Former FIFA World Cup Winner Franz Beckenbauer Dies Aged 78

Legendary German footballer Franz Beckenbauer has died aged 78, as reported by German news agency DPA.

Franz Beckenbauer won the FIFA World Cup with Germany both as a player and coach ( Image Source :Getty Images )

In a shocking news for football fans all around the world, former FIFA World Cup winner Franz Beckenbauer has died aged 78. The legendary footballer was one of the greatest centre-backs of all time and was well-renowned for his all-round ability and his on-field IQ. The news of the legendary footballer's death was confirmed by his family via the German news agency DPA.

"It is with deep sadness that we announce that husband and father, Franz Beckenbauer, passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday, Sunday, surrounded by his family. We ask that you be able to mourn in silence and refrain from asking any questions," read official family statement.

The Bayern Munich legend has been a great ambassador of the sport as he not only just won every possible silverware available as a player, but as a coach as well, with the most notable one being the FIFA World Cup winner as a player and captain in 1974, and then as a coach in 1990. The all-great West Germany side of the 1974 has now seen two of its greatest players pass away as Gerd Muller and Franz Beckenbauer leave an untouchable and ever-lasting legacy behind. They both wrote one of the greatest legend stories with their magic they graced on the pitch of football. 

With Johan Cruyff's death in 2016 and now the deaths of Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Muller (in 2021), football world has lost the greatest stars of the 1970's who laid the foundation of European domination amidst the monopoly of South America, in a period where Uruguay (1950), Brazil (1958, 1962, 1970) and Argentina (1978, 1986) dominated the World Cup campaigns and went all the way. 

The two-time Ballon d'Or winner was the only defender in the history of the sport to win the Ballon d'Or twice and is regarded alongside Italian legend Paulo Malidni as the greatest centre-back in the history of football. The football world has sadly lost not only a former legend, but also, one of the sharpest and best brains ever witnessed in the most popular sport on planet Earth.