German World Cup winners Ottmar Walter and Heinz Flohe have passed away. Walter, who was a member of the German side that beat Hungary 3-2 in Berne in 1954, died on Sunday, officials at his former club Kaiserslautern said.
The striker played alongside his older brother Fritz in the team that stunned Hungary in the final after having earlier lost a group match against the same opponents 8-3.
Kaiserslautern official Stefan Kuntz said that everybody at the club, where both brothers spent most of their careers and won the German championship in 1951 and 1953, was saddened by the news.
"A part of history died," said Kuntz. "The 1954 World Cup winners showed us values which are still relevant today."
After the passing of the 89-year-old, just two of players who played in the 1954 final - Horst Eckel and Hans Schaefer - are still alive.
Flohe, who was in the German squad in 1974, when the team won the World Cup on home soil beating the Netherlands 2-1 in the final, passed away on Saturday his son Nino told dpa.
The midfielder spent most of his career with Cologne and won one Bundesliga title with the team. He fell into a coma in 2010 after suffering a stroke and had since not recovered.
"He peacefully went to sleep on Saturday night. He has been in a coma for more than three years and his body was very week. Of course we are sad, but it gives us some solace to know what he passed away peacefully," said Nino Flohe.
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