Hans Pflügler facts for kids

Hans Pflügler, born on March 27, 1960, is a former German professional football player. He was known for playing as a defender, either on the left side (a left-back) or in the middle (a central defender). He played his entire career for one club, Bayern Munich.

During his time with Bayern Munich, he won ten major titles. He played in almost 400 official games for the club. Pflügler also represented West Germany in international tournaments. He played in the 1990 World Cup and Euro 1988. He was part of the team that won the World Cup in 1990.

Hans Pflügler's Club Career

Hans Pflügler was born in Freising, Germany. He started his professional football journey in the 1981–82 season. The only club he ever played for was his local team, FC Bayern Munich. In his very first season, he was a substitute in the European Cup Final. However, he did not get to play in that match.

Becoming a Key Player at Bayern Munich

After two seasons where he was still finding his place, Pflügler became a regular starter for Bayern Munich. From the 1983 season to 1988, he scored a total of 27 goals in the Bundesliga. The Bundesliga is Germany's top football league.

He played every minute of every match in the 1986–87 European Cup. This is a big European club competition. In that year, his team, Bayern Munich, finished second. They lost to FC Porto in the final match.

Retirement and Unexpected Return

Pflügler helped the Bavarian team win five league titles and three German Cups. After the 1991–92 season, he decided to retire. He had only played 14 games that season.

However, in 1995, many players on the Bayern Munich team got injured. The manager, Giovanni Trapattoni, asked Pflügler to come out of retirement and play again. He agreed! On April 8, he played in a home game against 1. FC Kaiserslautern. He even received a yellow card in that game.

Even more surprisingly, he spent the entire 2001–02 season playing for the Bayern Munich B team. He was 42 years old at the time! He helped the team finish tenth in the Regionalliga Süd league.

Hans Pflügler's International Career

Hans Pflügler played 11 times for the German national team. These appearances are called "caps." He made his first appearance on March 25, 1987. This was in a friendly match against the Israeli team.

Playing for West Germany

He was chosen to be part of the squad for the European Championship in 1988. This is a major tournament for national teams in Europe.

Pflügler was also picked for the 1990 FIFA World Cup squad. He was a backup player for Andreas Brehme. In the World Cup, he played the full 90 minutes in a group-stage match against Colombia. The game ended in a 1–1 draw. West Germany went on to win the World Cup that year.

Hans Pflügler's Life Outside Football

Hans Pflügler is an engineer and has a special diploma in the field. After his football career, he also worked with Bayern Munich's merchandising departments. This means he helped with selling official club products. He even worked there before he was asked to return to play football in 1995.

Pflügler also ran a small hotel or guesthouse called Pension Pflügler. This was in his hometown of Freising.

Hans Pflügler's Football Achievements

Hans Pflügler won many important titles during his career.

Bayern Munich

• Bundesliga:
  • 1984–85
  • 1985–86
  • 1986–87
  • 1988–89
  • 1989–90
• DFB-Pokal (German Cup):
  • 1981–82
  • 1983–84
  • 1985–86
• European Cup runner-up: 1986–87
• DFL-Supercup (German Supercup):
  • 1987
  • 1990

Germany

• FIFA World Cup: 1990

See also

• List of one-club men