Heynckes was included in West Germany's squad for the 1974 FIFA World Cup, which was held in West Germany. Despite his excellent form at club level, however, he spent most of the tournament on the bench as Gerd Müller, the national team's all-time top goalscorer, was used as the starting centre forward by coach Helmut Schön. Heynckes was in the starting line-up for West Germany's opening two fixtures against Chile and Australia but then played no further part due to injury and "die Nationalelf" won their second World Cup, beating the Netherlands 2–1 in the final at Munich's Olympiastadion. In 2013, Heynckes said of his experience at the 1974 World Cup, "I was in the starting lineup for the German national team competing for the World Cup, but after an injury I was sidelined for the entire final. This was the greatest disappointment of my life, but it spurred me on and became my greatest source of motivation."