Franz Beckenbauer passed away at the age of 78 in January this year. Werner Schulze/ullstein bild via Getty Images
Bayern Munich have honoured club and Germany legend Franz Beckenbauer by retiring his No. 5 jersey.
Widely regarded as Germany’s greatest ever player, Beckenbauer passed away at the age of 78 earlier this year.
He led his country to glory at the European Championships in 1972 and the 1974 World Cup, and also won three successive league titles and a hat trick of European Cups at Bayern.
His contributions and persona on the field saw him dubbed “Der Kaiser,” which translates as “The Emperor.”
He had two spells as manager at Bayern, winning the Bundesliga in 1994 and the UEFA Cup in 1996, and also served as club president.
“Forever our Kaiser,” Bayern wrote in a post on X.
“In memory of Franz Beckenbauer: FC Bayern will never again give out jersey number 5.”
