The football world mourns Bernd Bransch. The former captain of the GDR national team was 77 years old.
The GDR football icon Bernd Bransch (1944-2022) has died. As his club Hallescher FC announced, the athlete died on Saturday (June 11) at the age of 77 “after a long, serious illness”. “He was the most successful Halle footballer of all time,” says the obituary. The “Branscher”, as the footballer was called by teammates and friends, played 72 games for the GDR national team.
successes at the Olympics
He also captained the national team from 1972 to 1975 and took part in the 1974 World Cup. In the first round, the GDR surprisingly defeated the eventual tournament winner, the West German team. In 1976 Bransch became Olympic champion with the East German national team, and in 1972 the team had already secured the bronze medal.
In 1968 and 1974, the athlete was also voted “GDR Footballer of the Year”. After the Olympic triumph in 1976, he ended his career in the national team. However, he remained loyal to his club Hallescher FC, including as chairman and president.
