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 One of the greatest and most
polished players in the history of the game. Beckenbauer signed for the New York Cosmos in 1977 after an
outstanding career as captain of Bayern Munich and the West German
national team.
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Personal Information |
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Class of 1998 |
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Born:
September 11, 1945 - Munich, West Germany |
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Position:
Midfield |
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Int'l
Caps: 103 |
Int'l
Goals: 14 |
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When he joined the
Cosmos he teamed up with
Pelé
and
Giorgio Chinaglia and helped make the
New York club one of the most famous soccer teams in the world. Beckenbauer made his NASL debut on May
29, 1977 against Tampa Bay Rowdies in Tampa, Florida and scored a goal in
his team's 4-2
defeat before 45,288 fans. In his first season in New York, the Cosmos won Soccer Bowl '77
defeating Seattle Sounders 2-1 in the Final. With Beckenbauer playing sometimes in midfield and
sometimes in defence the Cosmos went on to win the title again in 1978
and 1980. Perhaps significantly,
after he left the Cosmos in September 1980 to join Hamburger SV, the
Cosmos failed to win Soccer Bowl '81 after reaching the Final. Almost all of the early part of
Beckenbauer's career was spent with Bayern and he helped build the Munich
club into a world soccer power leading them to the European Cup in 1974,
1975 and 1976. On the
international scene Beckenbauer played in two World Cup Finals for West
Germany the first a 4-2 defeat by England in 1966 and the second in 1974
when he led West Germany to a 2-1 victory over Holland. Beckenbauer was European Footballer of
the Year in 1972 and again in 1976, the year before he came to North
America. In his first four years
with New York, Beckenbauer helped boost the image of the NASL and
attendances at Giants Stadium soared. After two seasons with Hamburg, he returned to the Cosmos in 1983,
for his final season. He became
coach of the West German national team after his retirement and led his
country to the World Cup Final in Mexico in 1986 losing to Argentina.
However, four years later West
Germany, coached by Beckenbauer, won the World Cup for the third
time beating Argentina 1-0 in Rome.
North American
Soccer League
Statistics |
