Best German goalkeepers of all time

As you already know, Germany is a country with lots of great goalkeepers. If you have a look at the different generations of footballers, you can see brilliant goalies who are German. In other words, Germany is a goalie-producing factory.

Look at the current players of the German national team. Manuel Neuer, the goalkeeper of Bayern Munich and “Die Mannschaft” who is also the captain of these teams, is without a doubt one of the

best German goalkeepers in history

.

, the goalie of Barcelona, is also one of the greatest goalkeepers today.

also plays at Arsenal and plays in Premier League, which is a high-level football league. Therefore, Mannschaft is so confident in the goal.

In the previous generations of the German national team also many outstanding goalies can be seen and we have provided a list of greatest German goalkeepers in football history.

Greatest German goalkeepers of all time

In this article today, we are going to have a look at the best German goalkeepers of all time. Stay with us and keep reading the article.

Uli Stein           

The first name on our list is Uli Stein, the former football player who was born in Hamburg in 1954. Uli started playing football as his profession at FC Wunstorf in 1973. He played there for 3 years and joined

in 1980. This brilliant goalkeeper showed up in 134 games during his 4 years at this club.

In 1980, Uli Stein moved to

, where he won the DFB Pokal title in 1987 and the Bundesliga title in 1982 and 1983. He also won the European Cup with this club in 1983. After playing in 209 matches, Uli joined

in 1987.

This former goalie played 7 years at Frankfurt, winning 1 DFB Pokal title. In 1994, Uli Stein returned to Hamburger SV and after a year, he moved to Arminia Bielefeld. After playing in VfL Pinneberg, Kickers Emden and VfB Fichte Bielefeld, Uli ended his career as a footballer in 2004.

It is interesting to know that Uli Stein, who has been selected by us as one of the best German goalkeepers of all time, was in the German squad in the 1986 World Cup, where they lost to Argentina in the final.

Tony Turek   

The next one among the

best German goalkeepers of all time

is Tony Turek, who was born in Duisburg in 1919. He started playing football when he was 10 at Duisburger SV 1900 from 1929 until 1936. Then Tony moved to TuS Duisburg 48/99 and played there until 1946.

At the age of 18, Turek joined the Wehrmacht in 1939 for the labor service and served as a motorcyclist during the attack to Poland. From 1941 until 1943, he played for TSG Ulm 1846 as a war guest player.

In 1946, this goalkeeper joined Eintracht Frankfurt and after only a year, he moved to TSG Ulm 1846, where he played until 1950. After that, Turek joined Fortuna Dusseldorf and played 133 games for them during 6 years at the club. In 1956, he moved to

and after a year, he finished his career as a footballer.

Tony Turek played as the goalkeeper of BR Germany from 1950 until 1954. He became the champion of the 1954 World Cup. This trophy was a sign of a new start for the Germans after losing World War II.

This German goalie, who is among the best German goalkeepers of all time, passed away in 1984.

Andres Kopke  

The next name among the

best German goalkeepers of all time

is Andres Kopke. This former goalie was born in Kiel in 1962. He started playing football as his career in 1967 at Holstein Kiel as a child and his senior career started in 1979. Kopke showed up at Holstein Kiel until 1983, then joined SC Charlottenburg.

After only one year, Andres moved to

, where he played for 2 years. In 1986, he joined

. This former goalie appeared in 235 matches for the club in 8 years. After that, Kopke signed with Eintracht Frankfurt, where he played until 1996. Then he joined Marseille, his only club outside of Germany.

In 1999, Andres returned to FC Nurnberg and ended his career in 2001. With the German national team, he won the 1990 World Cup and the Euro 1996.  

Jens Lehmann

is also one of the best German goalkeepers of all time. Born in Essen in 1969, he spent most of his career at

, which was his first club. Lehmann played for the Royal Blues from 1987 until 1998 and won the UEFA Cup in the 1996/97 season. Then he moved to

, where he showed up only 1 season and won the Serie A title.

In 1999, Lehmann signed with

and played there until 2003. He won the Bundesliga title in the 2001/02 season with the Blackyellows. In 2003, this brilliant goalie moved to

. With the Gunners, he won the Premier League, the FA Cup and the FA Community Shield. Arsenal made it to the final of the UEFA Champions League in the 2005/06 season, however, they lost to

.

In 2008, Jens Lehmann signed with

, where he played for 2 years. Then he moved back to Arsenal and in 2011, this goalie finished his career.

With Mannschaft, Lehmann reached the final of the 2002 World Cup, but they lost to Brazil. He also became the runner-up at Euro 2008 and reached 3rd place at the 2006 World Cup. The Germans, with Lehmann, reached 3rd place at the FIFA Confederations Cup too.

Bert Trautmann      

The next name on our list is Bert Trautmann, who was born in Bremen in 1923. He joined the Luftwaffe as a radio operator in 1941, however, he didn’t show enough suitability, so he became a paratrooper.

Trautmann was later promoted to sergeant and during the Second World War, he served in Poland, Ukraine and France. After the Allied won the war, Bert was captured and sent to Belgium and then to England. As football games were held at his camp, Trautmann started playing. He stayed in England and began his career at St Helens Town, where he played for a season.

In 1949, Trautmann moved to

, where he appeared in 508 matches during 15 years. He won the FA Cup title in the 1955/56 season with the Citizens. In 1964, this goalkeeper joined Wellington Town and finished his career as a footballer.

Though Trautmann was one of the greatest goalkeepers of his era, he never played for the German national team because of political implications. This goalie could play for the Mannschaft only if he was playing in a German league. He also wasn’t included in the German squad for the 1954 World Cup, when his countrymen won the title.

Bert Trautmann died at home in 2013 in Spain when he was 89. He had faced two heart attacks earlier in that year.

Harald Schumacher

The next footballer among the

best German goalkeepers of all time

is Harald Anton Schumacher, also called Tony Schumacher. Born in Duren in 1954, this goalie began playing football at Schwarz-Weiß Duren in 1962.

In 1972, Schumacher started his senior career at

, where he won 1 Bundesliga and 3 DFB Pokal titles. After 15 years of playing for the Billy Goats, this former footballer joined Schalke 04. He played there for 1 season and then joined

, where he won a Super Lig title,

In 1991, Schumacher signed with

, but after only one year, he went to Borussia Dortmund. This former goalie won a Bundesliga title with the Blackyellows.

Harald Schumacher played for West Germany from 1979 until 1986. He won the Euro 1980 title and reached the final in the World Cup in 1982 and 1986, but didn’t win the title.

Bodo Illgner

Bodo Illgner is also on our list for the

greatest German goalkeepers of all time

. He was born in Koblenz in 1967. This former goalie started playing football at FC Hardtberg in 1973. After playing there for 10 years, he joined FC Koln and in 1986, he started his senior career at the club.

Illgner played for the Billy Goats until 1996 and then joined

, where he won 1 La Liga title, 1 Supercopa de Espana, 2 UEFA Champions League and 1 Intercontinental Cup with the Whites.

This retired footballer was included in the Mannschaft squad from 1987 until 1994. He won the 1990 World Cup with the Germans.

Let’s continue with the other

greatest German goalkeepers in football history

.

Sepp Maier

The next goalie among the best German goalkeepers in history is “Die Katze von Anzing” (The cat from Anzig),

. He was born in Metten in 1944 and started his youth career at TSV Haar in 1952. After 7 years, this former goalkeeper moved to Bayern Munich, where he spent the rest of his career as a footballer.

Maier started his senior level in 1962 with the Bavarians and played there until he ended his career in 1980, appearing in more than 500 matches for the Reds of Munich. Having won 4 Bundesliga titles, 3 Champions League, 1 European Cup Winners’ Cup, 1 Intercontinental Cup and 4 DFB Pokal titles, he is one of the most memorable German goalkeepers in history.

Sepp Maier played for West Germany from 1966 until 1979, winning the 1974 World Cup and Euro 1972. Let’s go on with the rest of the best German goalkeepers of all time.

Oliver Kahn

The next name among the

most memorable German goalkeepers in history

is

, who is remembered for his aggressive style on the pitch, which made him earn the nickname “Der Titan” which means “The Titan”. Born in Karlsruhe in 1969, he started his career at

and played there from 1975 until 1987 at the youth level.

For his senior career, Kahn played for Karlsruher SC 1987 until 1994 and then he moved to Bayern Munich, where he spent the rest of his career until his retirement.

The Titan has won 8 Bundesliga titles, 6 DFB Pokal, 1 UEFA Cup, 1 Intercontinental Cup and 1 UEFA Champions League title with the Bavarians. He is the only goalkeeper who has become the best footballer of the World Cup. Kahn did it at the 2002 World Cup.

Oliver Kahn played for the German national team from 1995 until 2006 and won the Euro 1996 title, reached 3rd place at the FIFA Confederations Cup and World Cup 2006 and reached 2nd place at the World Cup 2002.

Manuel Neuer

The last name on our list for the best German goalkeepers of all time is

, who is called a sweeper-keeper due to his style of playing. He has a high speed in predicting the opponents and running out of the goalkeeper box.

Neuer the wall was born in Gelsenkirchen in 1986 and started his career at Schalke 04 in 1991. His senior career began in 2004 when he went to Schalke 04 II. After 2 years, this brilliant goalkeeper joined the first team. he played for the Royal Blues until 2011 and won a DFB Pokal title.

In 2011, Neuer’s story with the Reds of Munich began. He has won 9 Bundesliga titles, 5 DFB Pokal, 2 UEFA Champions League, 2 UEFA Super Cup and 2 FIFA Club World Cup titles with the Bavarians. As one of the best goalkeepers of the history of FC Bayern and the world of football, Neuer has had a great influence on the success of his club with his special style of playing.

Manuel Neuer has been playing for the Mannschaft since 2009. He was in the goal during the World Cup 2014 when the Germans became the world champions.

This was our article about the best German goalkeepers of all time. Thanks for reading. Do YOU want to add any names? Share it with us in the comments section.

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