Highlights

  • Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller, and Lothar Matthäus are among the greatest players in German football history.
  • Beckenbauer was a defensive talent and won the World Cup as both a player and manager.
  • Müller is the World Cup's greatest goalscorer, while Matthäus is Germany's most capped player and an icon of the sport.

Germany are one of the most successful nations in football history with stars from every generation oozing out of Die Mannschaft’s ears – and while the current crop have relatively underwhelmed, it always seems that another triumph on the sport’s biggest stage for the talent-laced nation that is Germany is just around the corner.

Having been crowned World Cup champions on four occasions, Julian Nagelsmann will be looking to add to that tally at FIFA’s 23rd edition in 2026. They won their first World Cup title in 1954 and have followed that success up with triumphs in 1974, 1990 and 2014, but that wonderful trophy – mooted by so many – has evaded them for a decade now.

They have boasted some eye-catching talent over the years, haven’t they? From those that were plying their trade during their first World Cup triumph in 1954 such as Fritz Walter, to the likes of Thomas Müller, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Miroslav Klose, a trio of players who were heavily involved in their most recent triumph.

But who are the greatest players in German football history? Taking into account longevity, silverware (both domestic and collective) and their overall influence on the game, GIVEMESPORT have answered – or at least tried to – that very question. Let’s run through the top 10 below – and strap in, there are some big names that narrowly miss out.

1 Franz Beckenbauer

Caps: 103, Goals: 14

Franz Beckenbauer

The undisputed top choice. Franz Beckenbauer, more affectionally known as 'Der Kaiser', was a defensive talent like no other. Credited with being the pioneer of the ‘libero’ position, the centre-half was often tasked with ushering between the defence and goalkeeper – and, you guessed it, he mastered it.

Winning the World Cup both as a player and manager is relatively unheard of but Beckenbauer did just that, while also adding a Ballon d’Or gong to his trophy cabinet on two different occasions, in 1972 and 1976. Collectively for Bayern Munich, he was classed as a mainstay during some of their most prominent times with three Champions League trophies to his name. A true footballing great.

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2 Gerd Müller

Caps: 62, Goals: 68

Known as the World’s Cup greatest goalscorer, Gerd Muller was lethalness personified. The German simply did what he was paid to do much better than everyone else: score sheer amounts of goals. Scoring international 68 goals in 62 games is, of course, impressive, but that return is dwarfed by his domestic free-scoring habits. That’s right – he was a pure statistics machine.

Between 1964-1979, Muller helped himself to an eye-watering 563 goals and duly became Bayern Munich’s all-time goalscorer, with the majority of people under the impression that it is a record that may never be usurped. Nicknamed 'Der Bomber' for his ability to terrorise defences with his strength, power and speed, Muller can be considered the greatest goalscorer in German football folklore.

3 Lothar Matthäus

Caps: 150, Goals: 23

Lothar Matthaus

Lothar Matthäus, despite retiring in 2000, remains Germany's most capped player ever with 150 appearances – a true testament to the Erlagen-born star’s midfield excellence. Matthaus typically embodied the workmanship nature of the box-to-box midfielder and managed to notch over 200 goals in his career.

Having won the Ballon d’Or in 1990, the World Cup the same year and countless trophies with Bayern Munich, he is considered – by GIVEMESPORT - an ‘icon of the sport’. And he frankly deserves all the recognition he gets given he cemented himself as a starter in the Bavaria engine room for many years, while subsequently providing ample silverware – kudos to you, Lothar.

Germany's top 5 appearance holders (as of 09/01/24)

Rank

Player

Apperances

1.

Lothar Matthäus

150

2.

Miroslav Klose

137

3.

Lukas Podolski

130

4.

Thomas Müller

126

5.

Bastian Schweinsteiger

121

Per Transfermarkt

4 Philipp Lahm

Caps: 113, Goals: 5

Philipp Lahm

Included in an XI of players who placed loyalty over money, Philipp Lahm was the perfect professional. Perhaps diminutive in size, the fact that Lahm had the heart of a lion boosted his career tenfold. A dependable full-back throughout the entirety of his lengthy career, the versatile monster made the successful transition to midfield at Bayern Munich under Pep Guardiola.

But that was not the end of Lahm’s bag of tricks. Potentially able to play in every single position of the pitch if asked to, Philip Lahm was the perfect utility man for any manager he played under. He played 113 times for Germany, all while plundering 652 domestic outings across stints for Bayern Munich and VfB Stuttgart.

5 Sepp Maier

Caps: 95, Clean Sheets: 43

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While Manuel Neuer and Oliver Kahn are both typical household names in the football echo chamber, it was Sepp Maier who was first off the conveyor belt of goalkeeping talent from Germany – and he duly set the benchmark very high for the aforementioned duo of shot-stoppers, hence the bog-standard nickname of ‘The Cat’.

A one-club man with Bayern Munich, Maier enjoyed an 18-year career between the posts for the German behemoths and won the German Footballer of the Year award three times as a testament to his brilliance. He kept four clean sheets as West Germany lifted the World Cup in 1974 and was considered the most outstanding goalkeeper of the 1970s.

6 Fritz Walter

Caps: 61, Goals: 33

Fritz Walter had the armband wrapped around his bicep as he spearheaded (West) Germany to their first World Cup triumph way back in 1954 – that’s enough to be considered one of the country’s greatest, isn’t it? Often picking up pockets behind the target man, the attacking midfielder proved his potency with 33 strikes in 61 international outings.

Born in Kaiserslautern, his boyhood and hometown club was the only team that Walter earned his corn for, with him scoring a highly impressive 357 goals in 364 outings for them. The adored German now has an award in his name, which is handed out to the finest youth footballers in the whole of Deutschland.

7 Uwe Seeler

Caps: 72, Goals: 43

Uwe Seeler was scoring copious amounts of goals before it was cool and trendy and it’s fair to say that he was the main man of German football in the 1960s. The three-time German footballer of the Year – in 1960, 1964 and 1970 - scored a whopping 490 times in 580 games for Hamburger SV and now has a statue of his bare right foot outside their stomping ground, Volksparkstadion.

That just goes to show his importance to the game, right? Seeler’s potency drove his side to an unforeseen German title in 1960 and a DFB-Pokal trophy just three years following. For his nation, he scored 43 goals in 72 outings but never managed to get his hands on the all-important World Cup.

8 Miroslav Klose

Caps: 137, Goals: 71

Miroslav Klose

He just had to make it in. A goal machine and revered around the world for his undying efficiency, Klose is the top goalscorer in World Cup finals history, having hit the back of the net 16 times in 24 games, while remaining his nation’s all-time top goalscorer with 71.

Albeit respectable, the Poland-born gem’s domestic career – largely spent at Bayern Munich and Lazio - is typically overshadowed by his exploits on the international scene, though he does have 256 goals and 134 assists to show over his 666-game domestic career. It’s his international dominance that sees him pip some legends to this list.

Germany's all-time top goalscorers (as of 09/01/24)

Rank

Player

Goals

1.

Miroslav Klose

71

2.

Gerd Müller

68

3.

Lukas Podolski

49

4.

Rudi Völler

47

5.

Jurgen Klinsmann

47

Per Transfermarkt

9 Karl-Heinz Rummenigge

Caps: 95, Goals: 45

Following in the footsteps of Walter and Seeler is no easy feat – just ask Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who had a lot of pressure on his shoulders upon his introduction in the international set-up. The 95-cap German, now on the board at Bayern Munich, did not wilt, however, and instead became one of the country’s most prolific goalscorers.

He had that innate eye for goal, one that saw him score 45 goals for his nation. Of course, his return is bettered but there was something about Rummenigge – a sort of elegance and poise that he harboured from within. Across three World Cup campaigns, he scored nine goals, which included a hat-trick in 1982. Just like Seeler, however, he never managed to taste World Cup glory like many others on this list.

10 Manuel Neuer

Caps: 137, Clean Sheets: 48

Manuel Neuer

An incredible shot-stopper but also highly competent with the ball at his feet, Manuel Neuer is still going strong in his late 30s – and is, scarily, showing no signs of slowing down. Of course, goalkeepers typically tend to stick around for a tad longer, but it takes a special breed of talent to still be this good at such a tender age.

At the peak of his powers, there was just no-one that came close to his exploits – especially with his involvement in the sweeper-keeper role. Neuer - football's highest-earning goalkeeper - was not the inventor, of course, but instead someone who mastered the craft and subsequently became a trailblazer.