Franz Beckenbauer's Column in the Daily "Kompas": What's Wrong with Germany?

After playing and coaching, Beckenbauer shares his knowledge through writing, including for a column in the daily "Kompas".

The following article was translated using both Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI. The original article can be found in Kolom Franz Beckenbauer di Harian ”Kompas”: Ada Apa dengan Jerman?

AP/FILE

Captain of the West German team, Franz Beckenbauer, lifted the trophy for the 1974 World Cup at the Munich Olympic Stadium in Germany on July 7, 1974. Beckenbauer, who had won the World Cup as both a player and a coach, passed away at the age of 78 on Sunday, January 7, 2024.

The world of football lost one of its legends, Franz Beckenbauer (78), who died in his sleep, Sunday (7/1/2024). After playing and coaching, when he presented the World Cup title for Germany, Beckenbauer shared his knowledge throughout the world through writings, including for the football column in the daily Kompas.

The last column by Beckenbauer was published on July 11, 2016. Here is one of the columns by the legend that was published in Kompas daily edition on Wednesday, February 23, 2005, on page 44:

What's wrong with Germany?

Wherever I go, people always ask, "What's up with Germany?" At first, I was ashamed to face the fact that, far from the German borders, people were still talking about events in German soccer.

Also read: Franz Beckenbauer, a rare figure who changed the face of football, passes away

Long before the referee scandal surfaced, I was already greatly burdened by my position as Chairman of the 2006 World Cup Organizing Committee. In Germany, the position was truly burdensome due to the power struggles within the German Football Federation (DFB). However, that problem was relatively lighter compared to the referee scandal.

AP/FILE

German soccer legend Franz Beckenbauer (left) in action for the New York Cosmos team during an MLS soccer league match in East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA, in a May 1, 1983 archive photo.

Long before the referee scandal broke out, everything actually ran smoothly. In relation to the preparations for the 2006 World Cup, we were able to complete various plans according to schedule. We, the German nation, were able to maintain our reputation as a very good organizer.

In the next three months, the Allianz Arena Stadium will be opened. The stadium situated in Munich is planned to become the venue for the opening ceremony of the World Cup on June 9, 2006.

However, since Germany was eliminated early in the 2006 European Cup, it seems that we have been hit by a series of disasters. First, we were shocked by Rudi Voeller's resignation as the national team coach. Then, another surprise came with Otto Rehhagel's rejection to coach Germany. Rehhagel is the person who successfully led Greece to become the champion of Euro 2004.

KOMPAS

One of Franz Beckenbauer's writings published in the dailyKompas, edition of Wednesday, February 23 2005.

Ottmar Hitzfeld, who we then offered the position of coach to, also refused. Another surprise. Fortunately, we finally found Juergen Klinsmann, a person who finally agreed to replace Voeller's position.

However, another problem has hit us with the decision of the DFB congress to appoint the duo of Dr Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder and Dr Theo Zwanziger as the President of the DFB. FIFA President Sepp Blatter was spot on in stating that this duo will not work optimally, and will even be counterproductive. Blatter aptly analogized that Germany will not benefit from having two chancellors in government.

AP

The 1974 World Cup final between Germany and the Netherlands. West Germany, as it was called at the time, became world champion after winning 2-1.

Indeed, there is no country in this world that is governed by two heads of state. On paper, perhaps it could exist. However, in practice, such a system will never work. For the past six months, I have been a victim of leadership duality within the DFB. Therefore, we in German football must quickly return the situation to normal. The reason is simple. The DFB has more than six million members. With such a large number of members, we cannot continue to be in this strange situation indefinitely.

The first and foremost thing we must do is to address the referee scandal that has marred the reputation of Germany. I am still able to find some joy in the fact that only a small fraction of clubs in the Bundesliga have been affected by or linked to this scandal. Nevertheless, with an alleged 63 matches in the competition, the League Cup, Division I, and Division II being contaminated by the scandal, this number is difficult to tolerate.

Truly a black mark on the face of German football with what referee Robert Hoyzer, hailing from Berlin, has done. This is a crime against football that can never be forgiven. The only good thing about this case is that he immediately admitted to his actions.

In other European countries, particularly in Italy, football gambling scandals have long been rampant and some have already been sanctioned. However, in DFB, gambling is a completely new territory.

In Germany, the pressure on referees to always perform perfectly is very high. This pressure does not increase accuracy and perfection, but rather makes it counterproductive and leads to more mistakes.

KOMPAS/KARTONO RYADI

Coach of West Germany Franz Beckenbauer with his players prior to the presentation of the 1990 Italy World Cup trophy.

Therefore, the thing that we need to immediately fix is to restore the confidence of the referees. We ourselves have referees who are truly of high quality, such as Dr. Markus Merk who was recently elected as the best referee of the year 2004.

When a player scores an own goal, it is something very common in my career journey as a footballer, and it is quickly forgotten. However, if a referee makes a fatal mistake, the case can be talked about for months on end, and people continue to remember it.

For me, once again, what is important now is to focus again on preparations for the World Cup and the closest major event, the Confederations Cup this summer. It is these two events that should now be the subject of conversation rather than criminal scandals which in most cases match fixing are controlled by the mafia.

I also want to urge coaches to control substitute players who tend to get involved in heated situations when the referee makes a decision.

However, I also urge players to not provoke the audience when celebrating a goal. Mocking opposing supporters goes against the spirit of sportsmanship. Aside from respecting the audience, they should also respect the referee.

AFP

Legendary German football player, Franz Beckenbauer, posed in Paris, France, in a photo dated February 21st, 1977.

Therefore, I disagree with the many voices that want video technology to be incorporated into the referee's decision-making on the field. Football is a flowing game and if it has to be interrupted by video, the ball will stop rolling. The game will be awkward.

Football is made beautiful by referees acting as conductors for the flow of the game. The movements of the players and the path of the ball create a symphony that makes football so popular.

The beauty of it is what makes me eagerly await the round of 16 of the Champions League. One match that I am particularly looking forward to is the showdown between Bayern Munich and Arsenal in London.

It is interesting to see Arsenal now frequently field their team without any local players. Moreover, Arsene Wenger is a coach whom I highly admire. I would love for him to coach at Bayern Munich and even become the manager of the German national team, if possible.

AP/FILE/MATTHIAS SCHRADER

German football legend Franz Beckenbauer is seen attending a Bundesliga match between Bayern Munich and SC Freiburg in Munich, Germany on May 20, 2017, according to archived photos.

With a number of top players from France, plus Dennis Bergkamp still showing his genius, Arsenal is a very attractive team. However, I am sure Munich can keep up. With Mehmet Scholl and Michael Ballack, as well as experienced goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, Munich is always a strong team.

I am also eagerly waiting for the performances of Real Madrid and Barcelona, two Spanish teams with a glorious history. Hopefully, their performances will momentarily divert attention from the referee scandal that has caused me to lose face.