German football had to rebuild and reinvent itself following World War II. Under the occupation of the allies, all German organisations including football clubs were banned. But within a year after the war, sporting organisations were permitted again as long as they did not have any political affiliations.  The regional Gauligas were replaced by Oberligas, which were called Nord, West, Sudwest, Sud and Berlin, and all the Oberligas were up and running by 1948. Unfortunately, there was no “prize” as such for winning the national title, because the Viktoria Trophy went missing during the war, so a new trophy of sorts was instated, called the Meisterschale but nicknamed “the salad bowl” because of its shape.

 

The Oberliga Sud in which Eintracht Frankfurt played their football was in the US Occupation Zone. Frankfurt were one of several clubs that played in the league for all of its 18 seasons without relegation, and they were able to win the division titles in 1953 and 1959. The highlight of the era was Frankfurt’s 5-3 victory in the 1959 German football championship final against their main rivals, Kickers Offenbach. On its way to the final, Eintracht won all seven of their games. In the final itself, reports state that Frankfurt scored just one minute into the game. Kickers struck back with an equaliser 7 minutes later and Frankfurt scored again 6 minutes after that. 9 minutes later, Kickers had another equaliser. No more goals were scored and extra time was required. In the 108th minute, Frankfurt pulled one ahead until Kickers had yet another equaliser 2 minutes later. The winner finally came with the conversion of a 119th minute penalty to Frankfurt, and on the strength of this national title, they were invited to participate in the 1959-60 European Cup.

 

Eintracht Frankfurt became the first German team to appear in the final of that tournament, romping their way there with defeats of Young Boys and Wiener Sportsclub and a 12-4 aggregate whipping of Rangers. The final against Real Madrid is thought to be the greatest game of football ever played.  Frankfurt suffered a 7-3 defeat to what is possibly the greatest team of all time, but they achieved greatness by making it there. Throughout the 1950’s, there were repeated demands for a nation-wide professional football league, especially as Germany’s best players were being lured to countries abroad to play in their professional leagues, and the German amateur teams just couldn’t compete at that level.  Sepp Herberger was a key proponent of the idea. By continuing to play good football, Frankfurt earned themselves a spot in the first season of the Bundesliga, Germany’s brand new professional league, where they stayed for the following 33 seasons.

Achievements: German football championship – Champions x1
                              DFB-Pokal – Runners up x1
                              European Cup – Runners up x1
                              Southern German championship – Champions x 2 Runners up x3

Star player: Erwin Stein DoB 10 June 1935, Griesheim, Germany

Stein was a pacy attacker who made a name for himself by scoring twice in his Germany national team debut. He began playing for Frankfurt in 1959. He played in the 1959 German championship final against Kickers Offenbach, a 5-3 win. His signing with Frankfurt meant that he was no longer eligible to play for Germany, which was a large blow to Germany’s Olympics qualifying campaign. He continued to play well in the German Oberliga but he never again wore his national teams jersey. He also played in the famous 1960 European Cup final against Real Madrid where he managed to score two goals despite being marked by the legendary Jose Santamaria (nicknamed “The Wall”). In seven years at Eintracht Frankfurt, Stein made 342 appearances and scored 267 goals. He participated in the early years of the Budesliga playing 43 matches in the new league. He transferred to Darmstadt in 1965 and in 1969, he moved to his home club SpVgg Griesheim, where he retired. He then opened a tobacco store which also sold lottery tickets.