"Bye-bye, Birgit" is the motto chosen for Birgit Prinz's testimonial match scheduled to take place in the Frankfurt Volksbank-Stadion on 27 March 2012 (kick-off 18:00, broadcast live on Eurosport), pitting the German national women's team against 1. FFC Frankfurt.
Germany's most successful player of all times, now aged 34, has decided to hang up her boots after a magnificent career that saw her win two World Cups, five European Championships, three Olympic Games bronze medals, an incredible eight "Player of the Year" awards given by the German Association of Sports Journalists, as well as numerous club football trophies and personal honours.
For this fourth instalment of a special series celebrating Birgit's priceless contribution to the game, DFB.de met 1990 World Cup winner Lothar Matthäus (150 caps) who talked about his transformation from women's football critic to admirer.
Germany legend Lothar Matthäus takes a bow to his female counterpart, honouring the lifetime contribution of a female colleague who won the 2003 and 2007 editions of the FIFA Women's World Cup. When looking back at their respective careers, more than a few parallels can be drawn, with Birgit Prinz even coming out tops in the superlatives department.
FIFA gala night regular
"There is no doubt that in Birgit Prinz, one of German football's most outstanding personalities leaves the scene as an active player. She has set a whole series of unsurpassed milestones, not just by virtue of her 214 caps and record number of goals for Germany, but also through the many outstanding personal awards she has collected.
I've been invited to a good many FIFA World Footballer of the Year galas in my time, and for many, many years Birgit used to be a regular up on that stage, with three Player of the Year awards and, if I'm not mistaken, five runner-up places. That alone is sufficient to merit an exceptional mention in the annals of the game. And let's not forget the many titles and trophies she helped win at club and national team level. I think she can be mighty proud of what she's achieved."
Five-times World Cup finals participant
"Just like myself, I guess Birgit worked very hard to eventually reap the rewards. And there's more things we share – both of us have taken part in five World Cup final rounds; she was given the Golden Ball award as a World Cup finals' best player (so was I); and like me, she went to play in the USA for a while. But I'm the first to admit she eclipses me in terms of titles – two World Cups and five European Championships, that's something else!
The only regrets I imagine she has are over the Women's World Cup 2011. Staged on home turf here in Germany, this was meant to be the "icing on the cake", with Birgit given the opportunity to crown her exceptional career with playing in, maybe even winning, the final. Adding a third world champions title would have been a wonderful way to say good-bye. Well, it was not to be, but that doesn't take any of her merits away."
"A record hard to equal"
"Fans around the world are pretty much in awe of Birgit's record 214 caps for Germany, as well as the huge number of national and international titles, and rightly so! Few other players will ever come near such an achievement. To win so many caps, and especially as a forward, you need loads of talent, ambition, determination and, let's be honest, plain good luck to be spared major injuries. Don't forget that the women's national team plays many more tournaments than the men's, for example the Olympic Games and the Algarve Cup.
Being a regular in the national squad for 17 years in a row – that's an average 12 matches per year, which requires remarkable consistency in your own game. At the same time, you want to play for a side capable of surviving as many tournament stages as possible, ideally even winning the final. Birgit and I were fortunate enough to have been part of such squads, both at national team and club side level, with her playing for Frankfurt while I played for Bayern Munich and Inter Milan. This is a privilege you've got to be thankful for as a player."
"Women's football can consider itself fortunate"
"By the same token, women's football can consider itself fortunate to have been represented by a player whose outstanding performances and wonderful personality have helped in making it what it is today – a competitive, high-performance sport that is taken seriously. A far cry from 25 or 30 years ago, when people – and I admit I was one of them – used to make fun of women playing football.
In a nutshell, Birgit Prinz is an advertisement for the game, and she more than deserves the testimonial game that the DFB is going to organise for her. I can only hope that hanging up her boots doesn't mean she leaves football for good. I am sure she will find a way for herself to stay in the game."
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"Bye-bye, Birgit" is the motto chosen for Birgit Prinz's testimonial match scheduled to take place in the Frankfurt Volksbank-Stadion on 27 March 2012 (kick-off 18:00, broadcast live on Eurosport), pitting the German national women's team against 1. FFC Frankfurt.
Germany's most successful player of all times, now aged 34, has decided to hang up her boots after a magnificent career that saw her win two World Cups, five European Championships, three Olympic Games bronze medals, an incredible eight "Player of the Year" awards given by the German Association of Sports Journalists, as well as numerous club football trophies and personal honours.
For this fourth instalment of a special series celebrating Birgit's priceless contribution to the game, DFB.de met 1990 World Cup winner Lothar Matthäus (150 caps) who talked about his transformation from women's football critic to admirer.
Germany legend Lothar Matthäus takes a bow to his female counterpart, honouring the lifetime contribution of a female colleague who won the 2003 and 2007 editions of the FIFA Women's World Cup. When looking back at their respective careers, more than a few parallels can be drawn, with Birgit Prinz even coming out tops in the superlatives department.
FIFA gala night regular
"There is no doubt that in Birgit Prinz, one of German football's most outstanding personalities leaves the scene as an active player. She has set a whole series of unsurpassed milestones, not just by virtue of her 214 caps and record number of goals for Germany, but also through the many outstanding personal awards she has collected.
I've been invited to a good many FIFA World Footballer of the Year galas in my time, and for many, many years Birgit used to be a regular up on that stage, with three Player of the Year awards and, if I'm not mistaken, five runner-up places. That alone is sufficient to merit an exceptional mention in the annals of the game. And let's not forget the many titles and trophies she helped win at club and national team level. I think she can be mighty proud of what she's achieved."
Five-times World Cup finals participant
"Just like myself, I guess Birgit worked very hard to eventually reap the rewards. And there's more things we share – both of us have taken part in five World Cup final rounds; she was given the Golden Ball award as a World Cup finals' best player (so was I); and like me, she went to play in the USA for a while. But I'm the first to admit she eclipses me in terms of titles – two World Cups and five European Championships, that's something else!
The only regrets I imagine she has are over the Women's World Cup 2011. Staged on home turf here in Germany, this was meant to be the "icing on the cake", with Birgit given the opportunity to crown her exceptional career with playing in, maybe even winning, the final. Adding a third world champions title would have been a wonderful way to say good-bye. Well, it was not to be, but that doesn't take any of her merits away."
"A record hard to equal"
[bild2]
"Fans around the world are pretty much in awe of Birgit's record 214 caps for Germany, as well as the huge number of national and international titles, and rightly so! Few other players will ever come near such an achievement. To win so many caps, and especially as a forward, you need loads of talent, ambition, determination and, let's be honest, plain good luck to be spared major injuries. Don't forget that the women's national team plays many more tournaments than the men's, for example the Olympic Games and the Algarve Cup.
Being a regular in the national squad for 17 years in a row – that's an average 12 matches per year, which requires remarkable consistency in your own game. At the same time, you want to play for a side capable of surviving as many tournament stages as possible, ideally even winning the final. Birgit and I were fortunate enough to have been part of such squads, both at national team and club side level, with her playing for Frankfurt while I played for Bayern Munich and Inter Milan. This is a privilege you've got to be thankful for as a player."
"Women's football can consider itself fortunate"
"By the same token, women's football can consider itself fortunate to have been represented by a player whose outstanding performances and wonderful personality have helped in making it what it is today – a competitive, high-performance sport that is taken seriously. A far cry from 25 or 30 years ago, when people – and I admit I was one of them – used to make fun of women playing football.
In a nutshell, Birgit Prinz is an advertisement for the game, and she more than deserves the testimonial game that the DFB is going to organise for her. I can only hope that hanging up her boots doesn't mean she leaves football for good. I am sure she will find a way for herself to stay in the game."
