Exit of Two Football Legends

The exit of legendary, “The Professor” and “The Emperor” marks a turning point in football history


The month of January 2024, will remain indelible in the consciousness of football enthusiasts. It was a dawn in football history as two great legends who played prominent role in shaping the story of the round-leather game bow down to the cold hands of death. As football greats, they both achieved a rare feat that underscored their greatness. Brazil’s Mario Zagallo, who died on January 5, aged 92, and Germany’s Franz Beckenbaeur, who died on January 7, aged 78, are two among three football legends that achieved the great feat of winning the World Cup, as player and as manager. The only other person that has such privileged record is France’s Didier Deschamps.

Zagallo won the prestigious title as a player in 1958 and 1962, and as manager in 1970. He also won the 1994 FIFA World Cup as assistant manager, making him the only one who had won the championship as a player and as a manager more than once. He joined Brazilian side Flamengo as a teenager in 1950, joined Botafogo in 1958, and played for the club until his retirement in 1965. As a forward, he was skillful and adaptable.

He was a member of the Brazilian squad for the 1958 FIFA World Cup in Sweden, and scored a goal in Brazil’s 5-2 win against the host country in the final. In 1962, he was in the Brazil team that successfully defended their World Cup title in Chile, beating Czechoslovakia 3-1 in the final. They became the second team to win the World Cup twice consecutively, after Italy in 1934 and 1938. No country has repeated the feat since Brazil did.

He started his managerial career at Botafogo in 1966, after he retired as a player. Shortly before the 1970 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, he was appointed as manager of the Brazil national team, which was a testimony to his managerial distinction. He proved to be the best man for the job, and led Brazil to their third title, becoming the first person to win the World Cup as a player and as a manager. He was 38 at the time, and also became the second youngest coach to win the World Cup.

Nicknamed ‘The Professor’ during his coaching career because of his expertise, he received the FIFA Order of Merit for his contributions to football, in 1992, the highest honour awarded by the international football governing body. He was named the 9th Greatest Manager of All Time by World Soccer Magazine in 2013. Zagallo belonged to the golden age of Brazilian football when the players performed magic on the field. Those who haven’t seen Brazil’s game of the 1960s and for two decades thereafter, will never be able to imagine the brand of exciting football that the team exhibited.

At the heart of Brazil’s sorcery were players such as Pele, Garrincha, Carlos Alberto, Vava, Didi, Zagallo, Djalma Santos and many others. Later their mantle fell on the shoulders of Socrates, Zico, Falcao and thereafter the magic show was carried on by Romario, Ronaldo Nazario, Ronaldinho and Roberto Carlos. Brazil seemed to have found an unending gold mine of great footballers. But the generation that started it all was Zagallo, Pele, Garrincha and the rest. Zagallo was only 5 feet 6 inches tall and had a compact physique but despite his small size he was dangerous because of his technical skills. His ball control, anticipation and work rate were outstanding. Coupled with that was his ability to make attacking runs from deep defence.

As a coach, he will always remind his players: “We must always play a beautiful game. We must not only win the Cup but we must do so with grace and artistry. That should be our trademark and it should set us apart from the rest of the world.” These words aptly sum up the Brazilian approach to football.

Once in a generation, comes great sportsman who is not only a great player but also a man with vision and foresight whose planning and deep thinking about his sport enriches the game for years to come. The above aptly describes the legendary Franz Beckenbauer who was nicknamed der Kaiser, “The Emperor” during his hey days as a footballer. He made his mark as a central defender, and was credited with the invention of the role of the modern sweeper, which requires versatility. He recreated the role, and became a model of the attacking sweeper.

He joined German club Bayern Munich in the mid-1960s. During his time there as a player, the club won the European Winners’ Cup in 1967, three league championships in a row, 1972 to 1974, and also the European Cup three times, 1974 to 1976. He was the first player to win three European Cups as captain of his club, and was twice named European Footballer of the Year. He later became manager, and then president of the club. He also played for US club New York Cosmos, and was inducted into the US National Soccer Hall of Fame. He played for West Germany in three FIFA World Cups and two European Championships. After lifting the World Cup as captain in 1974, when host West Germany defeated the Netherlands 2-1, he won the trophy again as a manager in 1990, when his country beat Argentina 1-0 in Italy.

Named in the World Team of the 20th Century in 1988, the FIFA World Cup Dream Team in 2002 and the Ballon d’Or Dream Team in 2020, Beckenbauer was listed in the FIFA 100 world’s greatest living players in 2004. Both great legends will be remembered for their real passion for football as great players and managers.