Autographs of Bert Trautmann
Bernhard Carl "Bert" Trautmann (22 October 1923 – 19 July 2013) was a German professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
Born in Bremen in 1923, he joined the Jungvolk, the junior section of the Hitler Youth in August 1933. Trautmann joined the Luftwaffe early in the Second World War, and then served as a paratrooper. He was initially sent to occupied Poland, and subsequently fought on the Eastern Front for three years, earning five medals, including an Iron Cross. Later in the war, he was transferred to the Western Front, where he was captured by the British as the war drew to a close. As a volunteer soldier, he was classified a category "C" prisoner by the authorities, meaning he was regarded as a Nazi. One of only 90 of his original 1,000-man regiment to survive the war, he was transferred to a prisoner-of-war camp in Ashton-in-Makerfield, Lancashire. Trautmann refused an offer of repatriation, and following his release in 1948 decided to settle in Lancashire, combining farm work with playing goalkeeper for a local football team, St Helens Town.
Performances for St Helens gained Trautmann a reputation as an outstanding goalkeeper, resulting in interest from Football League clubs. In October 1949, he signed for Manchester City, a club playing in the country's highest level of football, the First Division. The club's decision to sign a former Axis paratrooper sparked protests, and 20,000 people attended a demonstration. Over time, he gained acceptance through his performances in the City goal, playing in all but five of the club's next 250 matches.
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Current items with a signature of Bert Trautmann
These are the most current items with a signature of Bert Trautmann that were listed on eBay and on other online stores - click here for more items.
Traded items with a signature of Bert Trautmann
The most expensive item with a signature of Bert Trautmann (Bert Trautmann Manchester City Legend Hand Signed 23x19" Framed) was sold in February 2026 for £217.00 while the cheapest item (BERT TRAUTMANN (Manchester City) Signed Picture) found a new owner for £0.99 in December 2012. The month with the most items sold (36) was April 2026 with an average selling price of £18.95 for an autographed item of Bert Trautmann. Sold items reached their highest average selling price in February 2025 with £80.00 and the month that saw the lowest prices with £1.20 was June 2016. In average, an autographed item from Bert Trautmann is worth £18.95.
Most recently, these items with a signature of Bert Trautmann were sold on eBay - click here for more items.
Latest News about Bert Trautmann
Meet Bill Leivers, 91, the longest surviving FA Cup winner who starred for Manch (27/02/2023): EXCLUSIVE: Man City's 1956 FA Cup triumph will always be remembered for Bert Trautmann's broken neck, but 91-year-old title winner Bill Leivers admits there were plenty of other storylines from that day. 
City greats: Bert Trautmann (11/07/2014): In the latest edition of our series looking at Manchester City legends, we look at one of City's greatest goalies. FA Cup Heroes - No.10: Bert Trautmann (14/05/2014): All this week, we will be counting down our Top 10 FA Cup heroes as voted by talkSPORT listeners on Twitter and Facebook . And we kick off with Bert Trautmann...Manchester City pay tribute to Bert Trautmann before Newcastle match (19/08/2013): Manchester City paid tribute to their former goalkeeper Bert Trautmann during their Premier League clash against Newcastle on Monday night. Bert Trautmann: farewell to a legend (19/07/2013): BERND TRAUTMANN, the former Germany international goalkeeper, has died at the age of 89, the German Football Association announced.
