Almost everybody knows Franz Beckenbauer. Ludwig Landerer is not as well-known, but before Beckenbauer began his great career at FC Bayern, Landerer organised the FCB defence. The former Bayern captain turns 80 on Thursday: warm congratulations!
Wiggerl Landerer, born on 31 May 1937, joined FC Bayern in 1953. Local rivals TSV 1860 München were also interested, but Landerer opted for Bayern: "I liked the name: Bayern, like the state. 60 was only a number for me."
After playing for the youth team for a year he joined the first team, making his debut in February 1955, a 3-1 reverse away to Jahn Regensburg. FCB were relegated to Oberliga Süd 2 at the end of the season, with Landerer making nine appearances in the German top tier at that time.
Bayern were promoted to the Oberliga a year later. Landerer was named captain and crowned his seven-year spell at Bayern with the DFB Cup triumph as the Reds won the domestic knock-out competition for the first time on 29 December 1957, beating Fortuna Düsseldorf 1-0.
Landerer left Bayern for TSG Ulm 1846 after 101 Oberliga appearances and 29 second-tier matches. He later played for Eintracht Frankfurt, FSV Frankfurt and ESV München (as a player-coach), making a total of 22 appearances in the Bundesliga, which was founded in 1963. Landerer hung up his boots at the age of 29 due to a stubborn knee problem.
Today Landerer is FC Bayern's member number 20. Five other players from the team that won the cup in 1957 are still alive, Landerer talks to them on the phone every now and then. The milestone man can be seen at the Säbener Strasse on a regular basis and still plays football as a hobby. Happy Birthday, Wiggerl Landerer!
Topics of this article