Bavarian stalwart
November 27, 2009
Hugely popular with fans of his own club, if not with those of others, Ulrich "Uli" Hoeness is a byword for survival and success.
As a left-sided outside forward he was faster than so many of his colleagues, and never really slowed down in the world of professional football even after injury made his career as a player shorter than it might have been.
Born in Ulm, Hoeness began his career with his hometown team and later joined Bayern Munich, staying with that club for a decade.
It was to be the start of a golden era for the club on the biggest stage, with three European Cup wins, as well as the Intercontinental Cup. Domestically, there were three football league championships and one German Cup win.
In 250 Bundesliga matches, he scored 86 goals.
Club highlights
Perhaps the highlight of his club career was in the 1974 European Cup replay against Atletico Madrid. It was among his most outstanding performances and featured two memorable goals.
He played 35 times for the German national side, clinching the 1972 European Football Championship before succeeding in winning the ultimate prize, a 1974 World Cup win against Holland in Munich.
But in a 1975 final, against Leeds, he suffered a knee injury that was to blight the rest of his career as a player and lead to its premature end at the age of 27.
The latter part of his Bayern career, following his injury, was spent away from the club, on loan to FC Nuremberg.
Further successes
In 1979, he was made manager of Bayern Munich and was to preside over further success at the club with 16 league wins throughout the 1980s and 1990s and into the new millennium. There were nine German cups and six German league cups.
Internationally, his achievements were humbler. There was a European Champions League win in 2001, followed by the World Club Championship. The club was also UEFA Cup winner in 1996.
As well as being a survivor as a manager in the cut-throat world of professional soccer, he also famously survived a propeller plane crash in 1982 on the way to watch an international match in Hanover.
Hoeness' period as a manager comes to an end as he is elected president of the club, replacing football icon Franz Beckenbauer. Beckenbauer will assume the position of honorary president.
rc/dpa/AFP
Editor: Kyle James