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Bayern Munich and Germany great Franz Beckenbauer, who has died at the age of 78, was as imperious a defender as the game of soccer has ever witnessed. So his nickname ‘Der Kaiser’, which translates as ‘the Emperor’, couldn’t be more apt.
It’s unclear, though, whether the moniker actually relates to the way Beckenbauer played.
How did Beckenbauer become ‘Der Kaiser’?
One version of events says the nickname did indeed take hold as a direct consequence of Beckenbauer’s commanding defensive presence.
It is claimed that German media dubbed him ‘Der Kaiser’ after he had utterly dominated Schalke striker Reinhard Libuda in a 2-1 win for Bayern in 1969. Libuda was known as the ‘King of Westphalia’, and – as The Guardian’s John Ashdown notes in this 2014 article – “only an emperor could overshadow a king”.
However, it has also been suggested that the nickname came about when a magazine noted Beckenbauer’s apparent likeness to King Ludwig II of Bavaria.
In the same vein, the name is alternatively said to have taken hold when the two-time Ballon d’Or winner was photographed in Vienna standing next to a bust of Kaiser Franz-Joseph I, the former emperor of Austria.
What number did Beckenbauer wear?
Whatever the origin of ‘Der Kaiser’, it will forever remain one of soccer’s most iconic nicknames – just as Beckenbauer’s No. 5 shirt will forever remain one of the game’s most iconic jerseys.
That’s the number he wore when he captained Bayern to three successive European Cup wins between 1974 and 1976, and when he lifted the World Cup with West Germany in 1974.
That said, he also sported 3, 4 and 6 during his nearly 20-year playing career, according to Transfermarkt’s shirt number history.
Notably, Beckenbauer was in the No. 4 shirt in the game that produced one of the most memorable images of his career – the Germans’ epic 1970 World Cup semi-final defeat to Italy, in which he played for nearly an hour with a dislocated shoulder and broken collarbone.
Having suffering the injury in the 70th minute in Mexico City, by which time West Germany had already made both of their permitted substitutions, Beckenbauer placed his arm in a makeshift sling and carried on.
Despite Gerd Müller giving Helmut Schön’s side a 3-2 lead with 10 minutes remaining in extra time, late goals by Gigi Riva and Gianni Rivera gave the Italians a 4-3 victory in one of the World Cup’s greatest ever matches.
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