Three weeks ago, he was the motivator on the mic on the town hall balcony - now Thomas Müller has brought the original Meisterschale back to the place where FC Bayern fans like to see it most: The 33-year-old made his way to the Allianz Arena on Monday with his precious cargo and served as a high-profile trophy messenger. Carefully, but with a broad smile on his face, the FC Bayern vice-captain placed the trophy for the eleventh straight Bundesliga title in the display case which had been made ready in the club museum. From now on, guests from all over the world will be able to admire it up close.
Thomas Müller: "The Schale is back where it belongs“
"I had the honour of returning the trophy to where it belongs," Müller said during his visit. The heart-stopping finale on the last matchday of the title race with Borussia Dortmund was "crazy": "The memory of that moment when Jamal Musiala fired the ball into the corner will always stay with me." Müller has been pulling on the FC Bayern jersey for more than two decades now, and has been part of the senior squad since 2009. And the goal for the coming season is, as always, clear: "We want to go for it again."
FC Bayern's 33rd league title was Müller's 12th with FC Bayern, meaning the 2014 World Cup winner extended his record in the all-time ranking in the Bundesliga's 60-year history. Just like captain Manuel Neuer, he also celebrated his 11th straight title - and thus also upheld a tradition at the club's museum. Because FC Bayern have actually won the league in every season since the opening of the FC Bayern Museum in 2012. After Dante in 2013, Pep Guardiola in 2014, Arjen Robben in 2015, Robert Lewandowski in 2016, Philipp Lahm in 2017, Jérôme Boateng in 2018, Arjen Robben and Franck Ribéry in 2019, Hansi Flick in 2020 and Jamal Musiala in 2022, Müller is the current trophy bearer. Only once could the Meisterschale not be delivered by the team: in 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Three weeks after winning the title, the freshly engraved original Meisterschale has now arrived "dahoam" at FC Bayern. On the last matchday, it was still in Dortmund, while the replica was presented to the German record champions in Cologne. The trophy will be on display in the club museum for the foreseeable future, before being replaced by the authentic replica. The 1932 Viktoria, 32 Meisterschale and 20 DFB Cups now adorn the Via Triumphalis.