A sudden sad news came from Germany, and international football has lost a great legend.
German historical superstar and "Football Emperor" Beckenbauer passed away on January 7, 2024, at the age of 78, according to the German news agency dpa.
The legend of the first German team to win the World Cup as both captain and manager has gone through a life that can be described as a glorious success.
"It is with sadness that we announce that Franz Beckenbauer, my husband and father of the children, passed away peacefully yesterday in the company of his family," Beckenbauer's family said in a brief statement on January 8. We ask everyone to mourn in silence and not to ask any questions. ”
In fact, Bild reported last month that Beckenbauer had been plagued by health problems for a long time. After 2019, Beckenbauer appeared less and less in the public eye.
In 2022, Beckenbauer revealed that he suffered from an ocular infarction in one eye and had difficulty seeing what was on his right. There were also some problems with the heart. Beckenbauer's younger brother, Walter Beckenbauer, also said in an interview that his brother's health was up and down.
Created a free man style of play! Players, coaches, and management were all successful
Beckenbauer was born on September 11, 1945, and started his playing career at Bayern. Beckenbauer is one of the greatest and most successful superlegends in the history of football, with incredible success, both as a player, as a coach, and as a manager.
As a player, Beckenbauer is an all-rounder who can play in the front, centre and back positions, a standard hexagonal warrior who plays primarily as a central defender and pioneers the free man style of play in the scavenger position. He won three Champions Leagues, one World Cup, one European Cup, five Bundesliga titles, and won the Ballon d'Or twice in 1972 and 1976.
After becoming a coach, Beckenbauer coached the German national team from 1984 to 1990, leading the team to the 1990 World Cup, becoming only the second player and coach in football history to win both the World Cup as a player and coach after Zagallo. At the club level, Beckenbauer has also coached Marseille and his former club Bayern Munich, winning league titles in both teams.
As a manager, Beckenbauer was praised for his 15-year presidency at Bayern Munich and his leadership of Germany's bid to host the World Cup in 2006. Throughout the history of football, there have been very few people like Beckenbauer who have been successful in all areas of football.
The five elders of the palace have all passed away! Say goodbye to an era
With the death of Beckenbauer, in the past 10 years, the superstars of the "Hall Five" who were stamped and certified by FIFA in the last century have left the fans forever -
On July 7, 2014, "Golden Arrow" Di Stéfano died of a heart attack at the age of 88;
On March 24, 2016, Cruyff died of lung cancer at the age of 68;
On November 25, 2020, football king Maradona died of a sudden heart attack at the age of 60;
On December 30, 2022, the football king Pele died of multiple organ failure caused by colon cancer at the age of 82;
On January 7, 2024, the "Emperor of Football" Beckenbauer passed away at the age of 78.
They are all thunderous and brilliant gods in the history of football, winning everything. The only thing that can defeat them is the ruthless disease and time.
The football community mourns Bei Huang
UEFA's official website mourns Beckenbauer: he is a unique player in German football and is affectionately known as de Caesar the Great.
He was an extraordinary player, a successful coach, a popular expert, an influential official, a charity promoter, and Beckenbauer will be remembered for all of the above and more.
Real Madrid, Barcelona, Liverpool, AC Milan, Inter Milan, Manchester United, Manchester City, Ajax, Dortmund and other giants have also issued posts to mourn Beckenbauer and send condolences to his family.
Bayern officials have changed their profile picture to black and white as a tribute to the greatest player in the club's history: the only emperor without whom Bayern would never be the club it is today.