About Franz Beckenbauer Supercup

The Franz Beckenbauer Supercup is the modern name of Germany’s annual Supercup match between the Bundesliga champions and the DFB-Pokal winners. It continues a tradition that originally began in 1987 as an official curtain-raiser to the new season, although the competition has changed organizers and formats over time. After a break in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Supercup was reintroduced in 2010 and later renamed in honour of Franz Beckenbauer.

Alongside the official editions, there were also several unofficial or early versions of the Supercup before it became fully established. In the late 1970s and 1980s, some matches were played between league champions and cup winners but were not consistently organized by the national federation. These games are often regarded as “inofficial” editions, yet they already featured major clubs like Bayern Munich, Hamburger SV, Borussia Mönchengladbach, and others, giving the idea of a German super cup early visibility.

Over time, the competition evolved into a regular season-opening fixture, but its historical roots include both official and unofficial formats. The unofficial early matches helped shape the identity of the modern Supercup by testing top domestic teams in a single decisive game. Today, under the Franz Beckenbauer name, it is seen as a symbolic match between the two main domestic champions and a continuation of decades of evolving traditions in German football.