German football mourns the loss of world champion Andreas Brehme. The winning goalscorer from the 1990 World Cup final against Argentina died of a heart attack on Tuesday night at the age of just 63. After the death of the then coach Franz Beckenbauer a few weeks ago, Brehme is the first player from the former squad who is no longer alive.
Brehme’s former football clubs reacted to the death with deep sadness. “FC Bayern is deeply shocked by the sudden death of Andreas Brehme,” said the Munich team: “We will always keep Andreas Brehme in our hearts – as a world champion and even more so as a very special person. He will always be part of the FC Bayern family. Rest in peace, dear Andi!”
In 1987, Brehme won the German championship with FC Bayern, which he also achieved sensationally in 1998, in the last year of his playing career, with the then Bundesliga promoted team 1. FC Kaiserslautern.
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“The FCK mourns the loss of Andreas Brehme,” wrote the Palatinate team. “He wore the Red Devils jersey for a total of ten years and became German champion and cup winner with FCK. In 1990 he shot the German national team to the World Cup title with his penalty and finally became a football legend.” The club also posted pictures of Brehme showing him as a player and coach at FCK.
“A World Cup hero has left us”
The Hamburg native left a big mark abroad, especially in Italy. “A great player, a great Interista. Ciao Andi, forever a legend,” wrote Inter Milan, where Brehme became champions (1989) and UEFA Cup winners (1991) together with his national team colleagues Lothar Matthäus and Jürgen Klinsmann.
1989: Lothar Matthäus, Jürgen Klinsmann and Andreas Brehme (from left) in the Inter jersey
Those: Getty Images/Alessandro Sabattini
“A young Hamburger and World Cup hero has left us,” wrote Hamburger SV, where Brehme once took part in a trial training session but was never under contract. “We express our condolences and sympathy to the family, relatives and friends. May “Andi” rest in peace!”
Further reaction to the death of Andreas Brehme
Pierre Littbarski, 1990 world champion: “It is extremely sad and the second stroke of fate in such a short time for the 1990 world champions. We have lost two absolutely lovely people. We played football together and against each other, so of course there is a deep bond.”
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Uli Hoeneß, Honorary President of FC Bayern: “I am incredibly saddened by this shocking news. None of us will ever forget Andreas Brehme – because he is more than a 1-0 win in the World Cup final in Rome. We have lost a great person and a loyal friend.”
Bodo Illgner, world champion in 1990: “I’m totally shocked. In such a short time, first Franz and now Andi. This is madness. I am at a loss for words. 63 is not an age. Andi was always in a good mood, always with a casual saying on his lips. I only saw him a little angry once: During the 1990 World Cup, Litti borrowed his car to drive with us from Erba to Milan for dinner – but without asking Andy. That was his new Mercedes SL, which he had probably just gotten.”
Preparation for the 1986 World Cup: Rummenigge on the ball, Brehme in the background
Source: picture-alliance/dpa/Wulf Pfeiffer
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, FC Bayern supervisory board: “I am deeply affected and shocked by the news of Andi Brehme’s death. We played the 1986 World Cup together in Mexico and Andi was a great team player, extremely loyal and reliable. His joy for life was always contagious, and the fact that he had to leave us at the age of 63 makes me very sad.”
Rudi Völler, 1990 world champion: “Andy was our World Cup hero, but for me even more – he was my close friend and companion to this day. I will miss his wonderful joy of life. My thoughts are now with his surviving relatives, his friends, and especially with his two sons. I wish them all a lot of strength.”
Walter Zenga, former teammate and captain at Inter Milan: “You left us too soon, my friend, but I know that you will protect us from up there and as always you will stand there and take the penalties, one with your right and one with your left. Have a safe journey my friend, rest in peace, I won’t tell you that I’m crying because I know you would hug me and say, “Come on Walter, I’m here, Ciao Andy”.”
Herbert Hainer, President of FC Bayern: “The news of Andreas Brehme’s death is a shock for FC Bayern and all German football fans. Andreas Brehme made history and will forever be our 1990 world champion. He was a down-to-earth person and someone you could always rely on. He will always be part of the FC Bayern family. Our deepest condolences go out to his family, loved ones and friends.”
Reiner Calmund, long-time manager of Bayer Leverkusen: “This is a very sad day for German football. I will always associate Andi Brehme with three events: Of course, the penalty in the World Cup final, which I saw live in the stadium in Rome. And then this rollercoaster of emotions in 1996: He and Lautern were relegated due to the 1-1 draw against us in Leverkusen, which meant we stayed in the league. Andi and Rudi Völler are crying in each other’s arms in the TV studio. I was standing just a few meters away. Two days later they were both in each other’s arms again at Rudi’s farewell game and celebrated late into the night.”
Bernd Neuendorf, DFB President: “German football owes him so much. Along with Mario Götze, Gerd Müller and Helmut Rahn, he is one of the four German players who helped our national team win the World Cup. His nerves and strength in the duel, his two-footedness, his crosses, his passes, his commitment – all of that made him special, all of that gave us so much joy and so many great moments.”
