• Franz Beckenbauer has passed away aged 78

• Germany legend regarded as one of game's greatest-ever players

• FIFA reflects on an iconic career

One of the finest players in football history, Franz Beckenbauer's remarkable achievements in the beautiful game will ensure his legend lives forever.

The Germany icon – nicknamed Der Kaiser for his grace and effortlessness on the ball – won the FIFA World Cup™ as a player and a coach, as well as a raft of other domestic and international titles.

With the passing of a true football great, FIFA reflects on his incredible journey.

Franz Beckenbauer was born on 11 September 1945 in Munich. His talent and ambition saw him stand out from an early age, and after playing his first organised football for SC 1906 Munich, he joined Bayern Munich in 1959. He made his first-team debut there at the age of 18 and marked the occasion with a goal. At the time, he had the likes of Sepp Maier and Gerd Muller as team-mates, and together they would go on to write countless successful chapters in the history of the club.

Over the years, Beckenbauer won an array of domestic and international honours with the Bavarian club, including four German league titles and four DFB Cup wins. He also lifted the European Cup on three occasions, the European Cup Winners’ Cup and the Intercontinental Cup (a tournament which would eventually become today’s FIFA Club World Cup™).

In 1977, Beckenbauer moved to the USA to join New York Cosmos. He played alongside Brazilian legend Pele, with whom he would enjoy a decades-long friendship during and after his playing days. Together, this legendary pairing won three North American Soccer League (NASL) championships.

After spending four years in New York, returned to the Bundesliga in 1980, joining SV Hamburg, with whom he picked up his fifth league-winner’s medal in 1982. He made a total of 424 appearances in Germany’s top-flight, scoring 44 goals. After a final season at New York Cosmos, Der Kaiser hung up his boots in 1983.

Of course, it was not just on the domestic front that Beckenbauer would fill his trophy cabinet. He worked his way up through the various age groups for Germany and then made his full international debut under Helmut Schon as a 20-year-old. At the World Cup in 1966, Beckenbauer and Co made it through to the final against England. The team went down 4-2, with the host nation’s third goal at Wembley being one of the most controversial in history. Der Kaiser was voted as best young player of the tournament.

Four years later, Germany made it to the semi-finals, where they lost to Italy in what has become known as the "match of the century". Beckenbauer was given the captain’s armband for the 1972 European Championship, and it was he who held the trophy aloft after the 3-0 win over the Soviet Union in the final – his first title in a Germany shirt.

Then, in 1974, Der Kaiser ticked the last box on his international CV courtesy of a World Cup win on home soil. With Schon at the helm and Beckenbauer again captain, Germany defeated the Netherlands 2-1 in the final thanks to goals from Paul Breitner and Gerd Muller, in the process winning football’s greatest prize for the second time after their maiden triumph in 1954.

At EURO 1976, Germany and Beckenbauer once again made it to the final, which also coincided with the then 30-year-old’s 100th cap for his country. It could have been a night to remember for so many reasons, but this time Germany went down to Czechoslovakia in a penalty shootout.

Beckenbauer made his final senior appearance for his country 1977, ending his international career with 103 caps.

At the 1984 European Championship, Germany crashed out of a tournament at the group stage for the first time in their history. This low point would signal the beginning of the coaching career of Beckenbauer, with the then 38-year-old taking over the reins.

The team headed to the 1986 World Cup with little in the way of expectations after their disappointing EURO outing two years earlier, but under Beckenbauer they made it all the way to the final, losing 3-2 to Argentina.

EURO 1988 on home soil saw Germany fall in the semi-final against the Netherlands, but two years later, Beckenbauer would get his hands back on a familiar piece of silverware. At the FIFA World Cup in 1990, a Germany team featuring likes of Lothar Matthaus and Jurgen Klinsmann, impressed from the outset and this time emerged victorious in the final against Argentina, courtesy of Andreas Brehme’s penalty. It was a third star to put on Germany’s jersey, and the second where Der Kaiser had played a significant role.

The images of Beckenbauer wandering around the pitch alone, deep in his own thoughts while the team celebrated with the fans, became famous all around the world. Beckenbauer had become just the second person after Mario Zagallo (who passed away just two days before Beckenbauer’s death) to win the World Cup as both a player and a coach.

Beckenbauer then coached Olympique Marseille before returning home to Bayern Munich, where he won the Bundesliga in 1994 as interim coach. He had a final stint on the bench in 1996 and steered the club to victory over Bordeaux in the final of the UEFA Cup.

In 1994, Beckenbauer became president of Bayern Munich – a position he held for 15 years before later being named honorary president. He was also head of Germany’s successful bid for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Throughout his career – and beyond – Der Kaiser was an omnipresent figure in Germany, both in football and in society as a whole. The name Franz Beckenbauer meant so much, not only in his home country but all around the world. On 7 January 2024, Beckenbauer passed away aged 78. Rest in peace, Kaiser.

FIFA World Cup: 1974 (as a player), 1990 (as a coach)

European Championship: 1972

European Cup: 1974, 1975, 1976 (as a player)

European Cup Winners’ Cup: 1967 (as a player)

UEFA Cup: 1996 (as a coach)

Intercontinental Cup (now FIFA Club World Cup): 1976 (as a player)

German league championship: 1969, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1982 (as a player), 1994 (as a coach)

DFB Cup: 1966, 1967, 1969, 1971 (as a player)

North American Soccer League: 1977, 1978, 1980 (as a player)

European Footballer of the Year : 1972, 1976

Germany Player of the Year: 1966, 1968, 1974, 1976

Germany's Player of the Century: 2000

Best Young Player at the FIFA World Cup: 1966

Honorary captain of Germany: 1982

FIFA Order of Merit: 1984

FIFA Presidential Award: 2013

Distinguished Service Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany: 2006

German Football Hall of Fame: 2018

"I wanted to be alone. After all, I’d just spent six long weeks on the road with a bunch of difficult people." Regarding his quiet celebrations after the World Cup win in 1990.

"I really don’t like it. In Bavaria, beer is food. You don’t spill food everywhere – you consume it." When asked about celebratory beer showers.

"Half of the country were standing behind their TV sets." On the 1990 World Cup final.

"The Swedes are no Dutch, as everyone can see." During on-air television match analysis.

"The death of Franz Beckenbauer is genuinely the end of an era. We can look back at his life’s work with high regard and immense gratitude. We a losing a unique football player and a lovely human being. Franz Beckenbauer leaves behind a huge legacy for the DFB (German Football Association) and for football in general." Bernd Neuendorf, DFB president

"Franz Beckenbauer was capable of gliding across the pitch. First as a player and then as a coach, he was sublime – he was above it all. When Franz Beckenbauer walked into a room, he lit it up. He was known as the shining light of German football and he fully deserved that title." Julian Nagelsmann, Germany coach

"It was a real shock when I found out that Franz was unwell. His death is a loss for football and for all of Germany. He was one of the greatest – as a player and as a coach, but also off the pitch. He was an incredible personality not just in football – he was recognised all around the world. All who knew him know what a great and generous person Franz was. A good friend has passed. I will miss him, and we will all miss him!" Lothar Matthaus, Germany legend

"One of the greatest football players in the history of Bayern Munich has sadly passed away. Rest in peace, Kaiser Franz. We will never forget what you did for football in Germany." Thomas Muller, Bayern Munich and Germany forward

"Farewell to a legend, a pioneer. He was an example for the generations of defenders who came after him. Rest in peace, Kaiser." Sergio Ramos, Sevilla and former Spain defender