German football legend Franz Beckenbauer dies aged 78
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Germany’s Franz Beckenbauer, one of soccer’s greatest players who captained his country to World Cup glory in 1974 and won the tournament again as manager in 1990, has died at the age of 78, his family said in a statement on Monday.
Beckenbauer bestrode the sport as player, coach, pundit and administrator for more than half a century and was widely admired around the world.
“It is with deep sadness that we announce that my husband and our father, Franz Beckenbauer, passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday, Sunday, surrounded by his family,” read a statement from his family.
Suddenly, our world isn’t the same as it once was — darker, quieter and worse off. The record champions are mourning the loss of Franz Beckenbauer, the incomparable ‘Kaiser’ without who FC Bayern would never have become the club it is today.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on X: “World Cup winner as player and coach: Franz Beckenbauer was one of the greatest footballers in Germany and for many ‘der Kaiser’ also because of the excitement for German Football he created for generations. We will miss him. My thoughts are with his family and friends.”
