Honour to whom honour is due! FC Bayern goalkeeping legend Sepp Maier was awarded the Bavarian Order of Merit by Minister President Markus Söder on Thursday. "I'm very proud to finally be a real Bavarian," said the German record champions' long-serving number one in his usual humorous manner. After all, such an honour is part and parcel of being a true Bavarian, continued Maier, who also added: "If anyone deserves it, then it's my wife, because she always looks after me so well."
Maier kept goal for FC Bayern in 709 competitive matches over 17 years, making him the club's record player. With the men from Munich, he celebrated four league championships, four DFB Cup victories and three European Cup triumphs. He also won the World Cup and European Championship with the German national team. Thanks to his likeable nature, "the cat from Anzing", as he was nicknamed, was one of the best-known and most popular footballers of his generation. In February, Maier celebrated his 80th birthday and was honoured by FC Bayern with a special exhibition in the club museum.
The Bavarian Order of Merit
The Bavarian Order of Merit has been awarded since June 1957 "as a sign of honourable and grateful recognition for outstanding services to the Free State of Bavaria and the Bavarian people". It is considered the most exclusive award in the Free State, as according to the ordinance, there can only be 2,000 living medal holders at any one time. Two years ago, FC Bayern's long-serving team manager Kathleen Krüger was awarded the Bavarian Order of Merit; previous recipients include Manuel Neuer (2021), Thomas Müller (2019) and Bastian Schweinsteiger (2018).
We looked back over Sepp Maier's unique career in this 80th birthday documentary:
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