Helmut Rahn

Rahn's honours are few in number and large in weight. The 1954 World Cup is the centre of them: he scored twice in the final, including the winner, and the match is credited with helping restore German national pride after the Second World War. Add the German championship with Rot-Weiss Essen in 1955 and the DFB-Pokal with 1. FC Köln in 1968, and the club record is complete. The 1972 decoration by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany recognised the 1954 team as a whole. His 40 caps and 21 goals for West Germany place him among the more productive forwards of his era, and the 1954 winner is routinely listed among the greatest goals in World Cup history.