Allianz Arena now officially at 'Franz-Beckenbauer-Platz 5'

Franz Beckenbauer has now officially been given his very own place in Munich, just as he has in the hearts of all FC Bayern fans and football lovers: in one of those places where the memory of the Kaiser is particularly alive. In the presence of around 80 invited guests, including companions such as honorary president Uli Hoeneß and supervisory board member Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Munich's Mayor Dieter Reiter, together with Heidi Beckenbauer, club president Herbert Hainer and CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen unveiled the signpost in the area in front of the Allianz Arena. From now on, visitors to the stadium will cross Franz-Beckenbauer-Platz 5 before FC Bayern's home matches.  

Wherever Beckenbauer went, everyone wanted a piece of him, Hainer recalled in his speech: “Nevertheless, he always kept an eye on the little ones who stood on the sidelines. Franz's legacy is that you always have to make time for the person standing next to you. No matter how hectic it may be.” It was therefore “only logical that the City of Munich should name a square after Franz”, said the president. “Not a simple street, because he never went in one direction. Nor an imperial avenue, because he was never interested in splendour. He always had an eye for open space, for the wide world, for the bigger picture. With Franz Beckenbauer, every person always had a place – their place. Everyone should always remember that when they take selfies under the sign.”

It’s now just over a year since “we said farewell to Franz Beckenbauer at the Allianz Arena. This year he would have turned 80 on 11 September, and today we are here to bestow the highest honour on the legendary number 5 that his home city of Munich can bestow posthumously,” described Reiter. “The naming of the area around the Allianz Arena as Franz-Beckenbauer-Platz 5 is a sign of our deepest respect and appreciation.” It is “a worthy and living reminder of a man to whom Munich owes a great deal. Beckenbauer was Munich's ambassador to the world,” continued the mayor. “With him, you could always feel where he had his roots.”

Among the guests were wife Heidi and son Joel Beckenbauer as well as other family members, deputy CEO Michael Diederich, board member for sport Max Eberl, sporting director Christoph Freund and numerous former colleagues such as Sepp Maier, Paul Breitner, Norbert Janzon, Ludwig Landerer, Klaus Augenthaler, Lothar Matthäus, Hans Pflügler, Raimond Aumann, Eduard Kirschner, Gerd Müller’s widow Uschi, and long-time coach Hermann Gerland. The management advisory board and board of honour were also represented, as were Heiner Jüngling (member number 1) and FC Bayern Basketball managing director Adrian Sarmiento, plus several members of the city council.

Hainer began by asking the audience how to begin a speech in honour of a man about whom so much has already been said: “So much has already been said about Franz because he has touched us all beyond measure. And so with people like him, it's no longer a question of what you say about them. It's that we all realise again and again how much they have touched us.” Without Beckenbauer, the Allianz Arena would probably not exist but if someone had told him about it as a child, he would probably have just waved it off in his typical way, said Hainer. “Franz had that typical, dry Munich humour: charming, slightly self-deprecating, never arrogant,” he reflected. “And the fact that he would have chuckled about something like the Allianz Arena as a child says a lot about the times we are talking about. Franz grew up in Giesing's post-war rubble – and while he rose to become ‘Kaiser’ worldwide, he always kept his feet on the ground.”

Beckenbauer would certainly have smiled at today's date, too, Hainer surmised: “We are opening Franz-Beckenbauer-Platz 5 in reference to his legendary shirt number – on 5 May 2025. As always, everything fits together to form a coherent whole, even the smallest detail. The 5th of May is a date like Franz himself: it stands out, stays in the mind – and stands for the lightness of spring, of new beginnings, of life. The perfect Franz Beckenbauer day!”

The members of FC Bayern decided to retire Beckenbauer’s shirt number 5, the president recalled: “Since the beginning of the year, a huge jersey number 5 has been hanging under the roof inside the stadium as a sign of his uniqueness. Beckenbauer is thus part of the Südkurve, part of the fans, part of the club. In other stadiums, you look up at the scoreboard – we look up at Franz. His jersey above our heads, his spirit among us and always in the game: he is here, at home at FC Bayern. Beckenbauer was welcome all over the world, and the only Kaiser to be recognised in Haferl shoes.”

Reiter had experienced Beckenbauer personally as a young player in the stadium at Grünwalder Straße, and later got to know him as president, honorary president and chairman of the supervisory board of FC Bayern. “No matter what role he fulfilled, Franz Beckenbauer was always one of us,” said the mayor. Soon there will be a monument to Beckenbauer in front of the Allianz Arena next to the statue of Gerd Müller, made possible by the Kurt Landauer Foundation. “The memory of Franz Beckenbauer is alive worldwide, here it is at the centre of football events,” Reiter added. “Dahoam in Munich and at the arena. He would like that.” Hainer concluded: “Munich is beautiful – and thanks to Franz, world-class. The memory remains of a man who went from being a simple boy from Giesing, a Munich boy, to a Kaiser for the whole world – without ever having put a crown on his head.”