Tight finances at FC Bayern: Rummenigge left 'shocked' | OneFootball

Karl-Heinz Rummenigge spoke in a birthday interview with tz about the future of FC Bayern, his role in the club, and the financial direction of the record champions. The 69-year-old hinted that he and Uli Hoeneß will eventually give up their key positions – once the right structures are in place.

This Thursday, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge turns 70. The long-time CEO of Bayern returned from retirement in 2023 and has since been active as a supervisory board member at the record champions. Together with honorary president Uli Hoeneß, Rummenigge is mainly involved in strategic decisions. According to his own statements, this will not change for the time being.

“FC Bayern has always been most successful when there was continuity at the top. The operational area must function smoothly,” Rummenigge explained. It is important that sports director Max Eberl also listens to the advice of him and Hoeneß: “Not everything is done yet, but we are back on the right track.”

Criticism of Past Financial Policy

Photo: imago images

When asked if he could imagine stepping down before his 80th birthday, Rummenigge answered clearly: “I assume so. I don’t know if it will be at the same time for Uli and me. But at some point, we will say: Here are the keys, now someone else has to unlock the door.”

Rummenigge also reflected on his return to the supervisory board in 2023: “When I stepped down in 2021, the sun was shining. We had won seven titles, and the finances were in order despite the COVID pandemic. After that, we spent a bit too much money, and we must see that self-critically.”

Two years ago, when looking at the books, he “honestly reacted somewhat shocked”: “If we continue like this, we will run into financial difficulties.”

Specifically, it was about the salary budget of Munich, which had risen to over 300 million euros after the 2020 treble win due to many costly contract extensions. To counteract this development, Bayern embarked on a savings course last summer and parted ways with top earners like Kingsley Coman and Thomas Müller.

Karl-Heinz Rummenigge: “We Will Not Engage in This Madness”

Therefore, the new philosophy is clearly focused on cost reduction. “We must not make the mistake of leaving control of the transfer market to the English. And by the way, not to the media either. We have our DNA, and you can’t buy that. We will not engage in this madness.”

With these words, Rummenigge emphasizes that FC Bayern, despite the growing market dynamics, wants to stick to its core principles – thereby taking a clear counter-position to the financially strong Premier League clubs.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.