“Jürgen Grabowski’s passing is incomprehensible for all of us,” said club president Peter Fischer, expressing his deep sorrow at the news. “In his playing career, Jürgen Grabowski was perhaps the most complete player to play for Eintracht,” CEO Axel Hellmann said of the death of the club’s honorary captain. “His aura continues to have an effect to the present day. ‘Grabi’, who was so fond of attending Eintracht games, was a role model at the club across the generations.”
Grabowski, who was born in Wiesbaden on 7 July 1944, moved to Riederwald from FV Biebrich 02 in 1965. He quickly settled in the Bundesliga, registering 10 goals in 27 league appearances in his debut season. A member of Germany’s World Cup squads in 1966 and 1970, Grabi was also involved in their successful 1974 campaign, when he lifted the trophy in Munich alongside Eintracht colleague Bernd Hölzenbein. He called time on his international career after that triumph, having scored five goals in 44 outings.
As well as winning the 1972 European Championship, Grabi also enjoyed huge success with Eintracht. He was part of the Eagles side that won the DFB Cup for the first time in 1974 and helped the club defend their crown with victory in the final against MSV Duisburg the following year.
In a league game against Borussia Mönchengladbach in spring 1980, Grabowski suffered such a bad injury that he was unable to continue playing. He was not on the pitch when Eintracht claimed their first European title – the 1980 UEFA Cup – on 21 May 1980, but team-mates and fans never forgot Grabi’s importance. When he was presented with the trophy, supporters chanted ‘Grabowski, Grabowski!” for several minutes.
He made 555 competitive appearances for Eintracht overall, scoring 151 goals.
Grabowski had been in poor health in recent years, regularly having to undergo dialysis. He struggled to visit the stadium but was able to attend several games in autumn 2021 before his untimely passing. Eintracht Frankfurt would like to express its enormous gratitude and respect for one of the game’s greatest ever players. Our sympathy goes to his wife Helga and his family.