Just as Bayern Munich officials thought that their Covid crisis was the worst thing they could get, another storm arrived, this time totally unexpected. Annual General Meeting of the Bavarians ended after midnight with boos, quests for president’s resignation and disputes over Qatar sponsorship. And just like that, Bayern Munich are in crisis mode. #HainerRaus und Mayer gleich mit. SPOILER: Es war das letzte Mal das @Maitre_Ott aufs Podium gelassen wurde.#FCBJHV(2/2) pic.twitter.com/1EHi83bnX1— Salomon (@SalomonDominik) November 26, 2021 On the football front, nothing is new, Bayern tops the Bundesliga and is on course to be crowned champion for the 10th straight time. But on the management sector, a big crisis just opened up, out of the blue. It all started in the first Annual General Meeting since the pandemic. Because of the stricter corona rules, only 800 of the 290,000 members were present in Munich. The beginning was like the one from fairytales, Bundesliga trophies from the last two seasons were brought up, Oliver Kahn gave his first speech as Bayern’s new CEO, after replacing Karl Heinz Rummenige, honorary president Uli Hoenes was in the first row, watching his successor Herbert Hainer giving the speech…And then the troubles arose over Qatar sponsorship. Assembly member and Bayern Munich fan Michael Ott recently submitted a proposal that would require Bayern Munich not to renew its sponsoring relationship with Qatar Airways, due to human right violations in that country. His proposal was denied before the assembly, and he appealed to Munich court, which also denied his request. 77.8% of the Bayern Munich members in attendance at the club’s AGM vote for the club to identify itself with “internationally-acknowledged human rights.”The podium, which includes #FCBayern President Herbert Hainer and CEO Oliver Kahn, all voted against the motion.#FCBJHV pic.twitter.com/xNUGkRWzrC— Felix Tamsut (@ftamsut) November 25, 2021 But, Ott was not to be denied. He requested to speak, the board refused, and the first boos could be heard. Ott was then allowed to speak, and he wanted again to push his proposal. And the idea was refused again, this time because of the court’s rule, which was in line with Bayern executives. Vice-President Mayer even said: “I will not allow us to vote on illegal motions here. You are welcome to boo. Do you want us to vote on Audi at the end or whether we play in the blue and white jersey? You can all boo, but that is not an argumentative argument” he said. ##NAJAVA_MECA_8457##Then Ott had another proposal: that the portion of Bayern Munich AG owned by the club should be raised from 70% to 75%. That measure fell just short of the necessary three quarters majority to be adopted. Just after midnight, Gregor Weinreich, president of the fan club organization “Club Nr. 12,” addressed the Qatar sponsorship: “Where was the dialogue from Bayern Munich? Why couldn’t the club simply accept the next-best offer for a sleeve sponsorship after Qatar Airways?” he asked? The assembly stood up and applauded for minutes. “We have by no means decided to continue with Qatar” Hainer attempted to mitigate the damage, but then he abruptly ended the session—before Ott and others could speak. The agony continues: Bayern lose two more players to the virusThe crowd erupted in a rage: “We are Bayern—and you are not”, “We are the fans, whom you don’t want!!” and “Hainer out”. And the honorary president Uli Hoeness left the meeting and said to the journalists: “I will have to sleep on that first. The worst event that I have ever experienced at Bayern” said Uli Hoeness. And his words are important, because he was personally attacked by one member in recent years, but apparently it was not as bad enough for the club as this year’s assembly.
