60 years of the Steinsberg fan club – Jan-Christian Dreesen: ‘Pioneers with 4,400 imitators’

Back in 1963, they squeezed into a car in the Upper Palatinate to travel to Munich to watch Bayern play with Franz Beckenbauer and Sepp Maier. Two years later, they founded their fan club. And now, to mark its proud 60th anniversary, the Steinsberg fan club was invited to Säbener Straße. The exclusive anniversary visits to the ‘Paulaner Treff’ at the training ground were established by the fan management to thank fan clubs for their extraordinary loyalty and voluntary commitment. “You are pioneers, with 4,400 imitators who have followed your example,” said Jan-Christian Dreesen in his welcome speech, referring to the growth in fan club numbers. Like president Herbert Hainer, the CEO took extra time to join the group for a Weißwurst breakfast.

Dreesen personally helped out when the glasses were handed out, and souvenir photos were taken on the hallowed turf of the training ground and at the Kurt Landauer statue. Some of the members arrived dressed in traditional Bavarian outfits, in the 125th anniversary kit or in the current Oktoberfest jersey. “Our fans and members are the foundation on which everything at FC Bayern stands,” said Hainer. “Sixty years speaks for itself. Our club can build on the Steinsberg foundation with complete confidence.” Josef Rewitzer, representing the board, accepted the anniversary certificate from Dreesen on behalf of Ewald Reißer, one of the three surviving founding members, along with a jersey signed by the entire team.

Markus Meindl, director of fan relations, explained that visiting all fan club anniversaries in person is not feasible due to the large number involved and the organisational and scheduling challenges, but “by inviting them to a Weißwurst breakfast at our ‘Paulaner Treff’, we have the opportunity to chat in person in a relaxed and special atmosphere.” At Bayern, the fan clubs are the focus of a wide variety of activities, according to Meindl: “Among other things, we make 10,000 tickets available for each Bundesliga home game as part of our fan club programme, are in regular direct contact with fan club chairpersons in all regions at regional fan club meetings, and traditional fan club visits around Christmas or New Year have been established for decades, and we now regularly invite them to these special joint anniversary celebrations at Säbener Straße.”

The FC Bayern Fan Club Steinsberg was founded in 1965 by ten young men at Cafe Helmin. The idea originated in 1964, but was initially postponed, and Bayern was not officially informed until 1972. The founding members were between 14 and 25 years old and regularly travelled the 130 kilometres from their village of 1,900 inhabitants to Munich. The then president Wilhelm Neudecker reacted somewhat incredulously, saying: “But we are a club in Munich!” The fan club currently has 321 members. To mark its 20th anniversary, long-time FCB official Karl Hopfner and former player Wiggerl Kögl visited Steinsberg, and now Dreesen and Hainer have met with the club at Säbener Straße.

All officially registered and recognised Bayern fan clubs are eligible for an anniversary visit to the ‘Paulaner Treff’ once they have been in existence for 40 years. The fan club can then visit again every ten years, i.e. on its 50th, 60th, 70th anniversary and beyond. On their way across the club grounds towards the ‘Paulaner Treff’, the visitors were given an overview of the training grounds. During the Weißwurst breakfast, there was once again plenty of time for personal discussions about fan club issues and current topics relating to FC Bayern. Since the anniversary visits were introduced in August 2024, a total of 20 meetings have taken place. The fan clubs came mainly from Bavaria, in particular from the Upper Palatinate, Lower Franconia, Upper Franconia, Swabia, Allgäu and the Bavarian Forest regions. However, fan clubs from Baden-Württemberg have also been represented.

It has become a wonderful tradition to sit outside at the ‘Paulaner Treff’ when the weather is good. It quickly feels like visiting a real beer garden. The fan clubs are always easy to spot from afar, in their red and white outfits. They are always an eye-catching inclusion on the grounds at Säbener Straße – here, where the heart of FC Bayern beats.