It's been an eventful year for FC Bayern. There was an emotional commemoration of a late club legend, a new coach made an impressive start, we saw big European matches, sent important signals to society, showed significant responsibility and, of course, experienced special victories. We look back on 12 extraordinary moments for our club in 2024, each of which epitomises the Mia san Mia in a special way - but the best thing of all is that we could have come up with more than 100 of these FC Bayern moments.
Emotional farewell to Franz Beckenbauer
FC Bayern held an emotional memorial service in January to bid farewell to Franz Beckenbauer, who passed away on 7 January. Guests from all over the world attended the event in the Allianz Arena, which carried the motto ‘Player, Human, Kaiser’. In addition to speeches by Herbert Hainer, Uli Hoeneß, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Bavarian Minister-President Markus Söder, musical accompaniment by star tenor Jonas Kaufmann and a prayer by Cardinal Reinhard Marx ensured an extremely dignified and emotional setting. Later, at the annual general meeting in December, FC Bayern announced the decision to retire Beckenbauer's number 5 jersey.
Sepp Maier - A legend turns 80
An outstandingly successful sportsman and a genuinely likeable person: Sepp Maier celebrated his 80th birthday in February 2024. In 17 years with the German record champions, the FC Bayern goalkeeping legend made 706 competitive appearances for the club and played in 473 Bundesliga matches, an incredible 442 of them without interruption. In 13 seasons, Maier did not miss a single game. With Bayern, the Cat from Anzing won the European Cup three times, the German Championship and the DFB Cup four times each, as well as the European Cup Winners' Cup and the Intercontinental Cup once each. As goalkeeper for the German national team, Maier won the European Championship in 1972 and the World Cup in 1974. To mark his anniversary, a documentary about Maier's life was released on FC Bayern's club media channels. In addition, the special exhibition ‘All the best, Sepp Maier!’ has been on display at the FC Bayern Museum in the Allianz Arena since February.
Max Eberl back in the Bayern family
Back in his old stomping ground after 30 years! On 1 March 2024, Max Eberl took over as FC Bayern board member for sport. This marked his return home to the club closest to his heart. Between 1979 and 1994, Eberl played in the youth setup and for the German record champions' reserves. "I'm going to try to use my skills to achieve the club's ambitious goals. I'm here to collect titles," said Eberl in his inaugural press conference. Welcome back to the FC Bayern family, dear Max!
The fixture that never gets old - Real Madrid in the CL
The mother of all Champions League ties - that's what fcbayern.com called the semi-final clash between FC Bayern and Real Madrid on 30 April. The two European heavyweights have faced each other 28 times in Europe's premier club competition, more than any other teams. However, both semi-finals in April and May showed the appeal of this high-calibre showdown lies not only in the past, but also in the present. FC Bayern were knocked out in dramatic fashion in the second leg due to Joselu's two goals at the death (88‘/90’+1), narrowly missing out on a place in the much-coveted Champions League final in London. Nevertheless, the red-white vs. Real-white encounter was one of the highlights of the year. The team left their hearts on the pitch in those games. In the first leg at the Allianz Arena, the fans also created a special atmosphere, complete with an impressive fan tifo in honour of Franz Beckenbauer!
Harry Kane sweeps the board
In May, top striker Harry Kane won the prestigious Golden Boot, the award for the most prolific attacker in the European leagues. In his maiden season with the German record champions, the 30-year-old scored 36 goals in the Bundesliga, putting him ahead of Serhou Guirassy (28 league goals), Kylian Mbappé (27) and Erling Haaland (27) in the rankings. But as if that wasn't enough, after the final Bundesliga matchday in Hoffenheim on 18 May, it was also officially confirmed that the Englishman had secured the top scorer canon in the German top flight by a large margin. May also saw Kane crowned Europe's top goalscorer at the Globe Soccer Awards. Well done, Harry!
Contract extensions for home-grown talents
FC Bayern announced two significant contract extensions in June, securing the future of the team. Aleksandar Pavlović, the 20-year-old home-grown midfield talent, will stay at the record champions until 2029. The Munich native, who has progressed through all of the club's youth teams since 2011, has recently become a key player and also made his debut for the German national team in 2024. "FC Bayern is the club closest to my heart. I'm proud, happy and grateful, I want to win titles with the team and keep developing on a personal level," said the crowd favourite after inking his contract.
FCB also agreed a long-term contract with defender Josip Stanišić (24). After a successful season on loan at Bayer 04 Leverkusen, the Croatia international, who has already celebrated three league titles with Bayern, returned to Munich in the summer. "I've been a fan of this club for as long as I can remember," said Stani after signing the extension. Although both youngsters have recently been hampered by injuries, they're fuelling anticipation for 2025 and underline Bayern's strategy of investing in strong home-grown talent.
Vincent Kompany at FCB
It was already evident before Vincent Kompany started training in mid-July that two parties had found the perfect match. Even before the first session with his new squad, the head coach and his assistants visited the FC Bayern Club Museum in the Allianz Arena. "You always start with the roots. I really wanted to see the museum," explained the Belgian, who has been head coach of the German record champions since 1 July. Kompany has absorbed the Mia san mia from the start of his tenure - just as he had already hinted at when he was introduced at the end of May: "I know what a big club Bayern is. I'm proud, but also very motivated to be here," he said at the time, promising to go “all-in” in his new role. Anyone who identifies with their employer in this way is simply the right match for FC Bayern.
Way up high on the Audi Summer Tour
On this particular morning in Seoul, Mathys Tel didn't necessarily subscribe to the idea that FC Bayern players feel most comfortable when they're literally at the top. On the first day of the Audi Summer Tour, the young Frenchman and his teammates climbed up to the roof of their hotel for a photo shoot with a breathtaking view over the South Korean metropolis. The dizzying height didn't exactly leave Tel feeling at ease, but when the cameras started clicking, the forward didn't let it show. The shot was in the can and was the starting signal for an extraordinarily successful tour far away from FC Bayern's Bavarian home.
Müller becomes record player
As if this game wasn't reason enough for Thomas Müller to celebrate, he actually went one better. In the Bundesliga game against SC Freiburg (2-0) at the Allianz Arena, the born-and-bred Bavarian made his 710th appearance for FC Bayern in all competitions, replacing legend Sepp Maier as the club's record player. The crowning glory of the milestone was an inimitable move from Müller that underlined the fact that his journey to the top of the club rankings was no coincidence. After getting onto the end of a Serge Gnabry cross, the forward caught the ball in mid-air with his right foot, took it past his opponent in one flowing movement and then cooly slotted the ball home with his left foot. An all-round successful day for Müller: "Records aren't that important to me, it was more important to me to have scored a truly wonderful goal," he explained later: "Technically outstanding and then it goes in too. That's what I enjoy."
Against hatred and incitement
President Herbert Hainer once again made FC Bayern's stance clear, not least at the annual general meeting: "To all anti-democratic, divisive forces: not today, not tomorrow - and above all not with us!" In 2024, FC Bayern also showed via numerous campaigns how important it is to stand together against hatred and incitement, for diversity and inclusion. As part of its diversity initiative ‘Red against Racism’, the German record champions implemented the ‘A voice for Diversity’ project together with the street football organisation ‘buntkicktgut’, among others. Here, people with ethnic backgrounds told their real-life stories about how integration can succeed and the important role sport can play in this. "With ‘A Voice for Diversity’, we wanted to give a voice to people whose inspiring real-life stories make them great role models for our society," said Hainer. "It was a terrific collaboration with FC Bayern and all its fans," said Rüdiger Heid, founder of the ‘buntkicktgut’ initiative. "I think it's a great idea that all the voices were united in this campaign. Campaigns like this strike a chord that our society needs - in the truest sense of the word." The general theme of ‘Red against Racism’ in 2024 was encounters - and the club will continue to work in this spirit in 2025 to overcome borders.
Bayern fans show their intuition
Bayern fans, especially in the Südkurve, are known for their impressive fan tifos, vociferous support and a keen intuition for extraordinary moments. The groups prove this not only during great victories and painful defeats, when they start to pick up the dejected players straight after the final whistle. The Südkurve demonstrated this intuition again at the Champions League match against Benfica, when thousands suddenly stopped singing, no more rallying cries rang through the Allianz Arena and the flags were all lowered. What initially caused confusion, because the inspiring stadium atmosphere seemed to have been switched off by remote control, soon resolved itself as a remarkable display of sensitivity and compassion from all Bayern fans: just after kick-off, a spectator in the stands was fighting for his life. Paramedics attended to the man, who later passed away in hospital following a heart attack. The striking message of the evening - sent out by football fans - was that there are more important things than football.
Silent Night, Holy Night
The last home game of the year showed that football can sometimes become just a side issue: on the one hand, Bayern fans celebrated a thrilling 5-1 win over RB Leipzig in a sold-out Allianz Arena, while on the other, at the same time, dozens of seriously injured people were fighting for their lives in Magdeburg after a man carried out a shocking attack at the Christmas market. FC Bayern showed compassion and empathy by cancelling the long-planned, joyous and contemplative Christmas ceremony complete with lasers and fireworks in the centre circle after the final whistle. Instead, CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen gave an emotional address asking for a minute's silence in memory of the victims and their families: "This ceremony should be a joyful one, and that's not appropriate at this moment," Dreesen said poignantly. The football year ended for FC Bayern with the Tölz Boys' Choir, who sang “Silent Night, Holy Night” together with the 75,000 spectators in attendance - movingly sad, but also a strong sign of solidarity.
FC Bayern's schedule following the Christmas break:
