From reserve player to president - with many positions in between: Few people have shaped FC Bayern in as many ways as Siegfried Herrmann. He was born in Munich on 20 August 1886 and joined FC Bayern aged 17. He worked in an important position from 1907 onwards, being head of the youth section for two decades, jointly responsible for the successful promotion of talent. He then oversaw Bayern's development as vice president, secretary and chairman of the match committee under Kurt Landauer, culminating in the 1932 German championship.
Being the president may not have been his primary goal, but a mission. After Landauer's forced resignation on 22 March 1933, Herrmann succeded him and led the club in Landauer's spirit. During his one-year presidency he made sure FC Bayern could stay as true to its values as possible under the Nazi regime over the next few years. In 1934 he enshrined in the statutes that it was possible for persons of Jewish descent to remain club members. After his resignation - it is unclear whether it was forced or not - the assembly named him honorary president in 1934.
Herrmann had fallen into disfavour with the National Socialists long before 1933 due to his career and his position as inspector general. As head of the Munich police department's so-called political leadership, he was jointly responsible for banning Adolf Hitler from speaking in 1925. After the takeover he was immediately demoted to the criminal investigation department. In 1941 he was transferred to Vienna for discliplinary reasons. Up to that point he had supported FC Bayern in background positions as club archivist and members' representative.
The Munich police president brought Herrmann back to the city immediately after the end of the war in May 1945, making him one of the city's two heads of security for life. The FC Bayern members named him vice president in 1945. He kept the position - again under Landauer from 1947 to 1951 - until he was named provisional president, keeping the highest position at the club for another half year.
Herrmann remained loyal to the club until his death on 4 June 1971. He was also responsible for the 1950 anniversary chronicle, which shed light on the club's activities during the Nazi years in a self-critical manner - far beyond the scope of the sport.