Defender Jerome Boateng struck a blow for his trade in winning Germany's footballer of the year for the 2015-16 season in a poll of sports journalists.
The 27-year-old Bayern Munich center-back is the first defender to win the award since Borussia Dortmund's Juergen Kohler in 1997. Boateng collected 163 of 674 votes registered by Kicker magazine.
Boateng's international and club teammate Thomas Mueller was second with 95 votes and Poland forward Robert Lewandowski third with 90 in a top-three sweep for Bayern.
Now at Augsburg, Dirk Schuster won coach of the year with 256 votes for securing Bundesliga survival for Darmstadt after leading the side to promotion the season before.
Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel was second with 134 votes, comfortably ahead of former Bayern coach Pep Guardiola on 54.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS