Germany is in mourning… and Munich bids farewell to “Kaiser” Beckenbauer
All official and sports websites in Germany were covered in black to mourn the passing of the “Kaiser” Franz Beckenbauer, who passed away on Sunday evening at the age of 78, at a time when many Munich residents flocked to the “Sabiner Straße” street, where the Bayern club’s headquarters are located, despite From the difficult climatic conditions and the extreme cold, to pay tribute to the country’s football legend and an inspiration to several generations.
At a time when German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier stressed that no one had succeeded in shaping German football like the legend Beckenbauer, all the symbols of the game in the country and the world mourned the great star whose name was immortalized with countless achievements, while the stars of Bayern Munich demanded special honor for “ The Tsar kicks off from the Allianz Arena.
Steinmeier Beckenbauer mourned, saying: “We have lost the most famous and best representative of German sports around the world. We will not forget him.”
He added: “He made football history as a player and coach for the national team. He is an exceptional model. Through his leadership style and playing philosophy, Ferns has made the national team an exceptional ambassador for our country around the world… We will always be grateful to him for that.” He concluded by saying: “The fairy tale of our country in 2006 cannot be imagined without him.”
Star Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Beckenbauer’s former colleague and former CEO of Bayern Munich, said that German football fans should fill the stands of the Allianz Arena to salute the Kaiser, who died at the age of 78.
Kaiser Beckenbauer celebrates winning the World Cup in 1974 (AP)
Beckenbauer, who was Germany’s first truly international sporting star and led it to World Cup titles as a player and coach in 1974 and 1990 respectively, became part of the country’s social fabric in a highly successful career on and off the field that spanned more than 50 years.
Beckenbauer, considered one of the best players of all time, played 103 international matches and led West Germany to win the World Cup in 1974, two years after winning the European title. He also chaired the organizing committee for the 2006 World Cup, which was held in Germany.
Rummenigge, who played alongside Beckenbauer at Bayern Munich in the 1970s, said: “The entire football world and beyond is sad for our friend Fernz.”
Rummenigge was the captain of West Germany under coach Beckenbauer in the 1986 World Cup, when they lost to Argentina in the final. He said: “As a thank you and to commemorate him, Bayern should organize a ceremony to commemorate his memory in the stadium that would not have existed without him.”
Beckenbauer was part of the great Bayern Munich team that won three consecutive European Cups from 1974 to 1976 among other titles. He became team coach and club president after his playing career, making the German champions one of the most successful and valuable brands in European football.
Under Beckenbauer, Bayern left the old Olympiastadion and moved to the Allianz Arena in 2006. The stadium ceremony is not the only suggestion to remember the “Kaiser”, a nickname he earned due to his playing style and vision of the matches.
His colleague, 1974 World Cup winner Berti Vogts, suggested naming the German Cup the Beckenbauer Cup to ensure that his memory remains alive, and explained: “Perhaps the German Football Association should consider, for example, naming the German Cup after Beckenbauer… It is important that future generations do not forget about it.” Football is his name.
The most prominent stars of Beckenbauer’s next generation, such as Philipp Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger, winners of the 2014 World Cup, also mourned the German Kaiser. Lahm, captain of the German national team in the 2014 World Cup, wrote through his account on the social media platform “X” (formerly Twitter): “He was the greatest personality in football.” “For all German football, Beckenbauer was ahead of his time as a player.”
For his part, Schweinsteiger wrote: “Thank you for everything, Kaiser, I will never forget you!” “Rest in peace, Fernz.”
Lahm, director of the European Championship, Euro 2024, recalled Beckenbauer’s memories and achievements when he was head of the organizing committee for the 2006 World Cup, which was organized by Germany, by saying: “The 2006 World Cup was a fairy tale. It taught a self-critical nation to love itself again. This great social success would not have been achieved without it. Fernz, and I am forever grateful to him for allowing me to be a part of it.” Swiss Gianni Infantino, President of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), mourned Beckenbauer, saying: “The legend of German and international football… The Kaiser was a truly wonderful person, a friend of football, a true hero and legend. We will never forget you, dear Fernz.”
For his part, Slovenian Alexander Ceferin, President of the European Union (UEFA), said: “The football world mourns the loss of the Tsar. His diversity of playing styles and mobile roles between defense and midfield, control of the ball and wonderful vision reshaped football in his era.”
He added: “His leadership potential was strongly demonstrated by being captain of the German national team and the Bayern Munich team during the most successful periods, and he continued his success in his coaching career. Beckenbauer’s legacy as one of the greatest players in the history of football is indisputable. Farewell to the legend.”
At the popular level, the low temperature (minus 8 degrees) did not prevent the residents of Munich from heading to the Bavarian Club headquarters to place flower bouquets, as Beckenbauer achieved his resounding achievements in the world of football, by winning the European Champion Clubs Cup (currently the European Champions League) three years in a row. (1974, 1975 and 1976). Bogdan Bikoć, 45 years old and a Bayern fan, recalled Beckenbauer’s achievements in front of the Bavarian club’s headquarters, saying: “In 1990, when he became a world champion coach, when he was walking alone, these seconds, these minutes, are my childhood memories with the legend. “This is what I can remember from my childhood.”
He continued: “Without him, there would be no Bayern. It is difficult to imagine Bayern without him. It is clear that Bayern will continue without Beckenbauer, but the matter will be a little different.”
A bouquet of flowers and a candle were placed at the entrance to the club that Beckenbauer elevated to the ranks of the world’s elite teams, first as a player alongside “Gunner” striker Gerd Muller and goalkeeper Sepp Maier in the sixties and seventies, then as an administrator alongside Uli Hoeneß and Rummenigge in the nineties and first decade of the decade. 21st century.
The “X” platform (formerly Twitter) and the club’s official website were draped in black to mourn the passing of “The Kaiser,” while, in an emotional moment, 75,000 spectators will bid farewell to the club icon when Bayern hosts its counterpart, Hoffenheim, in its “Allianz Arena” stadium on Friday evening.
The date and location of Beckenbauer’s funeral ceremony has not yet been determined, who “rested in peace” on Sunday evening surrounded by his family in the Austrian city of Salzburg, where he chose to live near the Kitzbühel ski resort, where local golf is located.
Some view the “Allianz Arena” as a legacy of Beckenbauer, who headed the club at the time and made the decision to build and own it (for a period with Munich 1860) instead of remaining in the Olympic Stadium, which was built to host the 1972 Olympic Games.
Yesterday, German newspapers devoted their front pages to the departure of the “Kaiser,” and “Bild” published a group of photos summarizing his career: a photo of him lifting the World Cup with a West German jersey in 1974, a second of him on the grass in the Olympic Stadium in Rome after being crowned world coach, and a third in which he holds the special poster. In the 2006 World Cup, which Germany hosted thanks to his efforts.
For its part, the newspaper “Süddeutsche Zeitung” preferred to highlight Beckenbauer’s lesser-known nickname, which is “Licht Gestalt,” meaning “the luminous personality,” instead of the “Kaiser,” which was called during the 1969 German Cup final against Schalke 04. He gained international fame after a photo. He took it in Vienna in 1971 next to a statue of Austria’s Emperor François-Joseph I.
Behind this difficult-to-translate word lies the idea that the greatest German footballer in history, and even the greatest German athlete, captured the spotlight wherever he was and passed it on as an inspiration to everyone, and specifically to German football.
2024-01-09 22:52:00
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