Säbener Stories – the column for everyone who lives and breathes FC Bayern. This is where we look at the record champions’ glorious past and exciting present.
Although pre-season has only just begun, we’ve already seen an exciting change in our squad: promising midfield talent Tom Bischof is switching – thankfully not clubs, but from the number 20 jersey, with which he made his breakthrough last season, to the number 8 previously sported by Leon Goretzka. “I waited to see what Aleks Pavlović would do first. He’s been here longer, he’s a good friend of mine and I rate him very highly,” Tom revealed in an interview. Because Pavlo wanted to stick with the number 45, the way was clear for our new number 8.
Bayern fans now have an exciting new option for their 2026 jersey – effectively a ‘call to arms’ for a new era. Anyone who dons this jersey will be wearing a veritable pantheon of legends on their back. After all, Tom Bischof is the 50th player in Bayern’s modern history since 1962 to wear the number 8. This is the story of one of our ‘most sacred’ numbers, from Paul Breitner to Tom Bischof.
The bosses: Alpha males and string-pullers
Paul Breitner arrived in the Bavarian capital alongside Uli Hoeneß in 1970 and, with his socks rolled down to mid-calf, played as an attacking left-back wearing the number 3. His take on this role was a revolution for German football: inspired by the Dutch concept of ‘total football’, Paul repeatedly got involved in attacks - something that had never been seen before.
After leaving for Real Madrid in 1974, he eventually return to Munich in 1978. As the bushy-bearded half of the “Breitnigge” duo, he became the undisputed driving force in midfield. Breitner, with the number 8 on the back of his shirt and the Magirus-Deutz logo on the front – you can’t get more iconic than that, or more synonymous with the 'Bayern 8' phenomenon.
In 1984, Lothar Matthäus pulled on the legendary jersey for the first time. The 23-year-old had arrived from Gladbach – where he had previously blasted a penalty into the night sky during the cup final. He became the highest-paid and most outspoken Bundesliga player, much to the amazement of Germany assistant coach Erich Ribbeck: “Even when we discuss the menu, he chimes in.” But Lothar delivered. And how! 16 goals in his maiden Bundesliga season in Munich alone – never before had a midfielder topped the club’s scoring rankings. Lothar left for Inter Milan in 1988 as a number 8, and returned in 1992 as a number 10.
Club stalwarts and treble heroes: the foundation for success
As far back as the 1970s, the FCB engine room was graced by number 8 stalwarts such as Rainer Zobel, Bernd 'Wipf' Dürnberger and Conny Torstensson. 'Super-Swede' Torstensson nearly knocked Bayern out of the European Cup in the autumn of 1973 whilst playing for Åtvidaberg. The Munich club's management, led by manager Robert Schwan, were so impressed that they virtually snapped him right up and brought him to FC Bayern.
Fun fact: Torstensson was knocked out of the European Cup by Bayern that season – only to go on to lift the trophy with the Munich side in Brussels at the end of the campaign. He later revealed with a wink: “I’ve often thanked our two lads who missed their penalties against Bayern.”
Club stalwart (and hard runner) Bernd Dürnberger was nicknamed ‘Wipf’ (waif) by Gerd Müller. From 1972 to 1985, ‘Wipf’ became indispensable to the team – and, due to a number of unfortunate injuries, the only FCB player to have made more than 500 appearances who never played for the national team. He certainly would have deserved a place in the Germany squad.
In the 80s, Norbert Nachtweih became the first former GDR star to make 202 Bundesliga appearances. He was later followed by Thomas Strunz, who wore the number 8 across three different decades, from 1989 to 2001 – a unique record. In the modern era, Javi Martínez became one of our favourite Spanish players. Having joined the club in 2012, he didn’t light up the pitch with flashy moves, but rather as an uncompromising ball-winner and a two-time treble winner in 2013 and 2020. And then, until 2026, the powerhouse that was Leon Goretzka ruled the midfield in the number 8 – having first had to take a back seat to Javi from 2018 to 2021, during which he wore the number 18.
The dugout of the future: good training for becoming the Bayern boss
A number of Bayern number 8s learnt the ropes on the pitch, before going on to shape the club’s destiny. Uli Hoeneß, who sported a variety of jersey numbers – from 7 to 10 to 11 – also played as a number 8 in the 1974–75 season; back then, the numbers changed depending on the player’s position, before the introduction of fixed squad numbers in 1995.
He was followed a decade later by Hansi Flick, whom assistant coach Egon Coordes spotted in Sandhausen in 1985 and immediately signed. Flick won four league titles, reached the European Cup final against Porto in 1987 – and, as head coach, secured the historic sextuple in 2020.
Niko Kovač, who celebrated the double as Bayern coach in 2019 also played for the Reds as a number 8.
Ball artist and tecnical genius: somewhere between magic and Hollywood
The Icelandic ‘Zico of the Arctic Ocean’, Ásgeir Sigurvinsson, exuded sheer magic. Blessed with the ability to play stunning 50-metre diagonal passes, he struggled in Munich during the 1981/82 season as a part-time number 8 due to a nagging injury – and the fact that, alongside Paul Breitner in the centre, there was no room for a second playmaker. After just a year, ‘Siggi’ moved on to Stuttgart, where he became a club legend as part of the championship-winning side – and opened an off-licence that still exists today
Among the skilful players in the number 8 jersey were teens' favourite Michael ‘Sterni’ Sternkopf and the lightning-fast ‘Sachsen-Express’ (Saxony Express) Alex Zickler – whose phenomenal acceleration over the first 30 metres matched that of world-class sprinters. ‘Zico’ settled happily in Munich, in contrast to Vienna’s ‘Rasen-Mozart’ (Pitch Mozart), Andreas Herzog, who was ground down in the turmoil of FC Hollywood. Previously, as afterwards, ‘Herzerl’ was ‘world-class’ at Bremen.
Jersey roulette and iconic surprises
Before the era of fixed squad numbers, there were some rather quirky jersey selections. Foremost among them was Jürgen 'Kobra' Wegmann (“I’m more venomous than the most venomous snake”). He played as a striker wearing the number 8 and scored the Goal of the Year in 1988 with a magnificent scissors kick. When Wegmann later found himself in financial difficulties, Uli Hoeneß arranged for him to get a job in the Bayern fan shop..
Also falling into the category of surprising number 8s: Manni Bender, Marcel Witeczek, Didi Hamann, Ali Karimi, Hamit Altintop and, from 1977, Branko Oblak. The Yugoslavian top-class technician mocked coach Gyula Lóránt, calling him a “gymnastics teacher”. Branko’s good friend Gerd Müller ensured that he was allowed to play nonetheless.
Talents and rising stars: the link to Tom Bischof
FC Bayern have consistently put their faith in young talents in the number 8 jersey. Reinhold Mathy, from the Allgäu region of Bayern, featured in the 1982 European Cup final at the age of just 20.
The wave of talent featuring the club’s rising stars Hansi Dorfner and Stefan Reuter, as well as Christian Ziege, was even more successful.
Now it's Tom Bischof's turn to take to the stage and join the ranks of Paul Breitner, Lothar Matthäus and Javi Martínez. The chances are very good that he will write his very own Säbener Story as one of the outstanding number 8s in the history of FC Bayern. May the 8 be with us!
About the author: As a young boy in Munich, even before the 1974 World Cup, our columnist, the 'Balkonpoet', (Balcony Poet), was convinced: "FC Bayern will be world champions – because Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Müller play for them."
Admittedly, he still had to learn the difference between club football and the national team. But his fundamental belief hasn’t changed: a match lasts 90 minutes and ends in an FC Bayern win. Most of the time, at least.
In Säbener Stories, he combines a decades-long passion for Bayern with an amusing and entertaining take on today’s team. Pack ma's, Vincent!
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