Remarkable jersey discovery: a genuine original

Sometimes you hold on to things without realising the story they have to tell. Anne Gößwein discovered a jersey belonging to her grandfather Albert Zoepffel - one of the founders of FC Bayern - from the early days of our club. A historical piece of treasure that will now forever have a place in the FC Bayern Museum.

There are situations in life where you just have a feeling. In your gut, in your heart, in your head, somewhere in between - it doesn't matter. Because in the end, it's the outcome that counts, and in the case of Annemarie Gößwein, known as Anne, it has to be said: her feeling was spot on. "Sometimes," says the 69-year-old, "you do ask yourself: why do I keep all this stuff?" But if, like the Würzburg native, you simply "take pleasure in old things", it's hard to throw them away.

This was also the case with this item of her grandfather Albert Zoepffel's clothing, which "resembles a shirt" and is "still in such good condition that I wanted to keep it as a souvenir for my mother". The absolutely right thought! Because Gößwein and her three siblings now know that it's not a shirt, but a jersey. Worn from 1900 onwards by her mother Lisa's father as one of the founders of FC Bayern. In the museum sector, something like this is referred to as the find of the century.

Estate of a man of many talents

It was winter 2024 when Anne Gößwein made the journey from Franconia to the Allianz Arena with her husband and son Alexander. The car was fully loaded - there's that joy of having things from bygone days again - and the visit was eagerly anticipated in Fröttmaning in Munich. The FC Bayern Museum team were well aware that the packed boxes in the boot were brimming over with history, as they contained the estate of a person to whom the expression ‘man of many talents’ applies 100 per cent.

"As the eldest of six siblings, he had to take on a lot of responsibility at a very early age. His father died when he was ten years old. He put a lot of energy into things that were important to him. He asserted himself," says Gößwein about her grandfather Albert Zoepffel. Born in the Baltic States, a graduate engineer, father of three children, mountain lover, a man as tall as a tree in the prime of his life, musically and photographically gifted - and also: athletic. So it was certainly no coincidence that on 27 February 1900, together with 16 other young men, he founded FC Bayern, was a member of our club's first team and even held the position of kit man.

Lederhosen, hats - and the white jersey

Of course, the story is also known in the family, but granddaughter Anne laughingly stresses: "We don't like to brag about it." Nevertheless, she and her siblings are "proud" that "our grandfather's life is being researched once again and that he is being honoured belatedly". She talks about the man who died four years before she was born in 1951 as if she had the privilege of experiencing him herself. Incidentally, the long pigtails she wore as a young girl are to "blame" for that: "Whenever my mother combed them, I always used to say: 'Please, tell me some more!’" Elisabeth Alma Helene, known as Lisa, would then start talking and "her stories were often about the family, especially her father Albert". Anne Gößwein: "He was always there in our home, a presence in our everyday lives."

It was also that diverse everyday life that was laid out on the large table in the heart of the Allianz Arena in November. There were lederhosen, hats in various designs, shirts, photos, a gold watch, scarves, documents, cutlery, crockery - and in the middle of it all, the white jersey that, together with many other things, did ‘’clutter up‘’ Gößwein's household, she says with a smile. Her mother had given it to her many years ago "after a clean-out together with tops and vests to do with as she pleased". Unlike the almost floor-length nightgowns "we were allowed to wear as children for painting or wallpapering", Gößwein did not give away the slightly shorter and yet somehow special garment. So it didn't end up at the theatre in Ansbach or at school, "where the youngsters then performed 'Romulus the Great' in our grandfather's nightgowns". What a stroke of luck!

Munich - the place he loved to be

"Of course, I didn't realise what a treasure it was," says Gößwein. But she did wonder for a long time why so much had been preserved. Her explanation: Albert Zoepffel lived through the war and had to flee. "Before 1939 and during the war, his possessions were scattered over various locations - which in the end was fortunate." You can tell how happy the family is to share this good fortune both at the meeting in Munich and in the conversation afterwards. Gößwein speaks of her grandfather as an "impressive man, sparkling with life, with dazzling blue eyes". He was also tall, which made him well-suited to play at left-back, his position during the early days of FC Bayern.

Indeed, Munich was the place the man who loved the mountains loved to be. Zoepffel liked to wear his lederhosen a lot, "he identified with Bayern and could speak proper Bavarian". After leaving Estonia and following spells in Görlitz and Stuttgart, he attended school in Munich and also began his degree there. The family home, which was in part built around 1900 in Neuhaus am Schliersee, was a perfect fit for his lifestyle, Gößwein relates: "He also often came to Munich later with his three children and his wife Anni; a happy time."

Albert Zoepffel's time being actively involved at Bayern was brief; he remained a member until 1906, but had already started studying at the Freiberg Mining Academy in Saxony in 1904. And yet, says Gößwein, "my mother was aware of his footballing hobby, and it was also important to my grandfather that we were made aware of this time". The fact that her father Albert was also one of the founders of FC Bayern was something Lisa "told me relatively late". It probably runs in the family, because: "Bragging about it wasn't her thing."

Albert Zoepffel lives on in his great-grandchildren

Does the great-grandson do things differently? After all, Gößwein's son Alexander, now 33, like Anne's five nieces and nephews, "has a lot of his grandfather in him, also in terms of character. Alexander has the same sense of humour and can be very quick-witted and funny. And he sometimes has a mischievous side to him." He's not quite as tall as Albert, "but some people still see a resemblance". And, of course, his hobby is playing football.

Anyone who as a child "always had a ball at their feet or in their hands as a goalkeeper" naturally later told their team that their great-grandfather was one of the founders of FC Bayern. However, the reactions were always "mixed". While some were downright "electrified", other teammates replied: "Anyone can say that!" The great-grandson then never pressed the issue.

Why would he? Anne Gößwein says with a laugh: "He knows it's true." And if you want proof: There's now a very special jersey in the FC Bayern Museum.

Thomas Müller and Aleks Pavlović got an insight into how it might have been to wear Anne's grandfather's jersey: