Hailed as one the greatest players in the history of the game, the authoritative German dominated the national squad throughout the 1970s.
He became the first man to captain and manage a World Cup Squad. As a player in1974, he led hosts West Germany to a 2-1 victory over Holland in the final.
And at the 1990 finals as a manager, he led Germany from the bench. In a hard fought, ugly match vs Argentina, the unified German team won 1-0.
In his heyday, Beckenbauer played in the distinctive sweeper role.
He played most of his top class football with Bavarian giants Bayern Munich, leading the club to be one of the most feared opponents. The club dominated European football during the early 1970s.
The Kaiser retired from top flight football in the early 1980s and became briefly involved in a managerial capacity with Hamburg.
His reputation as a manager spread across Europe and a number of clubs, including Marseille, hired him as a management consultant.
Beckenbauer's authority in the German game led him to be appointed coach, where he guided the squad to the finals in Italy.
After his success in Italy, he returned to his roots with Bayern where he took up a post as a general manager, before moving upstairs as club president.
Prior to 95/96 season's UEFA Cup final against Bordeaux, he sacked coach Otto Renhagel and took over the job himself. Bayern subsequently won the trophy.