Tschüss, Uwe! A last Farewell!

Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag, Uwe. Alles Gute, vorallem Gesundheit!



Today is a special day for me. My childhood football hero celebrates his 85th Birthday.

Uwe is maybe, besides the late Fritz Walter, the most popular player Germany ever had. And, of course, he's Hamburg's best player ever.

His playing career lasted from 1954-1972 for the HSV (his only club. One of the rare one club players, although he had offers to play abroad like in the early 60's where coaching legend Helenio Herrera wanted him for his Inter Milan team. They offered an "obscene" amount of money for this time to lure him to Italy but he decided to stay in his hometown Hamburg and his beloved HSV. He was already a legend here but with this refusal of this offer he became an "immortal" here.

It's an irony that during his playing days Germany never won a title in a major tournament but they've won the World Cup title just before he gained his first cap (Oktober 1954 at the age of 17 and 11 months). And after he retired from playing in May 1972, Germany won the Euro 1972 just weeks later.
So he got "only" a 4th place finish in 1958, a 2nd place finish in 1966 and a 3rd place finish in 1970. He was Captain of the team in 1966 and 1970. Here you'll see him before the kick-offs in the Final 1966 and the Quarter-final 1970 with his opponent Bobby Moore

1966: World Cup Final: England vs Germany 4-2



1970: World Cup Quarterfinal: England vs Germany 2-3 (a.e.t)



In the 1970 quarterfinal Uwe made the important 2-2 with a backheader (and Gerd Müller scored the 3-2 winner in extra time. A small revenge for the loss in 1966 )

I bet you guys want to see it again....ok here it is



(Gordon Banks wasn't available for this match (I read "Montezuma's revenge" got him?) so his sub Peter Bonetti was in Goal for England. Luck for Germany I think

re: Gordon Banks: He, like Bobby Charlton or Bobby Moore, became friends of Uwe. And all 3 played in his testimonial match, May 1st 1972 in the Volkspark where HSV played against a Europe XI team of players Uwe met during his career. It was the first (and only time) I could see Gordon Banks, Bobby Charlton and Bobby Moore live in the Volkspark ( I was 9 1/2 and was with my father and in sheer awe to see these footballing greats live. One of the greatest moments for me watching football in over 50 years).

Gordon Banks (like Franz Beckenbauer, Sepp Maier and Gerd Müller) came to this testimonial match on Monday May1st although he just played Saturday in Wembley against Germany in the quarterfinals of the Euro 1972 (where we won 3-1 in Wembley for the first time btw) to honour Uwe. Great chap.

Bobby Charlton and Uwe Seeler before the kick-off of his testimonial match in 1972 in the Volkspark (HSV vs Europe XI 3-7)




Stats of his career:



( source: https://www.transfermarkt.de/uwe-seeler/profil/spieler/38191)

Career HSV: 1954-1972 579 matches/ 489 Goals

Oberliga Nord 1954-1963: 237 matches/ 266 Goals (more than 1 per game)
Bundesliga 1963-1972 : 239 matches / 137 Goals (First Top Scorer of the Bundesliga in 63/64 with 30 Goals in 30 matches )
German Championships: 42 matches /40 Goals
German cup: 32 matches/25 Goals
European Cup Winners Cup: 15 matches / 13 Goals (Top Scorer in 1968 with 8 Goals)
European Cup : 7 matches/ 5 Goals
Uefa Cup : 1 match
Messestädte Pokal (edit: Inter Cities Fairs Cup) 6 matches / 3 Goals

Career Nationalteam 1954-1970: 72 matches / 43 goals


Titles / Places

with HSV:
German Champions: 1960
North German Champions: 9 times in a row from 1955-1963
German Cup Winner: 1960 (Finalist in 1956 and 1967)
2-times German Vice Champions : 1957/1958
Finalist European Cup Winners Cup (lost 0-2 against AC Milan)

With Nationalteam:
4th 1958
2nd 1966
3rd 1970

Other Honours:

Großes Bundesverdienstkreuz
( Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany). First Sportsman who got this order of merit

Ehrenbürger von Hamburg : Honorary Citizen of Hamburg. It's the highest honour that Hamburg donates. Uwe is the only sportsman who has received it so far.

Ehrenspielführer der Nationalmannschaft: Honourary Captain of the National team. Uwe was just the 2nd player (after Fritz Walter) who received this honour from the German FA. Now we have 6 of them in over 120 years of the German FA
(besides Fritz and Uwe it is Franz Beckenbauer, Lothar Matthäus, Jürgen Klinsmann (still puzzled about this one) and just a few years ago, the latest, Philipp Lahm)

It's a pity that Uwe Career was already in full swing before the Bundesliga was founded in 1963 and also that I could watch him live only a few years. My first visit to the Volkspark was in 1969 as a 6 1/2 year old with my father and so I could watch him only for a small period of 3 years until he retired from playing in 1972. But he'll be my hero nonetheless and you guys can't imagine about his standing here in Hamburg. Nobody ever said something bad about him, he's always and will always be "one of us". And that's exactly the title of a 45min documentary that the Norddeutscher Rundfunk (North German Broadcasting TV ) just made to honour Uwe and his life. It's called "Uwe Seeler - Einer von uns (One of us)"

All the best for you, Uwe. Stay healthy and enjoy your great day today.

Thank God that HSV has no home match today so can't spoil it for you, like 5 years ago, when you celebrated your 80th Birthday in the Volkspark with a little pre-game ceremony before the kick off of the Bundesliga match HSV vs Borussia Dortmund.
And then your HSV let you down so badly, losing 2-5 ( 4 goals plus 1 assist of Aubameyang). I'll never forget this disgrace. I was at the match, together with my wife (I mentioned it before that she only accompanies me to the Volkspark when Borussia Dortmund plays here (she's born and bred in Dortmund and BVB mad).
After the match she said to me "Great gift that your club made your best ever player to his birthday" and laughed out loud. Normally I really like the fine humour of my wife and her sarcasm, even against HSV, but not on this day.
I said to her that I'll stay away from the Volkspark for a few weeks now and don't want to see these losers for a while. But it lasted only a few days and at the next home match I went again



edit: Fun fact: Although Uwe retired in 1972, he made another competition match. In 1978 at age 41 he played one match for the Irish team Cork Celtic in the Irish league against Shamrock Rovers. The game ended 2-6 and Uwe scored both goals for Cork
Adidas asked Uwe to play in Ireland. And he thought it was only a friendly match but it was a normal league game. He wasn't aware of it until the game began ( it seems that guest players where allowed back then in Ireland. Curious. So, although Uwe was a "one club man" during his playing career, he also played one match for a 2nd club )

 

Uwe Seeler is one of the nicest and most politely men I've ever met.
Did you wear your SS Cosplay Uniform when you met him? Maybe that's why he was unpleasant to you or did you say that you're Bayern fan? Nah, seriously, maybe it was like you said but I don't think that he has something against the England team of 1966.
As I wrote above he invited Bobby Charlton, Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Gordon Banks from the England 1966 team to his testimonial match. Why should he do that when he had something against England? Or was it because of the 3rd goal?
Anyway, for me he's still my childhood hero and not a twat.

(Tbh I think the same until today about Franz Beckenbauer. When he played for a short time for HSV when he came back from the United States he was very arrogant to us fans who seeked for autographs at the HSV training ground. )

You're right, he was our best player in the era after Uwe Seeler, hence my avatar

 

And today the news I feared the most in football: Uwe Seeler is dead

When I created this thread last November to celebrate his 85th birithday I knew this sad day would come sooner or later but I had hoped he would have at least a few years more. 85 is a good age but I'm nonetheless shocked, Uwe is Hamburg and HSV. One of Germany's greatest ever in football is gone. So sad he couldn't see his HSV back in top tier again.

After Gerd Müller's death in August 2021 I've now lost my other childhood football hero. Sad days for Hamburg and the HSV.

Ruhe in Frieden, Uwe!

edit: I added a "Rest in Peace, Uwe" to the original threadtitle. Looks now a bit odd but we once had it similar with the Diego Maradona thread

 

Yes, you told us about it here in the thread. I've met Uwe several times over the decades, as a player and later. Always polite to fans and not once unfriendly. So he must've had a bad day when you met him

 

ARD just showed yesterday "Uwe Seeler - Abschied von einem Volkshelden" (Uwe Seeler - Farewell to a (folk) hero", a 30min tribute to HSV's greatest ever. It's still available in the ARD Mediathek until 21.07.2023 for watching:

Uwe Seeler - Abschied von einem Volkshelden (can only show the link but can't embed the video like youtube videos)

HSV tv just showed " Uns Uwe. Sportler. HSVer. Mensch - Das Leben von Uwe Seeler", available at youtube:

 

Today, 2 pm, the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg helds the official mourning ceremony for its citizen of honour, Uwe Seeler!

Whereelse than at his 2nd home, HSV's Volksparkstadion.

German TV will show this ceremony live. This doesn't happen very often here, so this alone shows the standing that Uwe Seeler had, not only in his hometown Hamburg but in the whole country.

So, please forgive an old geezer like me to get again a bit sentimental and have a few tears in my eyes again when watching it.

A last farewell for HSV's greatest and Germany's honourary captain, a few pics of him that I always liked:



This pic from sports photographer Sven Simon taken after the final 1966 was voted in 2000 as "sports photo of the century" in Germany. It shows a disappointed Uwe Seeler leaving the hallowed Wembley field after the final whistle. It also shows a man who always took losses as a fair sportsman that brought him the respect of all opponents.




Uwe shaking the hand of the Queen after the loss



One of my favs. Shows my 2 childhood heroes after the 3-2 quarterfinal win against England in extra time at the World Cup 1970. Both exhausted after the long battle but happy. Uwe made the important 2-2 with his legendary backheader and then Gerd did it in his inimitably manner in extra time.
Both became life long friends. So sad that both are now gone (Gerd died nearly a year ago, 15th August 2021).

Gone but never forgotten!




Uwe on the shoulders of HSV fans after his testimonial match May1st, 1972 against a World XI. I've mentioned it already at the beginning of this thread (which was initially a birthday thread but later sadly became a mourning thread) that I was lucky to watch it live as a 9 year old together with my father.


"In Hamburg sagt man Tschüss" (In Hamburg we say Tschüss (goodbye))

Tschüss, Uwe


​

edit: I've edited the threadtitle again.

 

Yesterday's official mourning ceremony of the City of Hamburg was, as expected, very emotional for everyone who has "the rhombus at heart".

4 worthy speeches, between them cheerful songs from beloved (and long gone) Hamburg actor Hans Albers and actress Heidi Kabel plus the Hamburg Hymn "Hammonia" and last but not least the famous "In Hamburg sagt man Tschüss" which was also mentioned by me in my last post at the end.

Just a short summary of those 4 speeches who all were great and, in one case ( HSV's sports chairman Jonas Boldt) even took me by surprise.

As this was an official ceremony of Hamburg for its citizen of honour, the first speech was hold by Hamburg's reigning mayor Peter Tschentscher (who's funnily born in Bremen but that's not his fault ).

Of course his words praised Uwe and his meaning for Hamburg, HSV and the German football. His sentence "With Uwe's death Hamburg lost something of itself" really got me

2nd speaker was DFB President Bernd Neuendorf. He mentioned that the German Women team just also lost a final in Wembley in extra time like Uwe did 56 years before and that they took the loss with the same dignity like the men's team did.
That those men's team, 21 years after the end of WWII, with this attitude and how they took the loss in a very sportsmanship manner, did more for the German- English relationship than politics has done.

He mentioned also the "ridiculous irony" that Uwe as one of the greatest German football players of all times never won a title with the German team, although Germany won more than enough but all before or after his career.

But he said that Uwe didn't need a title to give proof that he was a legend of the game.
He got the title "UNS UWE" by the fans (not only from the HSV fans but also the fans of German football). The deep love that the fans had for him, led to this title.

3rd one was HSV sports chairman Jonas Boldt. And, I mentioned it already, this one took me by surprise. I'm not a big fan of him, his decisions in transfers in the last years were often questionable and he's not the best liked one by HSV fans either.
But his speech was also a worthy one and maybe I was a bit too harsh to him. Always had him as a "cold one" but he spoke so warmly about his visits at Uwe's home and how much of an honour it was for him to meet him, at his home or in the stadium.
From his speech I liked his sentence "Uwe. Einer von uns. Nur besser" (Uwe, one of us, only better) and the "Uwe: In English "U-WE" (You-We)"

4th one, and my personal highlight, was well-known (in Germany) Entertainer and Comedian Oliver "Olli" Dittrich.
He's a long friend of Uwe and his family and it was the personal wish of Uwe's family that he holds the last speech at this ceremony. (Olli isn't born in Hamburg but in Offenbach. But his family moved to Hamburg when he was 3 years old, so he's a Hamburger for all of us. )
He told how much he first was overwhelmed by this wish of the family to hold this speech and his "Angst" that he couldn't be worthy of it. But the family told him that he knows Uwe and his humour and that he would liked it that Olli would hold a funny speech. And he delivered. He told us about his childhood in Hamburg in the early 60's (he's 6 years older than me so had the honour to watch Uwe playing for 6 more years than me). About the football matches of the kids after school and every kid wanted to be Uwe in the match. And about his adidas football shoes Modell "Uwe" , his most precious treasure he had.

This was so 1:1 me, that this instantly produced a lot of tears (of joy) in my eyes. Every Hamburg boy of the 60s and early 70s wanted to be Uwe in the football matches we played after school and every boy wanted to be like Uwe. What greater compliment for a football player can there be? thx Olli for this speech. Spoken directly out of my heart

The ceremony ended with Hamburg's Jazz Pianist Joja Wendt playing "In Hamburg sagt man Tschüss" (I mentioned it) as the last farewell to Uwe.

I'm not ashamed to admit it that I often had tears in my eyes yesterday ( but I was not alone, many of the prominents and fans had often "the hands at their eyes", too )

All in all a very worthy ceremony. Not to much. Just the right dose. I'm glad I watched it


btw: Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz was also there (he was once Hamburg's reigning mayor, too). Thank God he didn't held a speech because when he speaks I instantly got bored and tired