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Manuel Neuer is known for his skill as a goalkeeper, but proved he has brains to boot on Thursday.
Germany's leading shot stopper appeared on the German version of the TV game show Who wants to be a Millionaire?
The Bayern Munich man appeared in a celebrity edition of RTL's programme, and won 500,000 euros for charity before calling it quits.
The final, one million euros question, was: "To Nurnberg's Martin Benhaim, we owe the oldest surviving...?"
The options were: A: compass; B: slide rule; C: globe; D: magnetic compass.After having a think, Neuer opted not to risk his earnings.
"Now's the end of the gamble," he said, ending his impressive run. The correct answer was C.
Other celebrity contestants included singer Maite Kelly and comedian Michael Mittermeier, both of whom won 125,000 euros, and actress Gaby Koster who claimed 64,000 euros.
Bayern Munich attacker Arjen Robben has revealed the groin injury he is close to overcoming, had been the worst he has experienced.
The Dutchman had to undergo surgery six weeks ago to rectify the problem and he has admitted that the injury was more painful than anything else he's experienced in the past.
"I've had my fair share of injuries, but I've never experienced something like this. This was the worst injury in my life," Robben was quoted as saying by Bild.
"It's impossible to imagine how bad it was. I had a lot of pain and the recovery process was very hard."
The former Real Madrid winger also looked ahead to the weekend's Bundesliga match versus Borussia Dortmund and made it clear that he's hopeful of getting playing time."
I'm obviously looking forward to the game and to making my comeback. I can hardly wait for the match to take place. However, we don't want to risk anything by rushing my comeback."
Bundesliga preview: Heavyweights clash in marquee match 18 November 2011
Leaders Bayern Munich host champions Borussia Dortmund on Saturday in the biggest match yet of the Bundesliga season.
Juergen Klopp guided Dortmund to their first league title since 2002 last term, with the team from the Ruhr valley finishing 10 points clear of Bayern.It was a disappointing campaign for the Bavarian heavyweights, and one that cost Luis van Gaal his job as coach.
Jupp Heynckes was tempted from Bayer Leverkusen to fill the void at the Allianz Arena.Now in his third spell in charge, the 66-year-old has led Bayern to an impressive start to the new campaign.They have won nine out of 12 matches in the league, and sit five points clear of second-placed Dortmund.
Klopp's men, who lost Nuri Sahin to Real Madrid in the close season, made a slow start to their title defence, winning just three of their first eight outings in all competitions.But they have steadily climbed to second spot, and victory at the Allianz Arena would see them move closer to regaining the lofty position they became accustomed in 2010/11.
Dortmund won the corresponding fixture 3-1 last season, in their first away victory over Bayern since 1991.Bayern come into Saturday's match seeking to avenge that rare loss, and hoping to preserve or extend their early league lead.
But they will be without Bastian Schweinsteiger for the key clash, with the influential midfielder out for at least five weeks with a broken collarbone.The heavyweight showdown in Munich is not the clash of note on Saturday, as third-placed Werder Bremen also in action against Borussia Moenchengladbach, who are fourth.
In the day's other matches, second-bottom Freiburg are at home to Hertha Berlin and fifth-placed Schalke host Nuremberg, who are one spot outside the relegation zone in 15th.
Hannover are away to Wolfsburg, and Cologne await the visit of Mainz.On Sunday, Augsburg face a tough ask adding to their solitary victory this season, with the promoted side in action away to Stuttgart.
And third-bottom Hamburg are at home to Hoffenheim.The opening match of the round on Friday sees Leverkusen travel to Kaiserslautern.
Zhi Gin signing a tonic for Hamburg 18 November 2011
Hamburg midfielder Lam Zhi Gin has signed a new contract that will keep him at the Imtech Arena until 2015.
The 20-year-old has made five Bundesliga appearances for HSV this season and sporting director Frank Arnesen was delighted with the new agreement.
"Zhi Gin has developed well, he is fast, has very good technique and plays cleverly," the 55-year-old told Spox.com.
The youngster, who is eligible for both Germany and China, was pleased to be staying at the club.
"I am very happy to continue playing for Hamburg.
Here I have completed my first league game and I appreciate the trust that the club have in me."
Hamburg are languising in the relegation zone with only two wins this season.
Bundesliga: Kaiserslautern 0 Bayer Leverkusen 2 19 November 2011
Michael Ballack and Sidney Sam scored as Bayer Leverkusen opened week 13 of the Bundesliga with a 2-0 win at Kaiserslautern.
The match started at a frantic pace, with Dorge Kouemaha spurning a great chance for the hosts after three minutes, before Ballack unleashed a fierce shot that Kevin Trapp gathered at the second attempt.
Seconds later, Castro's pull back found the former Chelsea midfielder on the edge of the box, but the veteran's strike was blocked en route to Trapp's net.
Kouemaha squandered his second chance to cap a frenzied opening 10 minutes as he muscled his way through Leverkusen's defence, but the 28-year-old's left-footed finish trickled wide.
The pace of the game dropped over the next 35 minutes as both teams looked to sure up their leaky defences, leaving the tie goalless at half-time.
The match needed a spark, and Lars Bender almost provided one shortly after the break, as he forced a spectacular save from Trapp from 30 metres.
The visitors were ahead minutes later when Ballack collected Sam's ball, before shooting directly at Trapp, who could only parry into his own net.
The goal brought life into the game as Bender unleashed another ferocious strike which Trapp palmed into Castro's path, but the 24-year-old prodded the ball wide when he should have doubled his side's lead.
But Robin Dutt's men killed off any chance of a revival 20 minutes from the end of the game when Lars Bender picked up the ball and fed Sam, who was able to poke past Trapp.
Hoeness hits back at Neuer critics Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness claims he has lost patience with fans who continue to criticise the signing of goalkeeper Manuel Neuer from Bundesliga rivals Schalke last summer.
The mention of Neuer's name at the club's annual general meeting on Friday night drew a few boos from the congregation of members, at which point Hoeness said enough is enough.
"I have thought about this for a while," he is quoted as saying by sport.de. "Should I keep my mouth shut? Well no, I can't.
"If anybody claims this transfer was wrong, then they should just stay at home.
"Manuel Neuer is the best goalkeeper in the world and Manuel Neuer is a personality who fits in with FC Bayern like hardly any other.
"He not only has good hands, but he has a good brain too, and there have been many players here who were not so gifted."
The boos for Neuer were the only signs of dissent on a night when the Bavarian club announced profits of 1.3 million euros for the 2010/11 financial year and when it was revealed director of sport Christian Nerlinger had signed a new contract.
"This result has been achieved despite a difficult climate," reported the club's financial director Karl Hopfner.
"I recall that we did not win anything on the field last season, and then there is the global financial crisis, yet we have still managed to post a profit once again."
Nerlinger, who succeeded Hoeness as the club's director of sport in 2009, will now remain at the club until 2014.
Cologne game with Mainz postponed Cologne's Bundesliga match with Mainz, scheduled to be played on Saturday afternoon, has been postponed.
Cologne's official website, www.fckoeln.de, revealed the match was called off because the referee due to officiate was not able to take charge of the contest.
The statement added: "A replacement is not available in the short-term."
Cologne-Mainz match off after referee suicide attempt 19 November 2011
Cologne's home game against Mainz has been called off after referee Babak Rafati attempted suicide in his hotel room.
The 41-year-old was due to officiate the Bundesliga game on Saturday, but was found in the morning with his wrists slashed.
Fans and stadium staff were not informed of the news until late, with supporters entering the RheinEnergie Stadion as late as 45 minutes before kick-off.
Cologne's press spokesperson, Tobias Schmidt, confirmed that the game had been cancelled as a replacement referee could not be found in time.
"The referee didn't turn up. We were unable to find a replacement at such short notice. We can't make any further comment," Schmidt said.
This is not the first time German football has been in the news for tragedy off the pitch.
In November 2009, Hannover goalkeeper Robert Enke took his own life by stepping out in front of a moving train.
Rafati is an experienced official in the Bundesliga, taking charge of nearly 200 league games.
Bundesliga wrap: Dortmund win Bayern showdown 20 November 2011
Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund defeated Bayern Munich 1-0 away on Saturday, closing to within two points of the league leaders.
Early front-runners Bayern held a five-point lead at the top coming into the match, but they were undone by Mario Goetze's 65th-minute strike for the visitors.It was the second time in seven home matches this season Bayern have lost by a 1-0 score-line at the Allianz Arena.
And after beating Bayern away from home in 1990/91 and 1991/92, Dortmund have now managed successive victories over their rivals in Munich for just the second time in their history.
In other matches on Saturday, Borussia Moenchengladbach romped to a 5-0 win at home to Werder Bremen.Marco Reus bagged a hat-trick at Borussia-Park, with Patrick Herrmann and Juan Arango the other men on target.
Bremen finished with 10 men following the 76th-minute dismissal of Sokratis Papastathopoulos.Stefan Reisinger scored twice, the second a 95th-minute equaliser, to help Freiburg come from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at home to Hertha Berlin.
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's double, together with goals from Raul and Lewis Holtby, saw Schalke dispatch Nuremburg 4-0 at home.Bosnian veteran Hasan Salihamidzic netted a brace, while Chris and Alexander Madlung scored one apiece as Wolfsburg downed 10-man Hannover 4-1 at home.
Cologne's match at home to Mainz was postponed after referee Babak Rafati attempted to commit suicide earlier in the day.
Borussia Dortmund manager Juergen Klopp was delighted after his side beat Bayern Munich on Saturday.
The defending champions closed to within two points of league leaders Bayern after their 1-0 success at the Allianz Arena, which came thanks to Mario Gotze's goal.The highly rated youngster scored with 25 minutes to play as Dortmund extended their unbeaten streak in the league to seven matches.
"That was really good, really hard work," Klopp said."You have to play like that if you want to pick up any points here. You don't get anything by just playing at 95 per cent."
Bayern skipper Philipp Lahm pointed the blame at his side's forwards, who failed to convert their many chances into a goal."I think we created a lot of goal-scoring opportunities, but we didn't take them, which is important in matches like that," Lahm said.
"I don't think we were at are best today, and we need to look at why we weren't able to score."Lahm's teammate Arjen Robben felt his side were unlucky not at least claim a draw. "I think we could have played better, that's clear for everyone to see," Robben said.
"A fair result would have perhaps been a draw because neither side was so much better than the other, it was a very equal game with few chances and several great players on the pitch.""It was a game decided by the smallest of margins."
Rafati 'stable' after suicide attempt The president of the German FA, Dr Theo Zwanziger, has revealed referee Babak Rafati is in a stable condition after trying to commit suicide.
Zwanziger called off his planned visit to Wiesbaden, where Germany's women's team were playing Kazakhstan, to find out the circumstances behind the incident which forced the postponement of Saturday's Bundesliga fixture between Cologne and Mainz.
At a press conference, Zwanziger confirmed Rafati had attempted to commit suicide, but was found by his assistant referees before it was too late.
"Babak Rafati is in a stable condition and he is being treated in intensive care," Dr Zwanziger is quoted as saying by sport.de. "It is a difficult situation for the assistant referees to deal with, but they seem to be coping. They are receiving psychological assistance."
The match between Cologne and Mainz was called off after Rafati failed to appear. His assistants became concerned when the Hanover-based referee did not show up for a scheduled pre-match meeting before the transfer from their hotel to the Mungersdorfer Stadion.
"The assistants say that they were all together last night and everything appeared to be fine," Dr Zwanziger said. "Rafati was not present at breakfast this morning, but that was nothing extraordinary. "At 13:30, they were all due to meet and, when he was not there, and since he is usually punctual, the assistants tried to call him on his phone.
"Since they could not get hold of him, they knocked on his hotel room door. Afterwards, a hotel worker opened the door. "He was found lying in the bath tub and there was a lot of blood. They tried everything. "A huge thank you must be said to the three assistants. If his condition is not life-threatening, then the three assistants have a lot to do with that."
The game was called off 50 minutes prior to its scheduled kick-off. Cologne's director of sport Volker Finke later spoke of "an accident" prompting the postponement. Dr Zwanziger has now confirmed the police are treating the incident as a suicide attempt.
"The police have ruled out any external cause," he said. "Notes have been found and these will now have to be analysed." Rafati made his refereeing debut in the exact same fixture in 2005 and was promoted to the FIFA list of referees three years later following the retirement of Markus Merk.
The reasons behind Rafati's suicide attempt remain unclear, but Dr Zwanziger said the pressure on a referee in modern football could be a contributory factor. "The motive remains unclear," he said. "We all now have to hope that Rafati's condition stabilises and that he regains full health, and that whatever caused this will become clear so that he can be helped.
"He is now in good hands. It is difficult to understand how such a young man can find himself in a situation with no way out. "All I can imagine is that the pressure on referees is so high these days, for whatever reason, and we are unable to find the right balance."
Bundesliga wrap: Harnik wins it for Stuttgart, Fink tastes first success 21 November 2011
Stuttgart moved up to sixth in the Bundesliga with a 2-1 win over strugglers Augsburg as Martin Harnik netted twice.
The Austrian opened the scoring four minutes from half-time after Augsburg had failed to clear their lines.Tobias Werner drew level for Augsburg two minutes after the interval but Harnik's reply within four minutes crushed the visitors.
It was a difficult win for Stuttgart but nonetheless important, with the three points taking them to 21 for the campaign.Augsburg, meanwhile, are rooted to the foot of the table in their maiden Bundesliga campaign with just one win and eight points to date.
In the other match on Sunday, Hamburg coach Thorsten Fink celebrated his first win in charge of the club at the fourth attempt with a 2-0 victory at home to Hoffenheim.Jose Paolo Guerrero put the home side in front on the quarter hour from his second attempt.
The Peruvian collected a poor clearance from Andreas Beck and was on hand to covert the rebound after his first shot came back off the post.Ryan Babel sent a shot high and wide soon before the half for Hoffenheim as the visitors gave as good as they got.
If they were unlucky to trail they were desperately unfortunate to go 2-0 down when Marcell Jansen doubled the lead in the 65th minute.Jaroslav Drobny saw his shot well saved before Hamburg when straight up the other end, Jansen cutting in from the left to beat the keeper at the near post.
The win lifts Hamburg out of the bottom three for the first time all season and into 14th, one point clear of the drop zone.
Robben: I need more time
Bayern Munich winger Arjen Robben maintained he needs a regular run in the first team in order to get back to his scintillating peak.
Heynckes: Bayern lacked cutting edge
Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes believes his team lacked invention up front in their 1-0 loss to Borussia Dortmund on Saturday evening.
Hecking hits out at 'naive' Nuremberg
Nuremberg coach Dieter Hecking slammed his side following their 4-0 defeat to Schalke, criticising the side's performance in the final third of the picth.
Zwanziger: Assistants saved Rafati
German Football Association president Dr Theo Zwanziger credited the two assistant referees and the fourth official for saving the life of referee Babak Rafati.
Heynckes: Bayern lacked cutting edge Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes believes his team lacked invention up front in their 1-0 loss to Borussia Dortmund on Saturday evening.
Dortmund scored the only goal of the game in the 65th minute when Shinji Kagawa's deflected pass looped over Jerome Boateng and into the path of Mario Gotze, who showed quick reflexes to fire the ball past a stranded Manuel Neuer.
However, Bayern then spent the remainder of the match dictating possession, but failed to carve open a clear cut scoring opportunity despite much of the game being played out in their attacking third.
And Heynckes admits his side lacked invention against a stubborn Dortmund side, who had Mats Hummels to thank for some brave defending.
"When you play against Borussia Dortmund, you need to pose much more pressure than we have done today [Saturday]," Heynckes told Bundesliga.de.
"We have not understood how to increase the tempo and create scoring chances, until the final phase when he had two clear chances to score."
Heynckes also insisted his players had been unfortunate to concede, and felt they deserved a point from the game.
"The goal [Gotze scored] was very unfortunate, and in my view this was a typical 0-0 game."
Bayern's lead at the top of the table has now been reduced to just two points, with Dortmund just ahead of Borussia Monchengladbach in second place on goal difference.
Hitzfeld tips Fink for Bayern role 21 November 2011
Ottmar Hitzfeld believes Hamburg coach Thorsten Fink has the leadership qualities to take the Bayern Munich job in future.
Hitzfeld, who coached the former player in Munich, feels there is scope for development and claims Fink has a special affinity with the German giants.
"He (Fink) is a top coach who will eventually end up with Bayern as he has them in his genes," Hitzfeld told Sky in Germany.
Fink is contracted with Hamburg until 2014. Hitzfeld led Bayern to five Bundesliga trophies as well as a Champions League title over two spells at the club.
Reus right for Bayern, says Rummenigge 21 November 2011
Bayern Munich chief Karl-Heinz Rummenigge wants Borussia Moenchengladbach attacker Marco Reus to join the Bundesliga leaders.
The 22-year-old has attracted the interest of a plethora of big clubs and did his reputation no harm with a hat-trick in his side's 5-0 demolition of Werder Bremen on Saturday.
Among the clubs heavily linked with a move for Reus are Bayern Munich, and Rummenigge would like to see the Germany international make the switch to the Bavarian giants.
"He is one of the most interesting talents. He could give us more quality in the long run. It's the quality that we seek," Rummenigge told Der Welt.
"In Moenchengladbach, Reus is the only player in the German national team. With us, he'd be the ninth or 10th."
Reus reportedly has a release clause in his contract that could see him move for 17.5 million euros after the 2011/12 season.
A fan of Bundesliga side Nuremberg lost his right arm during a scuffle with Mainz supporters on Saturday.
Following the postponement of Cologne's home match with Mainz, visiting fans were involved in a fight with supporters of the Bavarian club at the host city's Central Train Station.
Nuremberg fans were in the area after their side met Schalke in Gelsenkirchen earlier in the day.
The Nuremberg supporter, 19, was pushed in front of an oncoming Inter-City Express train, and was unable to fully evade it and had his arm amputated.
The victim, who was under the police's file of 'violent sports fans', was immediately hospitalised and stabilised following emergency surgery, though his arm could not be reattached.
Local authorities have begun their search for the perpetrator, who fled the scene.
A total of 30 people were involved in the scuffle, after which one person was arrested.The incident occurred around four hours after the scheduled kick-off of Cologne's match with Mainz.
The match was postponed due to the attempted suicide by referee Babak Rafati.
Bundesliga referee Babak Rafati has been released from hospital following his suicide attempt on Saturday.
Rafati was due to officiate Koln's clash with Mainz, but the game was postponed after the 41-year-old tried to take his own life shortly before kick-off.
Speaking to Bild, his father confirmed that his son's condition was improving, but declined to comment on his son's motivation.
"I phoned Babak on Saturday and twice on Sunday. He is doing very well," Jalal Rafati said."The first thing he said was, 'Dad, I love you'.
He apologised to me and asked for forgiveness.""I told him, 'of course, my son'. I am so very glad that he is well again."
Despite officiating nearly 200 Bundesliga matches in his career, Rafati has taken charge of just four league games this season and will lose his status as a FIFA-listed referee in January.
Some have speculated that his career problems prompted the suicide attempt, while others have guessed that personal issues were to blame.
Dortmund in black, ´deserve applause´ 22 November 2011
Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund have announced a 37 percent increase in revenue and a 9.5 million-euro profit for the 2010/11 season.
At the club's annual general meeting, chief executive officer Hans-Joachim Watzke revealed the turnover, which was greatly helped by an increase in revenue from 110 million to 151 million euros.
"This team deserves every applause in the world," he told the assembly.The BVB boss also took a jab at clubs that have accumulated debt in order to achieve sporting success."
"We won the championship together, with sound fiscal policy. There is another way. We have done it with emotion and a clear plan," Watzke said.
Watzke also confirmed that his club would not be taken over, even in part, by a wealthy individual."At BVB there will be no investors, you have my word. The door is closed," he said.
Dortmund have used their profit to reduce stadium debt on the Signal Iduna Park, which now stands at 56 million euros.
The champions are the not the only Bundesliga team to announce profits in recent days. On Friday, Bayern Munich revealed a 1.3 million-euro turnover.
Wollscheid will join Leverkusen
Nuremberg have announced defender Philipp Wollscheid will move to Bayer Leverkusen at the end of the season for an undisclosed fee.
Pizarro injury blow for Bremen
Werder Bremen could be without top goalscorer Claudio Pizarro for the rest of the year after he was diagnosed with torn ligaments in his right knee.
Miller returns to Hannover energized
Goalkeeper Markus Miller has returned to Hannover after spending almost 11 weeks having treatment for mental exhaustion.
