Editing Franz Beckenbauer (section)

==International career==
Beckenbauer won 103 [[Cap (sport)|caps]] and scored 14 goals for West Germany.<ref name="FIFA profile"/> He made his debut in a World Cup qualification match against [[Sweden men's national football team|Sweden]] in [[Stockholm]] on 26 September 1965, with West Germany winning 2–1.<ref name="FIFA profile"/><ref>{{Cite web |date=26 April 2022 |title=Beckenbauers Nationalmannschaftsdebüt: "Ich war das Baby" |trans-title=Beckenbauer's national team debut: "I was the baby" |url=http://www.dfb.de/maenner-nationalmannschaft/news-detail/beckenbauers-nationalmannschaftsdebuet-ich-war-das-baby-239429/ |access-date=9 January 2024 |publisher=German Football Association |language=de}}</ref> Beckenbauer scored his first goals for the West Germany national team against the [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands]] on 23 March 1966 at [[De Kuip]], Rotterdam; he scored twice as West Germany won 4–2. He was a member of the World Cup squads that finished runners-up in 1966, third place in 1970, and champions in 1974, while also being named to the tournament all-star team in all three editions. He also won the [[1972 European Football Championship]] and finished as runners-up in the [[1976 European Football Championship|1976 edition]]. Beckenbauer became the most [[Cap (sport)|capped]] player for the German national team in 1973, he beat [[Uwe Seeler]]'s record of 72 matches and was overtaken by [[Lothar Matthäus]] in 1993.

===1966 World Cup===
{{Quote box|width=28%|align=right|quote="The message he [Beckenbauer] sent out was: 'Don't even try it. Coming out to face me is a waste of your time.'
 |source =—England 1966 World Cup legend [[Bobby Charlton]].<ref name="FIFA">{{cite web | url = https://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/players/player=25113/quotes.html | title = Franz Beckenbauer – I was there | publisher = FIFA.com | access-date = 22 May 2014 | archive-date = 22 May 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140522142538/http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/players/player=25113/quotes.html | url-status = dead }}</ref>}}

Beckenbauer appeared in his first [[FIFA World Cup|World Cup]] in [[1966 FIFA World Cup|1966]], playing every match. In his first World Cup match, against [[Switzerland national football team|Switzerland]], he scored twice in a 5–0 win.<ref name="FIFA stats"/> West Germany won their group, and then beat [[Uruguay national football team|Uruguay]] 4–0 in quarter-finals, with Beckenbauer scoring the second goal in the 70th minute.<ref name="FIFA stats">{{cite web | url = https://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/statisticsandrecords/players/player=25113/ | title = Franz BECKENBAUER | publisher = FIFA.com | access-date = 22 May 2014 | archive-date = 22 May 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140522143317/http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/statisticsandrecords/players/player=25113/ | url-status = dead }}</ref>

In the semi-finals, the Germans faced the [[USSR national football team|USSR]]; [[Helmut Haller]] opened the scoring, while Beckenbauer netted the second goal of the match, his fourth goal of the tournament, thus contributing to a 2–1 win and helping West Germany advance to the [[Wembley Stadium (1923)|Wembley Stadium]] final against hosts [[England national football team|England]].<ref name="FIFA stats"/>

He and [[Bobby Charlton]] were instructed by their respective managers to [[man-mark]] each other, thus cancelling out each other's play.<ref>{{Citation |title=Sir Bobby Charlton: The First Gentleman of Football |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p0f81tnm/sir-bobby-charlton-the-first-gentleman-of-football |access-date=23 October 2023 |language=en-GB}}</ref> England went on to win [[1966 FIFA World Cup Final|the final]] and the [[Jules Rimet Trophy]] in extra time.<ref name="FIFA profile" /> Still, Beckenbauer was nominated the [[FIFA World Cup awards#FIFA Young Player Award|Best Young Player]] of the tournament,<ref name=":1" /> while also being awarded the [[FIFA World Cup awards#Golden Boot|Bronze Boot]], together with [[Ferenc Bene]], [[Geoff Hurst]] and [[Valeriy Porkujan]].<ref name="worl_Worl" />

[[File:Franz Beckenbauer 22-6-74.png|thumb|upright|Beckenbauer [[Captain (association football)|captaining]] [[West Germany national football team|West Germany]] against [[East Germany national football team|East Germany]] at the [[1974 FIFA World Cup]]]]

===1970 World Cup===
West Germany won their first three matches before facing England in the second round in a rematch of the 1966 final. The English were ahead 2–0 in the second half, but a spectacular goal by Beckenbauer in the 69th minute helped the Germans recover and equalise before the end of normal time and win the match in extra time.<ref name="FIFA stats"/> West Germany advanced to the semi-finals to face [[Italy national football team|Italy]], in what would be known as the [[Game of the Century (football)|Game of the Century]]. He dislocated his shoulder after being fouled, but he was not deterred from continuing in the match, as his side had already used their two permitted substitutions.<ref name="FIFA profile"/> He stayed on the field carrying his dislocated arm in a sling. The result of this match was 4–3 (after extra time) in favour of the Italians. Germany defeated [[Uruguay national football team|Uruguay]] 1–0 for third place.<ref name="FIFA profile"/>

===1972 European championship===
Beckenbauer became captain of the national side in 1971.<ref name=":0" /> In [[UEFA Euro 1972|1972]], West Germany won the [[UEFA European Football Championship|European Championship]], beating the [[USSR national football team|Soviet Union]] 3–0 in the final.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cox |first=Michael |title=How West Germany won Euro 1972: Total Football from one of the great forgotten teams |url=https://theathletic.com/5104887/2023/12/03/history-of-euros-west-germany-1972/ |access-date=10 January 2024 |website=The Athletic |language=en}}</ref>

===1974 World Cup===
The [[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974 World Cup]] was hosted by [[West Germany]] and Beckenbauer led his side to victory, including a hard-fought 2–1 win over the hotly favoured [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands side]] featuring [[Johan Cruyff]]. Beckenbauer and his fellow defenders man-marked Cruyff so well that the Dutch were never quite able to put their "[[Total Football]]" into full use.<ref name="FIFA profile"/>

Beckenbauer became the first captain to lift the new [[FIFA World Cup Trophy#FIFA World Cup Trophy|FIFA World Cup Trophy]] after Brazil had retained the [[Jules Rimet Trophy]] in 1970.<ref name="FIFA profile"/> This also gave West Germany the distinction of being the first European national team to win the European Championship and World Cup consecutively (two other countries have done it since: [[France national football team|France]] in 2000, and [[Spain men's national football team|Spain]] in 2010).<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 August 2023 |title=How many teams have won Euros and World Cup? Women's, men's teams to win tournament double in history {{!}} Sporting News |url=https://www.sportingnews.com/us/soccer/news/how-many-teams-have-won-euros-and-world-cup-women-men/scl2ic4i7gx6pr2sb2ic7rxc |access-date=10 January 2024 |website=www.sportingnews.com |language=en-us}}</ref>

===1976 European Championship===
In the [[UEFA Euro 1976|1976]] competition, West Germany again reached the final, where they lost on penalties to [[Czechoslovakia national football team|Czechoslovakia]]. Beckenbauer was selected in the Team of the Tournament.<ref>{{Cite web |last=UEFA.com |date=1 January 2020 |title=EURO 1976 Team of the Tournament |url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/history/news/0253-0d7d211169ee-d920fa67f6fc-1000--euro-1976-team-of-the-tournament/ |access-date=10 January 2024 |website=[[UEFA]] |language=en}}</ref>

Beckenbauer retired from international football in 1977, at the age of 31, following his move to New York Cosmos.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/world-cup-2014/1978-world-cup-argentina-finally-wins/ | title = 1978 World Cup: Argentina finally wins | publisher = sportsnet.ca | date = 8 June 2014 | access-date = 18 June 2014 | first = John | last = Molinaro | archive-date = 14 June 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140614023150/http://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/world-cup-2014/1978-world-cup-argentina-finally-wins/ | url-status = live }}</ref>