FC Bayern Ambassador Lothar Matthäus was in the American cities of Los Angeles and Kansas City from 10 to 13 June. Alongside Houston, both will play host to the record champions on their Audi Summer Tour 2019. The four-day stay was filled with a plethora of activities and media interviews.
To begin, the 1990 World Cup winner visited the home of baseball team the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim. There he threw the ceremonial first pitch at the derby between the LA Dodgers and Angels at Angel Stadium. Germany’s most capped player then went to a meet and greet with his Mexican equivalent, Claudio Suarez (177 caps) in Los Angeles. Fans and media representatives had the chance to meet the footballing legends up close and ask them all sorts of questions. Fans were also able to take unforgettable photos of their idols.
The following day, the FCB legend took to the beach in LA to film “Bayern-Watch”, a parody of the cult series Baywatch. That was followed by a media session at the hotel before Lothar hit the road for Kansas City.
After arriving, Lothar was a guest on local TV on the morning of 12 June before visiting the city’s NFL team, the Kansas City Chiefs. Lothar met with quarterback Patrick Mahomes and gifted him a signed FC Bayern jersey. Mahomes, who was the MVP in the previous NFL season, then guided Lothar around the Chiefs’ training ground. The FCB legend was again given the chance to show his skills as a pitcher in Kansas City, once more throwing the first pitch in a game between the Kansas City Royals and the Detroit Tigers.
The final day of his trip saw Lothar spend the morning at a GPS training session, handing out valuable tips to the young boys and girls. The 58-year-old then headed to the Q39 restaurant in Midtown for an introduction to Kansas City’s BBQ specialities. To top it all off, Matthäus was able to create his own Bavarian BBQ menu before heading to the airport.
Lothar will accompany the FCB first team on their Audi Summer Tour 2019 to the USA from 15 July.
Robert Lewandowski in China
Over 300 fans in Beijing had a special highlight when they got the chance to meet Robert Lewandowski up close and personal. Showing off his Bundesliga top scorer trophy, the FCB striker signed autographs and took photos with FC Bayern’s Chinese fans.
FC Bayern coaches in the USA and Singapore
Hundreds of young boys and girls turned out at the annual edition of the FC Bayern Junior Showcase in Rock Hill, South Carolina. Four FCB coaches were also on location in the USA for the one-day tournament on 15 June, including former World Cup winners Klaus Augenthaler and Hans Pflüger. At each of the Residential Camps North & South, there were 200 selected players from partner Global Premier Soccer waiting for a four-day training camp with the FCB coaches. The special incentive for the most talented players is a trial in Munich.
An FC Bayern coach had also been in Singapore since the start of June. As well as intensive workshops with local football coaches, Antonio Vatany also took part in a number of training sessions with male and female players of different youth ages throughout Singapore. The partnership with the Singapore Sports Council (SportSG) was announced in March 2019, and our coach will remain in the country until the end of June before returning to Munich. It was the first visit of its kind and precedes a number of future visits from FC Bayern coaches to Singapore, as well as local coaches coming over to Munich.