Former captain of the West German national team in the 1970s, coach of the Mannschaft from 1984 to 1990 and then manager of Bayern Munich, Beckenbauer He had retired from public activity in recent years due to his health problems.
“A legend of German football and world football. Kaiser was a great person, a friend of football, a champion and a true legend. We will never forget you, dear Franz, thank you for everything,” the Federation president wrote on Instagram Football International (FIFA), Gianni Infantino.
In Germany, where he was a particularly remembered figure, the impact of the news was greater.
“Franz Beckenbauer “He was definitely the greatest German footballer of all time, and on top of that he was a formidable man,” DFB vice president Hans-Joachim Watzke said in a statement.
Bayern Munich, the club of his life and where he won three European Cups (current Champions League), especially regretted this loss.
“The world of Bayern Munich is no longer what it was, suddenly it is darker, quieter, poorer,” the club reacted.
Beckenbauer He had been retired for years in Salzburg (Austria), near his native Bavaria. His precarious health had greatly limited his public appearances.
Retired from public life
His poor health meant that in January 2023 he was unable to travel to Brazil for the funeral of ‘O Rei’ Pelé, with whom he played for a season at the New York Cosmos. In August of the same year he was also absent from the traditional annual meeting of the 1990 German world champions.
All of this sparked rumors about his condition. He had had to undergo several operations and a few months ago he had lost sight in his right eye.
The last time he was seen in public was at the Allianz Arena stadium to watch a game of ‘his’ Bayern Munich. It was at the end of August 2022, in a Bundesliga duel against Borussia Mönchengladbach.
A few weeks earlier she had passed through Herzogenaurach (northern Bavaria) to give her support to the German internationals, who were preparing for the 2022 Women’s Euro Cup there.
A post-war child – he was born in September 1945 – in the working-class neighborhood of Giesing, south of Munich, Beckenbauer He learned to play football at local club SC 1906 Munich, before moving to Bayern, after being rejected by 1860 Munich, the city’s other big team at the time.
Bayern Munich was the club of his life throughout ‘three lives’ and five decades: a first as a player in the 1960s and 1970s, a second as a coach in the second half of the 1980s and a last as a manager. in the 1990s and 2000s.
Three-time European Cup champion
With Bayern he won the European Cup of champion clubs (current Champions League) in 1974, 1975 and 1976. And with West Germany he was crowned in the Euro-1972 and the World Cup-1974.
In the individual recognitions, the 1972 and 1976 Ballon d’Ors stood out, which had special merit as they were for a defender, when traditionally players with an offensive profile are rewarded.
The legend of Beckenbauer It was also built on images for history, such as his participation in the 1970 World Cup semi-final that West Germany lost to Italy. There he was injured in that ‘game of the century’, when his team had already made the two changes authorized at that time, and he finished the game with his arm in a sling.
As a coach, his greatest moment was winning the 1990 World Cup in Italy, beating Diego Maradona’s Argentina in the final, with whom he had lost the final of the same tournament four years earlier in Mexico.
The face of the 2006 World Cup
In the offices, Bayern was his learning ground, occupying the main management positions before becoming the main face of the 2006 World Cup Organizing Committee.
That tournament is considered a great organizational success for Germany, although a decade later it was marred by suspicions of corruption in obtaining the venue in 2000. Beckenbauer He always denied the accusations in this regard.
In the press, he was a columnist for the Bild newspaper for 34 years, until 2016, and his presence was familiar to Germans on television and advertising, so his goodbye leaves generations of the country’s fans in a way orphaned.
Source: AFP
