FC Bayern’s first annual general meeting since the pandemic gets directly out of control. Why? Because no party – members and club bosses alike – was willing to reach out to each other.
It was a turbulent end. One that FC Bayern will remember and that President Herbert Hainer will certainly think about for a while after the “Hainer out” cries. But the real question is: How could it come to this? Was it really only due to the members’ motions?
Michael Ott’s motions had been known for weeks, they did not come as a surprise to the Bayern bosses. So there was enough time to prepare for it. The problem was how the Munich leaders dealt with it: not confidently and not professionally enough. Which meant that the meeting leaders Herbert Hainer and Dr Dieter Meyer, the vice-president, rather – involuntarily – fuelled the excitement in the Audi Dome than calmed or de-escalated it.
Uli Hoeneß, who in the past certainly overshot the mark at times, in combination with Karl-Heinz Rummenigge – who can almost be glad not to have been there – always had a feeling for the situation and the members. This sensitivity, which includes equally hard-hitting announcements, was missed by the fans in attendance.
Applicants should think carefully about what the aim of the proposal is
780 of the total 292,000 members were in the hall, 1700 would have been allowed according to the Corona rules in the Free State of Bavaria. 780 are not very representative. Irrespective of this, however, every member who makes a proposal should think carefully beforehand about what the aim of the proposal is. Is it really about improving something in the interests of the association? Or is it just to present oneself? Or even to pursue the aims of a minority of fans, simply to gain more power?
No party was prepared to approach each other
At the 2021 AGM, the longer the event went on, the less certain it was that those involved were still concerned with the good of the association. It got too personal, it got too hectic, and somehow it was all about wanting to be right. To be able to approach each other, however, both camps have to be ready for it – that’s the way it is with different opinions or different views. On Thursday, neither party was ready. Hence the turmoil at the end. And an image damage for FC Bayern that hurts a lot and will stay for now.
