Gerd Weber is a former German

Germans

The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

 soccer player.

Weber began his career in 1970 with SG Dynamo Dresden of the DDR-Oberliga

DDR-Oberliga

The DDR-Oberliga was, prior to German reunification in 1990, the elite level of football competition in the DDR , being roughly equivalent to the Oberliga or Bundesliga in West Germany.-Overview:Following World...

. Between 1977 and 1980 he played 35 times for the East German national team

East Germany national football team

The East Germany national football team was from 1952 to 1990 the football team of East Germany, playing as one of three post-war German teams, along with Saarland and West Germany....

, scoring 5 goals, and winning gold at the 1976 Summer Olympics

1976 Summer Olympics

The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and...

. In 1981, he along with two teammates (Peter Kotte

Peter Kotte

-External links:*...

 and Matthias Müller

Matthias Müller (footballer)

Matthias Müller is a German footballer. Müller began his career with his hometown club, Dynamo Dresden, where he established himself in the first-team, playing at full-back as the team won three East German titles and one cup. Müller represented East Germany at most levels of youth football, and...

), were arrested at Dresden Airport by the Stasi, just as they were to travel to Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 for an international match. Weber had contacts to West German

West Germany

West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....

 side 1. FC Köln

1. FC Köln

1. FC Köln is a German association football club based in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 as a merger of the clubs Kölner Ballspiel-Club 1901 and SpVgg Sülz 07....

, and had solicited escape plans, intending to flee to the West. Weber was sentenced to seven years and seven months' imprisonment. In 1989, he was released before serving his full sentence. However, he was banned from returning to professional football.