Germany has won the World Cup four times. They have reached a further four World Cup finals and many other semi-finals. They have one of the best overall records in the FIFA World Cup and the European Championship. These are some of the great German soccer players who have starred for die Mannschaft.
Gerd Müller was a great German striker who played for the West German team in the 1970s. His goal-scoring record in the World Cup is one of the second-best for a German player after Klose. Müller was particularly prolific in the 1970 World Cup, where he was the top goal-scoring player. In 1974, he scored further goals for Germany as they went on to win the 1974 World Cup. With 68 goals for Germany across 62 games, Müller was a prolific striker who scored over a goal a game for his country.
Franz Beckenbauer played in the sweeper role for Germany. He played 103 games for Germany in the 1960s and 1970s, including two World Cup finals. In the first 1966 World Cup final, Beckenbauer was on the losing team, but in 1974, he captained the West German side that defeated Holland in the final. Beckenbauer and the rest of the German defenders man-marked Cruyff to snuff him out of the final match.
Beckenbauer played much of his club soccer for Bayern Munich, where he won three European Cups. He was also twice voted European Player of the Year (Ballon d’Or).
Jürgen Klinsmann was one of the best German strikers of recent times. In 1990, he was Germany’s top striker in the World Cup-winning team. Klinsmann continued to score goals for Germany, including three in the 1996 Euro Championship, which Germany won, and further World Cups. At the club level, Klinsmann played for numerous soccer clubs, including a season with Tottenham Hotspur, where he scored 21 goals. As such, Klinnsmann was FWA Player of the Year.
Lothar Matthaus holds notable records with the German soccer team. Firstly, he played a record number of games for Germany, up to 150 over 20 years. During this period, he played in a number of strong German teams that went the distance in the World Cup by reaching three finals, captained the winning team in 1990, and played 25 World Cup games. Matthaus also won the European Championship with Germany in 1980.
Miroslav Klose is the record-scoring German player in international soccer history, having netted 71 goals for his country. He also scored a record 16 goals in the World Cup finals from 2002 to 2014. He scored two goals in Germany’s triumphant 2014 World Cup campaign and played in the final.
Klose played for Werder Bremen, Bayern Munich, and Lazio during his club career. He was most prolific for Werder Bremen, scoring 53 goals in 89 matches. Klose won a couple of league titles at Bayern Munich and the Italian cup when he played for Lazio.
Those great German soccer players were among the finest to grace the European game. They were players who played in and won numerous World Cups with Germany. They set records in the FIFA World Cup, and with them, Germany has had some of the best teams in the world.
If you love sports, download Stadium Rant from the Apple App Store and join one of the fastest-growing social sports communities. Be sure to follow us on socials too — you can find all our profiles on our Linktree.
