Gerd Muller, the Germany World Cup winner, has died aged 75 after a nearly six-year battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
A statement from his former club, Bayern Munich, read: “Today the world of FC Bayern stands still. The German record champions and his entire fan base mourn Gerd Muller, who died early Sunday morning at the age of 75.”
Affectionately known as ‘Der Bomber’, Muller scored 68 goals in 62 appearances for West Germany, including the winning goal in the 1974 World Cup final, against Holland. That title came two years after Muller had helped his nation to victory in the European Championship.
During 15 years at Bayern, Muller netted a record 365 goals in 427 Bundesliga games and 66 goals in 74 European matches. He played an integral role in their rise from the German regional leagues to three consecutive European Cup triumphs from 1974. He also won the Ballon d’Or in 1970 among a host of other individual and collective awards and honors.
Bayern president Herbert Hainer said: “Today is a sad, black day for FC Bayern and all of its fans. Gerd Muller was the greatest striker there has ever been – and a fine person, a personality in world football. We are united in deep sorrow with his wife Uschi and his family.
“Without Gerd Muller, FC Bayern would not be the club we all love today. His name and the memory of him will live on forever.”
After claiming the World Cup for Germany on home soil, Muller abruptly announced his retirement from international football at the age of just 28.
Although he continued to succeed with Bayern, he became increasingly unsettled, and in 1979 opted to follow Franz Beckenbauer to the United States, where he signed for the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.
He played three seasons in the US and opened a restaurant, before announcing his retirement in 1982.
Muller struggled in his post-football career, and entered a clinic for alcohol dependency after the intervention of one of his World Cup-winning team-mates, Uli Hoeness.
Hoeness subsequently became the general manager at Bayern and brought Muller back to the club as coach of the Bayern Munich II team.
Shortly before his 70th birthday in 2015, Bayern announced that Muller had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. He is survived by wife Uschi and daughter Nicole.
