“This success is the culmination of his work at FC Bayern”
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The moving banquet speech by Karl-Heinz Rummenigge
FC Bayern Munich celebrates the triple after beating Paris St. Germain. At the nightly banquet, the visibly moved CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge praises the coach and the team. Hansi Flick also has a say. And after that the party knows no boundaries.
FC Bayern wins the Champions League and the competition congratulates. BVB boss Watzke recognizes the triumph of Karl-Heinz Rummenigge without envy. But he also warns of “talk” that existed seven years ago.
Dhe congratulations from Borussia Dortmund were sent directly and personally. “I was very happy about this success of FC Bayern Munich,” said BVB managing director Hans-Joachim Watzke to WELT: “Bayern deservedly won the final and also the Champions League.”
On the night after the final in Lisbon, Watzke made contact with the leadership of the German record champions and congratulated the Munich board chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. “I was particularly happy for Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. This success is the culmination of his work at FC Bayern, ”said Watzke.
Watzke’s appreciation for Rummenigge has grown over the years, regardless of the competition between the two clubs they represent. “Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and I fought a lot of battles against each other and even more battles together,” says Watzke. Despite the great sporting rivalry, both had a “very resilient relationship”. And a lot of common interests: Both officials have fought together in recent years to defend the interests of the Bundesliga in Europe.
Watzke and Rummenigge have promoted the internationalization of their clubs, but at the same time made it clear to their significantly more economically liberal colleagues in the executive floors of the English and Spanish top clubs that both Bayern and Borussia see their first priority in the Bundesliga.
“Significance for German football as a whole”
Against this background, Watzke appreciates Bayern’s success – and also the good performance of RB Leipzig, which made it to the semi-finals. “That also has a meaning for German football as a whole,” said Watzke: “Two clubs in the semifinals, one of them as the winner of the competition – that underlined once again that German football is not as bad as many people make us believe wanted to.”
However, it should not be deduced from this that the Bundesliga would now have permanently assumed control of European club football. “Even in 2013, when Bayern and we were together in the Champions League final, there was this talk,” said Watzke. However, with regard to international television marketing, there is still a clear gap between, for example, the Premier League and the Bundesliga.
At Bayern, Watzke has no doubts that they will also be contenders for winning the Champions League in the years to come. “The team is exceptionally strong,” he said. “And it is not by chance that Bayern also lead the European club rankings.”
In the five-year ranking drawn up by the Uefa, which includes both national and international successes, Bayern are in first place.
Markus Söder welcomes triple winner FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern won the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain in Lisbon. The team under head coach Hansi Flick made the triple perfect. Prime Minister Söder could not be missing at the welcome in Munich.
Source: WELT / Thomas Vedder
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