German Football Legend Franz Beckenbauer Has Died Aged 78

Berlin, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Jan, 2024) Legend Franz Beckenbauer, who left a unique imprint on German football as player, captain and coach, has died at the age of 78, the German Football Association said Monday.

"Franz Beckenbauer was the biggest German footballer of all time, and above all one of the greatest men who I have known," said DFB vice president Hans-Joachim Watzke.

Beckenbauer, one of only three men to win the World Cup as player and as a coach, passed away on Sunday, the DFB said.

Tributes poured in for the football icon, with Chancellor Olaf Scholz and former German captain Lothar Matthaeus alike saying "we will miss him".

UEFA hailed Beckenbauer as "one of European football's greatest sons" who "shaped German football like no other", while the English Premier League described him as the "most beautiful of footballers who won it all with grace and charm".

FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Instagram called Beckenbauer "a true legend", saying "we'll never forget you dear Franz, thanks for everything."

On his 75th birthday, Beckenbauer told German tabloid Bild he prayed regularly.

"They are prayers of thanks," the frequent Bild columnist said "thanks for the beautiful life I have been able to lead."

Former captain of the German team in the 1970s, Beckenbauer had health problems in his later years and lived mostly withdrawn from the public eye in Salzburg in Austria, just across the border with Germany.

Known in football-mad Germany as "the Kaiser" meaning "the Emperor", Beckenbauer played a central role in some of the country's greatest sporting achievements, but his legacy was later tarnished by his involvement in scandals surrounding Germany's successful bid to host the 2006 World Cup.