In farewell, Hoeness vows return
May 3, 2014
Uli Hoeness' passionate farewell speech at the club's extraordinary members' meeting on Friday was anything but a closing chapter; the player turned backroom mastermind at Bayern Munich announced his plans to return.
"I do not want to make myself more clean than I am. I have made a great mistake and will face up to everything. And then, when I'm back, I will not put myself out to pasture. This was not the end," Hoeness said, to thunderous applause and a standing ovation.
The club assembly on Friday voted for Karl Hopfner, already acting club president in Hoeness' stead, to take over the role on a permanent basis. Hopfner said in his speech that he would not compete with Hoeness for any function at the club, should such a situation arise in the future. He also described the outgoing president as the "head, stomach, constant heart and eternal soul of Bayern Munich."
"Dear Uli, you have a great family, but you also have a family here, at our club, who stand by you," Hopfner said.
Hoeness' other major backroom role at the head of Bayern's supervisory board is being filled by Adidas CEO Herbert Hainer. Adidas owns an 8.33-percent share in FC Bayern München AG - the business arm of the club whose shares are traded privately, not on an exchange.
From the pitch to prison
Uli Hoeness was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison this March, after admitting to tax evasion totaling more than 28 million euros (around $39 million). This followed a career spanning over 40 years at Bayern, first as a star striker then as a backroom mainstay, a project Hoeness has often called his "life's work." The 62-year-old said that the past year of his life had been difficult, not least because of the sudden change in his treatment and depiction in the press.
"Suddenly I was an asshole, a swine, a man who was taking money out of people's pockets, withholding the people's money," Hoeness said of the reports about him, adding that he had no complaints about his treatment by the courts in Bavaria.
Perhaps sensing some tensions in the hall after Bayern's problematic month on the pitch - not least Wednesday's Champions League thrashing, at home, at the hands of Real Madrid - Hoeness also told club members that he was confident in the club's short-term future.
"As I leave now, I do so with a calm conscience. I have absolutely no concerns about this club," Hoeness said. Bayern told its members on Friday that another year of record turnover - perhaps exceeding 500 million euros - and profit was likely for 2014.
Safe hands until 2019, support for Guardiola
One Bayern player likely to witness the return of Uli Hoeness, in one role or another, is German international goalie Manuel Neuer. The club announced on Friday that Neuer, 28, had extended his contract until 2019.
"I feel very much at home at this club and in the city of Munich and we still have grand goals. I am looking forward to our shared future," Neuer wrote on his Facebook page, while club chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge praised the former Schalke keeper for committing his future to the club even in a difficult week.
Rummenigge spared particular praise for Bayern's coach Pep Guardiola, whose masterful unbeaten run to securing the Bundesliga championship has rather fallen off the rails since Bayern wrapped up the league title.
"You could not squeeze even a sheet of paper in between Pep Guardiola and the entirety of FC Bayern," Rummenigge said on the 43-year-old former Barcelona boss. "He is a trainer with a clear philosophy and a grand vision."
Guardiola also spoke at the meeting, saying that he intended to stick with his playing philosophy as coach.
"We have suffered a heavy defeat. But we must move forward. We must show our best performance," Guardiola said. "We must focus on Hamburg," he added, referring to Bayern's opponents in the Bundesliga on Saturday. Hamburg, for their part, would welcome Bayern's Bundesliga hangover lasting a little longer, considering that they are deep in the battle to avoid relegation at the bottom of the table.
msh/se (dpa, SID)