Stefan Effenberg facts for kids
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 2 August 1968 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Hamburg, West Germany | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| –1974 | Bramfelder SV | |||||||||||||||
| 1974–1986 | Victoria Hamburg | |||||||||||||||
| 1986–1987 | Borussia Mönchengladbach | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 1987–1990 | Borussia Mönchengladbach | 73 | (10) | |||||||||||||
| 1990–1992 | Bayern Munich | 65 | (19) | |||||||||||||
| 1992–1994 | Fiorentina | 56 | (12) | |||||||||||||
| 1994–1998 | Borussia Mönchengladbach | 118 | (23) | |||||||||||||
| 1998–2002 | Bayern Munich | 95 | (16) | |||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | VfL Wolfsburg | 19 | (3) | |||||||||||||
| 2003–2004 | Al-Arabi | 15 | (4) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 441 | (87) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1988–1990 | West Germany U21 | 5 | (1) | |||||||||||||
| 1991–1998 | Germany | 35 | (5) | |||||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | SC Paderborn | |||||||||||||||
| 2019–2020 | KFC Uerdingen 05 (sporting director) | |||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||
Stefan Effenberg (born 2 August 1968) is a famous German former footballer. He was known for being a strong midfielder with great leadership skills. He could pass the ball well, shoot powerfully, and was physically strong. He was also known for being a very passionate player.
Effenberg played for Bayern Munich for six seasons in two different periods. He holds a record for the most yellow cards in the Bundesliga (Germany's top football league). With Bayern, he won the Bundesliga three times. He also led the team as captain to win the UEFA Champions League in 2001.
He played for the German national team more than 30 times. He represented Germany in the UEFA Euro 1992 and the 1994 FIFA World Cup. His nickname is Der Tiger, which means "the tiger" in German.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Stefan Effenberg grew up in Niendorf, Hamburg. He started his professional football journey with Borussia Mönchengladbach. By the time he was 20, he was a key player for the team. This caught the eye of the big club, FC Bayern Munich.
First Time at Bayern and Move to Italy
Effenberg joined Bayern Munich in 1990. He scored 19 goals in his first two seasons there. However, the team didn't win any major trophies during this time. In 1992, another famous player, Lothar Matthäus, returned to Bayern. Effenberg then moved to ACF Fiorentina in Italy.
Even with talented players like Brian Laudrup and Gabriel Batistuta, Fiorentina was relegated from Serie A (Italy's top league) in his first season. Effenberg stayed with the team in the second division. They managed to win promotion back to Serie A in just one year.
Return to Germany and Big Wins
In 1994, Effenberg went back to Borussia Mönchengladbach. He played 118 league matches for them and scored 23 goals. Then, in 1998, Bayern Munich signed him again. His second time at Bayern was much more successful.
He helped Bayern win three Bundesliga titles in a row. Bayern also reached the UEFA Champions League final twice. In 1999, they lost 2–1 to Manchester United F.C.. But in 2001, Bayern returned to the final with Effenberg as captain. He scored a penalty goal against Valencia, and Bayern won the match after a penalty shootout. After this victory, Effenberg was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament. Later, Bayern fans voted him one of the club's greatest players ever.
After leaving Bayern, Effenberg played briefly for VfL Wolfsburg. He finished his playing career in Qatar with Al-Arabi Sports Club, where he played alongside Gabriel Batistuta again.
Coaching and Sporting Director Roles
After retiring as a player, Stefan Effenberg became a coach. He was appointed as the head coach of SC Paderborn on 13 October 2015. He stayed in that role until 3 March 2016.
Later, on 10 October 2019, he became the sporting director for KFC Uerdingen 05. He left this position in May 2020.
Playing for Germany
Effenberg played 35 games for the German national team and scored five goals. His first game was on 5 June 1991, in a match against Wales. He was a regular player during UEFA Euro 1992, even scoring a goal in a 2–0 win against Scotland.
During a group game at the 1994 FIFA World Cup against South Korea, Effenberg made a gesture that upset German fans and the coach. Because of this, the German coach, Berti Vogts, removed Effenberg from the team right away. He said Effenberg would no longer play for the national team.
Effenberg did not play for Germany again until 1998. He was briefly called back for a couple of friendly matches in Malta. These turned out to be his last games for Germany.
Career Statistics
Club Appearances and Goals
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | 1987–88 | Bundesliga | 15 | 1 | — | — | — | – | 15 | 1 | ||||
| 1988–89 | 29 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | – | 31 | 3 | |||||
| 1989–90 | 29 | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | — | – | 32 | 6 | |||||
| Total | 73 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 78 | 10 | ||
| Bayern Munich | 1990–91 | Bundesliga | 32 | 9 | 1 | 0 | — | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 42 | 10 | |
| 1991–92 | 33 | 10 | 1 | 0 | — | 4 | 1 | – | 38 | 11 | ||||
| Total | 65 | 19 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 80 | 21 | ||
| Fiorentina | 1992–93 | Serie A | 30 | 5 | 4 | 2 | — | — | – | 34 | 7 | |||
| 1993–94 | Serie B | 26 | 7 | 4 | 0 | — | — | – | 30 | 7 | ||||
| Total | 56 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 64 | 14 | ||
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | 1994–95 | Bundesliga | 30 | 7 | 5 | 2 | — | — | – | 35 | 9 | |||
| 1995–96 | 31 | 7 | 2 | 1 | — | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 40 | 11 | |||
| 1996–97 | 29 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 3 | 2 | – | 34 | 3 | ||||
| 1997–98 | 28 | 8 | 1 | 0 | — | — | – | 29 | 8 | |||||
| Total | 118 | 23 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 138 | 31 | ||
| Bayern Munich | 1998–99 | Bundesliga | 31 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 5 | – | 51 | 16 | |
| 1999–2000 | 27 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 2 | – | 44 | 4 | |||
| 2000–01 | 20 | 4 | — | — | 10 | 1 | – | 30 | 5 | |||||
| 2001–02 | 17 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 1 | – | 29 | 3 | |||
| Total | 95 | 16 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 40 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 154 | 28 | ||
| VfL Wolfsburg | 2002–03 | Bundesliga | 19 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 21 | 3 | |||
| Al-Arabi | 2003–04 | Qatar Stars League | 15 | 4 | — | — | — | – | 15 | 4 | ||||
| Career total | 441 | 87 | 42 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 61 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 550 | 111 | ||
International Appearances and Goals
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 1991 | 4 | 0 |
| 1992 | 12 | 2 | |
| 1993 | 11 | 3 | |
| 1994 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1995 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1996 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1997 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1998 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 35 | 5 | |
Honours and Awards
Stefan Effenberg won many titles and received several awards during his career:
Bayern Munich
- Bundesliga: 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01
- DFB-Pokal (German Cup): 1999–2000
- UEFA Champions League: 2000–01
- Intercontinental Cup: 2001
- DFB-Supercup: 1990
- DFB-Ligapokal (German League Cup): 1998, 1999, 2000
Fiorentina
- Serie B (Italian Second Division): 1993–94
Borussia Mönchengladbach
- DFB-Pokal (German Cup): 1994–95
Germany
- UEFA European Championship runner-up: 1992
- U.S. Cup: 1993
Individual Awards
- kicker Bundesliga Team of the Season: Many times between 1990 and 2000
- UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament: 1992
- FIFA XI (World Select Team): 1997
- ESM Team of the Year: 1998–99
- Ballon d'Or nominee: 1999, 2001
- UEFA Club Footballer of the Year: 2001
- Bayern Munich All-time XI (one of the best players in the club's history): 2005
