Eintracht Frankfurt: You carry the cup gene in you

AWhen Frankfurt surprisingly won the DFB Cup against Bayern Munich (3-1) in Berlin in May 2018, they had an expert spectator in the distance who was rooting for him – Kevin Trapp. The goalkeeper, who was still employed by Paris St. Germain at the time, followed the German final “live on the phone” because it was “the greatest thing” for him to see how Eintracht overthrew the favorites. Four years later, Trapp – he had returned to Frankfurt in the summer of 2018 – used the triumphant pictures from Berlin to emotionally prepare for the Europa League final against Glasgow Rangers.

Thanks to Trapp’s impeccable performance, Eintracht in Seville won the international competition. Should the Hessians also win the cup final against RB Leipzig this Saturday (8 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the DFB Cup, on ZDF and on Sky) in the Olympic Stadium in Berlin, Trapp would expand his collection of titles with Eintracht to two successes. For his employer it would be the sixth cup win overall.

The six-time national goalkeeper Trapp denies his first final in the federal capital. However, he has already had the title of cup winner three times in his résumé as a professional soccer player. In 2016, 2017 and 2018 in France, the Parisians were unbeatable in the competition. The 32-year-old Trapp is not the only one in the Frankfurt squad with plenty of cup-winning experience. Mario Götze (30 years old) celebrated the national triumph twice with Borussia Dortmund (2012 and 2017) and Bayern Munich (2014 and 2016). The national player was also successful with Eindhoven in the cup category last season.

Sebastian Rode (32) has enjoyed two DFB Cup victories so far; 2016 with Bayern and 2017 with BVB. However, he was not actively involved on the pitch either time, so Rode’s appearance this Saturday would be his first on the big final stage. Born in Hesse, he was already active in his role as team captain. On behalf of his work colleagues, he negotiated a joint prize money of a good one million euros.

Like Rode, who will probably be entering the last year of his professional career in the new season, Götze is also looking forward to a record. In the event of a Frankfurt win, both could become DFB Cup winners with three different clubs. So far, only the former professionals Klaus Allofs with Fortuna Düsseldorf, Cologne and Bremen, Thomas Kroth (Cologne, Hamburg, Dortmund) and Thorsten Legat (Bremen, Stuttgart, Schalke 04) have succeeded. Kroth and Legat once also wore the Frankfurt jersey, but they did not win a title during their time on the Main.