fired by Hamburger SV for punching Jürgen Wegmann, Stein joined Frankfurt and quickly became a fan favorite. His performances in goal helped secure the DFB-Pokal trophy, adding to his previous DFB-Pokal win with Hamburger SV in 1987. Stein's popularity at Eintracht Frankfurt grew so much that he is remembered as one of the most popular goalkeepers ever to have played for the club.

Reader's Guide

He represented the West Germany national team six times between 1983 and 1986. He was a member of the West German squad defeated by Argentina in the final of the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. His international career came to an end when he called West German coach, Franz Beckenbauer a Suppenkasper, meaning laughing stock. In his memoirs he denied this. He also voiced his opinion, that he was only second choice because of the pressure from Adidas, the sponsor of first choice goalkeeper Toni Schumacher.

Did You Know?

• Stein won the DFB-Pokal with Eintracht Frankfurt in 1988.
• He was named to the kicker Bundesliga Team of the Season in 1983–84 and 1990–91.
• He became the goalkeeping coach of Nigeria in 2007 and of Azerbaijan in 2008.