Uli Hoeneß

In 1970, he played as a left-sided forward with amateur club TSG Ulm 1846 and was recruited by Udo Lattek, then manager of Bundesliga club Bayern Munich. Hoeneß immediately made an impact, scoring six times in 31 matches as the Bavarians finished in second position behind Borussia Mönchengladbach, and adding the domestic cup. During his eight-and-a-half-year stint with Bayern, Hoeneß enjoyed great success, winning a total of eight major titles, including three league titles and as many European Cups. In the 1973–74 edition of the latter competition, the final replay against Atlético Madrid, he produced one of his most outstanding performances, scoring two goals in the 4–0 victory. However, in the final of the following year's European Cup suffered an injury to his right knee from which he never fully recovered. In late 1978, Hoeneß was loaned to Bayern's neighbors 1. FC Nürnberg, where it was hoped he could get more match practice. His recovery failed, however, and he was forced to hang up his boots at the age of just 27. He had appeared in 250 matches in Germany's top division, netting 86 times.

Hoeneß played 35 times for West Germany. His debut came on 29 March 1972; he scored the final goal in a 2–0 friendly win in Hungary. As one of six Bayern players in the German squad, Hoeneß won both UEFA Euro 1972 and the 1974 FIFA World Cup. In the final of the latter, against Holland, he committed a foul on Johan Cruyff in the opening minute that led to a goal from the subsequent penalty, but West Germany came from behind to win 2–1. He also played with the national side in Euro 1976 in Yugoslavia, where he missed the decisive West German shot in the penalty shootout loss against Czechoslovakia, skying it over the crossbar. He would be the only German player to miss a penalty in a shootout at the European Championships until Thomas Müller, Mesut Özil and Bastian Schweinsteiger all missed against Italy in the quarterfinals of UEFA Euro 2016. Hoeneß had retained his amateur status until 1972, allowing him to take part in that year's Summer Olympic Games. There, he played alongside future Bayern coach Ottmar Hitzfeld as West Germany failed to qualify for the semifinals of the tournament, losing 3–2 to East Germany, a match in which Hoeneß scored his only goal of the tournament. This historic match was also the first between West Germany and East Germany.

Ulrich Hoeneß was born on 5 January 1952 in Ulm, Württemberg-Baden, West Germany. He grew up in a conservative, Catholic-influenced family as the son of master butcher Erwin Hoeneß and his wife, Paula, in Ulm. He attended the Hans-Multscher-Grundschule before transferring to the Schubart-Gymnasium, both located in Ulm. Along with his younger brother Dieter, who also later became a professional footballer and manager, he began playing football in the youth department of VfB Ulm. He later transferred to TSG Ulm 1846 (now SSV Ulm 1846). At the age of 15, he became captain of the DFB's school selection team. During training camps of the South German A-Youth team at the Schöneck sports school in Baden, he shared a room with Paul Breitner for the first time. A close friendship developed between the player from the Baden-Württemberg youth selection and the player from the Bavaria selection. Later, they moved into their first shared apartment in the Munich district of Trudering. In 1971, Hoeneß graduated from the Schubart-Gymnasium in Ulm. He was exempted from military service because wearing a combat helmet caused him head and knee pain. Hoeneß graduated with an average grade of 2.4. Initially, he intended to study business administration in the winter semester of 1971–72. At the time, to be admitted to this program at LMU Munich, applicants needed an average grade of at least 3.0. However, non-Bavarian applicants were penalized with a one-grade reduction. As a result, Hoeneß was…

Hoeneß and his wife Susanne have two children, Sabine and Florian, and have been married for over 40 years. Hoeneß is the son of a master butcher and now co-owns HoWe Wurstwaren KG, a Nuremberg-based bratwurst factory. Hoeneß's younger brother Dieter also had a very successful career as a player in the Bundesliga and for the West Germany national team. Hoeneß's nephew Sebastian is a head coach for Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart. On 17 February 1982, Hoeneß was the sole survivor of the crash of a light aircraft in which three others died. He was on his way to a West Germany national team friendly. Sleeping in the rear of the plane, he sustained only minor injuries. Hoeneß has provided financial assistance, either personally or through organizing benefit games, to other German league teams such as FC St. Pauli, Hertha BSC, Borussia Dortmund, 1860 München and Hansa Rostock. Hoeneß has helped former Bayern players such as Sebastian Deisler (depression), Breno (depression), and Gerd Müller (alcoholism) in times of need.

Tax evasion and imprisonment

In April 2013, it was reported that Hoeneß was being investigated for tax evasion. He was reported to have held a Swiss bank account for the purpose of evading taxes due on investment income and to owe between €3.2 million and €7 million in taxes to the German state. The reports came after journalists "gained access to a document meant only for internal use by tax officials." Prosecutors from Munich carried out raids in…