BAYERN GAME
February 2025
The golden axis: Maier, Beckenbauer and Müller.
1962— FC Bayern play in Europe for the first time. In the Fairs Cup, a precursor to the Europa League, the Bavarians make it to the quarter-finals before being knocked out by Dinamo Zagreb.
1963— The Bundesliga is founded, but FC Bayern are not selected as founder members. The club protests: the selection is based on performances stretching back over the previous 12 years, meaning there is a place for a team like VfB Stuttgart, who in recent years consistently finished behind FCB but who had earlier been successful. Protesting does no good. FCB go on to play in the second tier, the Regionalliga Süd.
1964— FC Bayern sign a young striker from TSV Nördlingen who has scored 45 goals in 28 games. FCB pay a transfer fee of DM4,400 for Gerd Müller and a further DM5,000 to the Müller family, snapping him up ahead of TSV 1860, who are also interested.
1965— With the new axis of Sepp Maier, Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Müller, the team achieve promotion to the Bundesliga with ease. The final goal difference of 146 goals scored and only 32 conceded is quite simply outstanding.
1966— Robert Schwan is named the first professional general manager in German football. A groundbreaking decision for the league and for the club, who win the DFB Cup again.
1967— In the 109th minute of the European Cup Winners‘ Cup final,“ Bulle“ Roth lobs the ball over the Glasgow Rangers keeper and Bayern win 1-0. The men from Munich lift their first European silverware, as well as the DFB Cup again.
1968— Branko Zebec succeeds Tschik Čajkovski as coach. Unlike his predecessor, he is a hard taskmaster and the players are made to suffer in training, which ultimately pays off. With Zebec, FC Bayern‘ s game becomes more athletic, controlled and systematic.
1969— FC BAYERN DOMINATE THE LEAGUE AND ARE CHAMPIONS WITH AN EIGHT-POINT LEAD. THEY ALSO BEAT SCHALKE 2-1 IN THE DFB CUP FINAL, SECURING THEIR FIRST DOUBLE.
1970— Udo Lattek starts his first tenure as FC Bayern head coach. Two 18-year-olds, Uli Hoeneß and Paul Breitner, are also brought in. In the same year, the women‘ s football section is founded.
1971— FC Bayern beat Borussia Dortmund 11-1 on 27 November. It is the club‘ s biggest Bundesliga victory to date. Gerd Müller scores four of the 11 goals.
1972— FC Bayern play their first match at the Olympiastadion on 28 June, beating Schalke 5-1 in front of 80,000 spectators to clinch the title ahead of the team from Gelsenkirchen.
1973— The first East vs. West German clash in the European Cup takes place on 24 October. FC Bayern narrowly beat Dynamo Dresden 4-3 in the first leg of the round of 16. Uli Hoeneß is the man of the moment in the second leg in Dresden, scoring two goals and setting up Gerd Müller for another in the 3-3 draw.
1974— WITH SECONDS TO GO, ATLÉTICO MADRID ARE 1-0 UP AND THE EUROPEAN CUP FINAL APPEARS TO BE LOST FOR FC BAYERN – UNTIL GEORG SCHWARZENBECK TAKES AIM FROM 25 METRES OUT AND EQUALISES. TWO DAYS LATER BAYERN WIN THE REPLAY 4-0 AND ARE CROWNED KINGS OF EUROPE.
18 FC Bayern Magazine