The fashionable Kaiser who dominated German football, Franz Beckenbauer

At the age of 78, Franz Beckenbauer, a legendary German player and coach who had a talent for inspiring his teams to success, passed away. Beckenbauer was dubbed the Kaiser, a moniker that suited both his elegant and self-assured playing style and his innate leadership qualities. He was one of only three persons to win the World Cup as both a player and a coach. Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, a teammate and subsequently fellow executive at Bayern Munich, stated in a profile on the league’s official website that “he was so elegant he wasn’t really German.” “He just oozed class and quality.”

Bayern became the best team in Germany thanks in part to Beckenbauer’s efforts. He was instrumental in Germany’s rise to prominence in football on the world scene. However, his eventual success—leading Germany to successfully organize the 2006 World Cup—was ultimately tainted by allegations that he had engaged in probable corruption to get the privilege to host the event.

Four months after World War II ended, in 1945, in a devastated Munich, Beckenbauer was born.

Looking back, he remarked, “I must have been born under a lucky star when I look at my life.”

He had grown up cheering for Bayern’s neighborhood rivals, but he tragically decided to change his allegiance when a player from 1860 Munich hit him during a youth competition.

“It wasn’t the hand of God but a slap from an 1860 player,” he said.

Although 1860 were chosen as the inaugural members of the Bundesliga in 1963, Bayern, a financially disadvantaged team, turned to youth to get out of the lower leagues.

As an outside left in the promotion play-offs in June 1963, Beckenbauer scored his first goal as an 18-year-old as Bayern came just short of winning. A month into the next season, he established himself as a regular, scoring 16 goals as they easily won promotion.

“The World Cup is mine!”

He was playing midfield for West Germany in 1966 when they lost the World Cup final to host England 4-2.

“I was instructed to mark Bobby Charlton, who was the finest player at the time. Bobby subsequently informed me that Alf Ramsey, the manager of England, had instructed him to keep a watch on this young, attractive German gentleman. Bobby Charlton was somewhat superior than me, which is why England defeated us,” he remarked.

Beckenbauer moved into central defense but transformed the position when teams shifted from a back three to a back four. By sauntering up to assist the onslaught, he adopted the persona of the “libero”. He was able to fire from a distance with power, precision, and swerve with a loose swing of any boot.

In 1970, Beckenbauer exacted revenge on England in Mexico by opening the scoring and leading West Germany to a 3-2 victory against the holders after they had fallen behind 2-0.

After West Germany had utilized their two allotted substitutions, Beckenbauer injured his shoulder in the semifinal match against Italy. In a World Cup classic, his side fell 4-3 in extra time while he was playing in a sling.

Beckenbauer led West Germany to triumph four years later. In the final, held in his hometown of Munich, they defeated the Netherlands 2-1 after Johan Cruyff had given the Dutch the lead in the opening minute.

Beckenbauer would comment, “Johan was a better player, but I won the World Cup.”

In 1984, Beckenbauer became the new national coach. In 1990, he led West Germany to victory in Italy when they defeated Argentina 1-0 in the championship match.

He claimed to have instructed the squad to “go out there, play football, and have fun.”

Only three players and managers who have won the World Cup are Mario Zagallo (who passed away on Friday at the age of 92), Didier Deschamps, and Franz Beckenbauer.

Additionally, Beckenbauer won medals at the club level. During his 13-year tenure with Bayern, during which he won four German crowns and three European Cups, he made 424 appearances in the Bundesliga. In 1977, he signed on with Pele at the New York Cosmos.

In 1978, Beckenbauer told the New York Times, “Coming to New York was the best decision of my life.” It’s quite private here. I travel to locations where nobody knows who I am.”

After we won another German championship in 1982, Hamburg enticed him back to the Bundesliga, and he spent his final season with the Cosmos in New York.

“Shy deer”

He famously remarked, “Success is like hunting a shy deer.” “There must be a favorable breeze. the fragrance, the moon, and the stars.”

After managing Bayern and Marseille for a while, Beckenbauer won the Bundesliga in 1994 and the French championship in 1991.

Even though he had led the squad for five games in 1996, he was elected president of Bayern in that same year. He rose to the position of vice-president of the German Football Association (DFB) and joined FIFA’s Executive Committee, the global governing body of football, in 2007.

He oversaw the 2006 World Cup organizing committee. Germany refers to the popular competition as “the summer fairytale” with nostalgia.

The tale took a negative turn in October 2015, nevertheless, when the German magazine Spiegel claimed that the DFB had purchased votes in 2000 in order to gain the hosting rights before defeating South Africa 12–11.

“I have not sent anyone money to acquire votes for the awarding of the 2006 World Cup to Germany,” Beckenbauer claimed.

Three former DFB executives were accused with fraud in connection with the 2006 World Cup by Swiss prosecutors in 2019, however Beckenbauer’s name was omitted.

Following his heart surgery in 2016 and 2017, they declared Beckenbauer “unable for health reasons to participate or to be questioned” in court.

In June 2014, FIFA imposed a 90-day suspension on Beckenbauer for allegedly refusing to assist with an investigation into the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar.

Three of Beckenbauer’s partnerships resulted in five children, including one marriage. He was kicked from the West German youth squad when he was eighteen years old because he refused to marry his unmarried fiancée when she became pregnant.

Much later, he remarked, “I’ve had my family tree researched.” “All the kids born out of wedlock were merry people,” according to the Beckenbauers. We have continued the custom.”