Stefan Effenberg

Stefan Effenberg (German pronunciation: [ˈʃtɛfan ˈʔɛfn̩bɛʁk]; born 2 August 1968) is a German former footballer who most recently acted as sporting director for KFC Uerdingen 05.^[2][3] A midfielder, he was known for his leadership skills, passing range, shooting ability, and physical strength, but was also a temperamental and controversial character.^[4]

Stefan Effenberg

Personal information
Date of birth	(1968-08-02) 2 August 1968 (age 56)
Place of birth	Hamburg, West Germany
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[1]
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
0000–1974	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)
Medal record Men's football Representing  Germany UEFA European Championship Runner-up 1992 Sweden
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

In the Bundesliga alone – where he represented Bayern Munich most notably, in six seasons and in two different spells – Effenberg collected 109 yellow cards, an all-time record at the time of his retirement. With Bayern, he won three Bundesligas and captained the club to the UEFA Champions League title in 2001.

In a career which was cut short after a run-in with the management, Effenberg played for Germany on more than 30 occasions, representing the nation in UEFA Euro 1992 and the 1994 FIFA World Cup. His nickname is Der Tiger (IPA: [deːɐ̯ ˈtiːɡɐ], "the tiger").

Club career

Born and raised in Niendorf, Hamburg on 2 August 1968, Stefan Effenberg started his professional career with Borussia Mönchengladbach, where he became an undisputed first-choice by the age of 20. This attracted the interest of Bundesliga giants FC Bayern Munich, where he scored 19 goals in his first two seasons after his transfer,^[5] although the club failed to win any silverware with Effenberg in the lineup.

When Lothar Matthäus, who also represented Mönchengladbach, returned to Bayern in 1992, Effenberg moved to ACF Fiorentina. Despite the presence of Brian Laudrup and Gabriel Batistuta, Fiorentina was relegated from Serie A in his first season. Effenberg stayed on in the second flight, winning promotion back at the first attempt.

In the summer of 1994, Effenberg then moved back to Gladbach, where he appeared in 118 league matches, scoring 23 goals, before Bayern re-signed him in 1998. Effenberg's second spell with the Bavarians was much more successful. He collected three Bundesliga titles in a row, and Bayern also reached two UEFA Champions League finals, the first of which was a 2–1 defeat to Manchester United F.C. in 1999. Bayern returned to the final in 2001 with Effenberg as captain. He scored Bayern's equalising goal from the penalty spot in a victory against Valencia (1–1, penalty shootout win). After the final, Effenberg was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2000–01 UEFA Champions League.^[6] After his departure, club fans voted him one of the eleven greatest Bayern players of all time.^[7]

After an unsuccessful spell at VfL Wolfsburg,^[8] Effenberg ended his career in Qatar with Al-Arabi Sports Club, with Gabriel Batistuta as his teammate. He appeared occasionally as a color commentator for German TV after his retirement as a player.

Managerial career

Effenberg was appointed as the head coach of SC Paderborn on 13 October 2015.^[9] He was sacked on 3 March 2016.^[10]

On 10 October 2019, KFC Uerdingen 05 presented Effenberg as the new sporting director.^[2] Following a few troubled months which included the team briefly staying at an Italian hotel with no football pitch for a mid-season training camp,^[11] he stepped back from this position prematurely in May 2020.^[3]

International career

Effenberg played 35 games for the Germany national team and scored five goals. His debut came on 5 June 1991, in a Euro 1992 qualifier against Wales, as he played the last 18 minutes of a 1–0 away loss. He would be an everpresent fixture during the final stages, even netting in the second group stage match, a 2–0 win over Scotland.

During a group game against South Korea in the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Effenberg "gave the finger" to German fans at the Cotton Bowl in the 35 °C (95 °F) heat of Dallas when he got substituted after a subpar performance; the Germans were then only one goal up, after leading 3–0.^[12] German coach Berti Vogts was so outraged by this incident that he dropped Effenberg from the team on the spot, and declared that he was finished as an international player.^[13][14]

Effenberg did not appear in another international match again until 1998, when he was briefly reinstated to the national team for a couple of friendly matches in Malta in September, which happened to be Vogts' last two matches as national team coach. They turned out to be his last caps for Germany.

Controversies and personal life

Effenberg had a history of attracting attention and ire from fans, managers, and players alike with his behaviour.^[15][16]

In 1991, prior to a UEFA Cup game against then-semi-professional Cork City, Effenberg told the press he was sure of a victory, saying Cork City midfielder Dave Barry was "like (his) grandfather". Barry got his retribution by scoring the opening goal in the team's 1–1 draw at Musgrave Park.^[17]

In the late 1990s, Effenberg, already married to Martina, provoked animosity when his affair with Claudia Strunz, the wife of former club and national teammate Thomas Strunz, was revealed.^[18] Effenberg published a controversial autobiography, notorious for its blatant contents – which included lashing out at some other football professionals, namely club and national teammate Lothar Matthäus.^[19]

In 2001, Effenberg was fined after being found guilty of assaulting a woman in a nightclub.^[20] The following year, he implied that unemployed people in Germany were too lazy to look for work, and demanded they took benefit cuts. The interview was issued in Playboy.^[21]

Strunz and Effenberg were married in 2004,^[22] and the player also had three children from his first marriage; the couple then relocated to Florida.^[23]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition^[24]

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[a]	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[a]	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

1. Appearance in DFB-Supercup

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year^[25]

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

Scores and results list Germany's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Effenberg goal.

List of international goals scored by Stefan Effenberg

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	15 June 1992	Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden	Scotland	2–0	2–0	UEFA Euro 1992
2	9 September 1992	Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark	Denmark	2–1	2–1	Friendly
3	14 April 1993	Ruhrstadion, Bochum, Germany	Ghana	2–1	6–1	Friendly
4				4–1
5	19 June 1993	Silverdome, Detroit, United States	England	1–0	2–1	U.S. Cup

Managerial

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	Win %
Paderborn 07		13 October 2015	2 March 2016	15	2	6	7	013.33
Total				15	2	6	7	013.33

Honours

Bayern Munich

• Bundesliga: 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01
• DFB-Pokal: 1999–2000
• UEFA Champions League: 2000–01
• Intercontinental Cup: 2001
• DFB-Supercup: 1990
• DFB-Ligapokal: 1998, 1999, 2000

Fiorentina

• Serie B: 1993–94

Borussia Mönchengladbach

• DFB-Pokal: 1994–95

Germany

• UEFA European Championship runner-up: 1992
• U.S. Cup: 1993

Individual

• kicker Bundesliga Team of the Season: 1990–91, 1991–92, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1999–2000^{[26][27][28][29][30][31][32]}
• UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament: 1992^[33]
• FIFA XI: 1997^[34]
• ESM Team of the Year: 1998–99
• UEFA Club Footballer of the Year: 2001
• Bayern Munich All-time XI: 2005^[35]

References

1. "Stefan Effenberg - Spielerprofil - DFB" (in German). dfb.de. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
2. Lerch, André (10 October 2019). "KFC Uerdingen stellt Stefan Effenberg als Manager vor". Westdeutsche Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 10 October 2019.
3. Hartmann, Ulrich (20 May 2020). "Aus für Stefan Effenberg: Der Kurzzeit-Funktionär wirft hin" (in German). SZ. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
4. Fearon, Matthew (25 March 2009). "Dream Teams: Bayern Munich". The Independent. UK. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
5. Arnhold, Matthias (2 September 2015). "Stefan Effenberg - Matches and Goals in Bundesliga". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
6. "2000/01: Kahn saves day for Bayern". UEFA.com. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
7. "Fans name greatest Reds of all time". FC Bayern. 1 June 2005. Retrieved 9 February 2010.
8. "Effenberg quits Wolfsburg with immediate effect". ABC News. 3 April 2003. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
9. "Effenberg neuer Trainer des SC Paderborn" (in German). Retrieved 13 October 2015.
10. "SC Paderborn trennt sich von Effenberg" (in German). Retrieved 3 March 2016.
11. "Hotel hatte keinen Fußballplatz: Effenberg vermasselt KFC-Trainingslager". www.n-tv.de (in German). 15 January 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
12. "Stefan Effenberg". 123Football. Archived from the original on 26 October 2005. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
13. "Doing it his own way". China Daily. 15 May 2003. Archived from the original on 11 June 2011. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
14. "Effenberg's day of shame". UEFA.com. 24 June 2002. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
15. "The wagging finger, affairs and rare class of Stefan Effenberg". 14 January 2020.
16. "Forgotten Idols: Stefan Effenberg". 20 January 2016.
17. "Cork City 1 – Bayern Munich 1" (in German). Archived from the original on 15 July 2010.
18. "Bayern walk it as Effenberg talks it". The Guardian.
19. "12 famous players who hated each other after becoming team-mates". 18 November 2021.
20. "Effenberg pays penalty". BBC Sport. 16 August 2001. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
21. "Scholl hangs up international boots". BBC Sport. 24 April 2002. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
22. "Matthaeus is 'a real quitter,' says Effenberg". Sports Illustrated. 2 May 2003. Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
23. "Stefan Effenberg bids his final farewell". Monsters and Critics. 21 July 2005. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
24. "Effenberg, Stefan" (in German). kicker. Archived from the original on 17 October 2012. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
25. Arnhold, Matthias (2 November 2002). "Stefan Effenberg – International Appearances". RSSSF. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
26. "Bundesliga Historie 1990/91" (in German). kicker. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
27. "Bundesliga Historie 1991/92" (in German). kicker. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
28. "Bundesliga Historie 1994/95" (in German). kicker. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
29. "Bundesliga Historie 1995/96" (in German). kicker. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
30. "Bundesliga Historie 1996/97" (in German). kicker. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
31. "Bundesliga Historie 1997/98" (in German). kicker. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
32. "Bundesliga Historie 1999/2000" (in German). kicker. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
33. "EURO 1992 Team of the Tournament". UEFA. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
34. FIFA XI´s Matches - Full Info
35. "Fans name greatest reds of all time". FC Bayern München. 1 June 2005. Archived from the original on 3 November 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2025.

External links

• Stefan Effenberg at fussballdaten.de (in German)
• Stefan Effenberg at WorldFootball.net
• Stefan Effenberg at National-Football-Teams.com