Bernd Hölzenbein is dead. The Eintracht legend died at the age of 78. In 1974, the offensive player became world champion with the German national team.
Frankfurt – Eintracht Frankfurt mourns the loss of club legend Bernd Hölzenbein. The offensive player died on Monday evening (April 15) at the age of 78. The
Bild
newspaper and the
Hessischer Rundfunk
first reported on it. Eintracht Frankfurt confirmed the sad news a little later. Hölzenbein died after a long, serious illness.
Hölzenbein has shaped Eintracht Frankfurt for over 60 years
“Bernd Hölzenbein has had a significant influence on our Eintracht for almost 60 years. He stands for the 'Golden 1970s' as well as for the European Cup victory in 1980 and also the 'Football 2000' that our club played in the early 1990s and in which he played a significant role as vice-president," says Eintracht board spokesman Alex Hellmann and continues: “With Bernd Hölzenbein, we are not only losing one of the great identification figures of our club, but also a loyal employee and a lovely friend.”
The 1974 world champion played 420 times for Eintracht in the Bundesliga between 1967 and 1981, scoring 160 goals. Club record to date! In 1974, 1975 and 1981 Hölzenbein won the DFB Cup with the SGE and the UEFA Cup in 1980.
Hölzenbein plays a crucial role in the 1974 World Cup title
However, the fast, tricky striker celebrated his greatest success with the DFB team in his own country in 1974, when the Federal Republic was crowned world champion. Hölzenbein took the penalty in the final, which Paul Breitner converted to make it 1-1.
In total, the Hessian appeared 40 times with the eagle on his chest from 1973 to 1978 and scored five goals. In addition to the world championship title, Hölzenbein became European runner-up with the DFB team in 1976.
Hölzenbein was affected by a serious illness
After his time at Eintracht, the striker moved to the USA and ended his career with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers, Memphis Americans and Baltimore Blasts. In 1986, Hözenbein returned to Germany and played for the upper division club FSV Salmrohr for six months. After promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga, he ended his career.
From November 1988 to November 1994, Hölzenbein was Vice President of Eintracht Frankfurt and from December 1994 to November 1996 sports manager. In 2004, the world champion returned to the SGE and became chief scout under former board member Heribert Bruchhagen. In 2022, Hölzenbein traveled to Seville to celebrate the club's second international title win. It was his last big trip. Due to illness, he has recently been unable to follow the SGE games live on site. Nevertheless, he always remained connected to Eintracht. (
kk
)