Bernd Hölzenbein passes away | OneFootball

Eintracht Frankfurt is mourning the loss of World Cup winner and honorary club captain Bernd Hölzenbein. “Holz”, as he was affectionately known, passed away on Monday at the age of 78, surrounded by his family.

After the deaths of Bernd Nickel (2021) and Jürgen Grabowski (2022), the third member of Eintracht’s legendary trio of attackers – Bernd Hölzenbein – has gone to join his teammates, passing away on 15 April 2024. As a player, he won four trophies with Eintracht, and his record of 160 Bundesliga goals for the club may well never be equalled.

“Bernd Hölzenbein had a huge influence on Eintracht for almost 60 years,” said an emotional Axel Hellmann. “He was part of the golden generation of the 1970s, the UEFA Cup win in 1980‚ and the ‘Football 2000’ era that we as a club played at the start of the 1990s, during which time he was vice-president. In Bernd, we are losing not only one of the club’s biggest icons, but also a loyal colleague and a dear friend,” the CEO added.

Hölzenbein won the DFB Cup with Eintracht in 1974, 1975 and 1981 and the UEFA Cup in 1980. In total he scored 215 goals in 532 competitive appearances for the club. In the 1976/77 season, he scored 26 goals in the Bundesliga – a record which stood until recently when André Silva overtook him with 28. His 160 career Bundesliga goals remain an Eintracht record, though. He called time on his career in Germany in 1981 after the DFB Cup win and moved to the USA, where he turned out for Fort Lauderdale Strikers, Memphis Americans and Baltimore Blast.

He was elected as vice-president of Eintracht in 1988. During his tenure, the club experienced an upswing in fortunes on the pitch, with Hölzenbein playing a significant role in putting together the team which played the much-vaunted ‘Football 2000’ style of play.

In 2022, Hölzenbein was present at the Europa League final in Seville and got to celebrate the club’s second European trophy, 42 years after lifting the UEFA Cup himself before handing it over to the man he had deputised for as captain – the injured Jürgen Grabowski. That was to be his last great trip with his beloved Eintracht, but while illness prevented him from attending matches over the last few years of his life, he maintained close ties with the club until his final days.

“Bernd Hölzenbein was a hero for countless football fans throughout Germany, but he never lost the common touch,” said club president Mathias Beck. “Our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time. And despite the grief that we are all feeling, we are both proud and grateful that Bernd devoted so much of his life to Eintracht.”

A winner on the international, domestic and European stage, and a great sportsman: rest in peace, Bernd Hölzenbein.