Hamburger SV Greatest All-Time Team

European Cup 1983

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index and my blog on Hamburger SV of the 1980's.


This is my selection of a 25 member all-time team for the club.  The number 25 was chosen because it is the official squad size for the Champions' League.

GK: Uli Stein (Germany)
He began his career in 1978 with Arminia Bielefeld. After two years, he moved to Hamburger SV where he played from 1980 to 1987. He also played for Eintracht Frankfurt. The highlight of his career was winning the European Cup (UEFA Champions League) in 1983, with Hamburger SV. He also went on to win the DFB-Pokal with Eintracht Frankfurt in 1988. He represented the West German national team 6 times between 1983 and 1986. He went Mexico 1986.

Uli Stein

GK: Rudi Kargus  (Germany)
He played mainly with Hamburger SV. He won the European Cup Winners' Cup with Hamburger SV in 1977, was runner-up with them in the European Cup in 1980 after winning the Bundesliga title the season before. Capped 3 times.

GK: René Adler (Germany)
Adler started at age six playing for VfB Leipzig's youth side. After nine years for Leipzig, Adler joined the youth system of Bayer 04 Leverkusen in 2000. He signed a five-year contract at Bundesliga rivals Hamburger SV in 2012.  He made his debut for Germany on 11 October 2008 in a World Cup qualifier against Russia. Despite having been confirmed as Germany's main team goalkeeper for the World Cup, a serious rib injury prevented him from travelling to South Africa. 

RB: Manfred Kaltz (Germany)
Kaltz was one of the finest crosser of the ball in the history of the game. He was famous with his partnership with striker Horst Hrubesch at Hamburger SV.  They won the European Cup in 1984. Capped 69 times.  He was a key player for West Germany in the 1980's and was considered one of Germany's greatest fullbacks.

Manfred Kaltz

CB/RB: Josef Posipal (Germany)
Posipal was born to an ethnic German family in Lugoj, and lived much of his life in West Germany. During his club career he played for SV Linden 07, SV Arminia Hannover, and Hamburger SV.  Capped 32 times.  He helped West Germany to win their first ever WC in 1954.

CB: Willi Schulz (Germany)
He was one of the best center-backs in the world during the 1960's.  He started as the sweeper in the 1966 WC Finals.  He went to Mexico 1970, but was injured.  He played for Hamburger and Schalke 04.

Willi Schulz

CB/RB: Ivan Buljan (Yugoslavia)
Buljan started his career with local club NK Mračaj before moving to the first-league team Hajduk Split in 1967. In 1975, he was selected as Večernji list's top player in Yugoslavia. Buljan finally left Hajduk in 1977 for Hamburger SV where he played until 1981. He then finished his career with two seasons with the New York Cosmos.

CB: Ditmar Jakobs  (Germany)
Jakobs played 493 games from 1971 to 1990 for Rot-Weiß Oberhausen, Tennis Borussia Berlin, MSV Duisburg and Hamburger SV. With Hamburger SV he won the 1987 DFB-Pokal. In 1982 and 1983 he became German champion and 1983 he won the UEFA Champions League.  Jakobs was a member of the German national football team, which was runner-up in the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. 

Ditmar Jakobs

CB: Peter Nogly (Germany)
He earned four caps for the West Germany national football team in 1977. He was included in the West German team for the UEFA Euro 1976, but did not play.

LB: Jürgen Kurbjuhn  (Germany)
He joined Hamburger SV in 1960 when the club had just been crowned German football champion. He was part of the 1963 German Cup winning side of the club. He retired, because of injury, after ten goals in 242 Bundesliga matches in 1972, mostly as a left back. He went to the WC Finals in 1962.


DM: Jimmy Hartwig (Germany)
He played for Kickers Offenbach, TSV 1860 München, Hamburger SV, 1. FC Köln and FC Homburg of the Bundesliga and for Austria Salzburg of Austria. Hartwig won the European Cup in 1983 with Hamburger SV, and was three times German league champion in 1979, 1982 und 1983. The son of an African-American soldier and a German mother,  Hartwig was the second non-white player capped for Germany(after Erwin Kostedde).

AM: Thomas Doll (East Germany/Germany)
Doll began his career with local side BSG Lokomotiv Malchin, before joining East German first-division DDR-Oberliga side Hansa Rostock. In 1986 he was transferred to Berliner FC Dynamo, where he won two East Germany titles (in 1987 in 1988). After reunification Doll was one of the most sought-after players of coming out of the former East Germany.  He played as an attacking midfielder for Hamburger SV, Lazio, Eintracht Frankfurt and Bari. He played for both East Germany and Germany.  He went to Euro 1992 for Germany.

CM: Wolfgang Rolff (Germany)
Wolfgang Rolff played for Hamburger SV, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Bayer 05 Uerdingen, Karlsruher SC, 1. FC Köln, OSC Bremerhaven, SC Fortuna Köln and Strasbourg. In his years with his clubs he won the German Bundesliga title with Hamburg in 1983 and was part of the Hamburg side that clinched the European Cup.  He also won the UEFA Cup with Bayer 04 Leverkusen in 1988.

LM: Caspar Memering (Germany)
He was part of the Hamburg side that clinched the European Cup in 1983. Capped 3 times.  He won the European Championship in 1980.

LM/CM/AM: Yordan Letchkov (Bulgaria)
Perhaps Letchkob had over caps for Bulgaria.  He was best remembered for scoring the winning goal against Germany in the quarter-final at World Cup 1994.  He also played at Euro 1996.  He played for CSKA Sofia, Hamburger SV, Olympique de Marseille and Beşiktaş. His longest career was spent with Hamburger SV between 1992 and 1996.

Yordan Letchkov

LW: Gert Dörfel  (Germany)
He spent nine seasons in the Bundesliga with Hamburger SV. He represented Germany 11 times, including at the 1962 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Northern Ireland (scoring two goals) and Greece (scoring one goal), the 1966 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Sweden, and eight friendlies.

AM: Rafael van der Vaart (Holland)
Van der Vaart began his career at AFC Ajax's youth academy and worked his way into the first team. He moved to Bundesliga club Hamburger SV, then to Real Madrid, then on to Tottenham Hotspur before returning to Hamburg in 2012. He earned 109 caps for the Netherlands between 2001 and 2013. He represented the nation at three European Championships and two World Cups.

Rafael van der Vaart

AM/CM: Thomas Heesen (Germany)
Most of his professional career was spent, as a player, with Hamburger SV, with which he won several accolades, both domestic and continental, appearing in nearly 400 official games for the club.

AM: Felix Magath (Germany)
He was the son of an American GI and a German woman.  He played for Hamburger between 1976 and 1986, winning the European Cup in 1983. He was a part of the great West German national team of the 1980's, playing in Euro 1980, Spain 1982 and Mexico 1986.

Felix Magath

ST/SS: Kevin Keegan (England)
Two-time European Footballer of the Year in 1978 and 1979. He won the European Cup in 1977 with Liverpool. He also found successes in the Bundesliga with Hamburger SV.  He later played for Southampton and Newcastle United. He had 63 caps for England. However, his WC appearance was limited to 20 minutes against Spain at the WC Finals in 1982. 

Kevin Keegan

ST: Klaus Stürmer (Germany)
He represented Germany on two occasions, including a 1962 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland. On his debut on 16 October 1954 against France he became the youngest player of the post-war era to score for Germany at age 19 years 68 days, a record that was equalled in 2011 by Mario Götze.

ST: Horst Hrubesch (Germany)

He was a part of West German national team player pool throughout the 1980's.  He was known as one of the most powerful header of the ball in the game.  He was known for his partnership 
with Manfield Kaltz who was one of the best crossers in the game.  Together, they won the European Cup in 1983 with Hamburger. 

ST: Uwe Seeler (Germany)
Seeler was captain of both his club team and the national team for many years. He played in 4 WC Finals(1958, 1962, 1966 and 1970), but sandwiched between Germany's two World Cup winning years(1954 and 1974).  West Germany came second in 1966 and reached the semifinal in 1970 while playing next to Gerd Muller. However, he is still regarded one of Die Mannschaft s greatest players.  He spent his entire career with SV Hamburger.

Uwe Seeler

Honorable Mention
Georg Volkert, Hans-Jörg Butt, Rudolf Noak, Fritz Laban.

Squad Explanation
-- Fritz Laban was a rightback. His teammate Josef Posipal and Manfred Kaltz got the nod over him.
-- I do not really know Albert Beier.
-- Too many left-sided midfielders.  I left out Georg Volkert.

Formation