“Nach sieben Jahren im Verein fühlt es sich richtig an, meinem Streben nach persönlicher und beruflicher Weiterentwicklung nachzugehen,” said Florian Zahn, Nachwuchs-Chefscout.
Zahn left the club on Wednesday after more than seven years at the FC Bayern Campus, as reported by SPOX.
The club confirmed the departure in an official statement, describing the split as amicable following positive discussions. Zahn originally arrived in Munich in the summer of 2019 after working as a chief scout for Chelsea. Zahn also said that the club enabled him to actively help shape the recruitment and development of both domestic and international talents.
“Florian hat mit seinem Team in den vergangenen Jahren viele talentierte Spieler entdeckt, die den Weg in den Profifußball gefunden haben oder kurz davor sind,” said Christoph Freund, Sportdirektor. Freund thanked Zahn for his work and wished him well for the future.
Zahn expressed gratitude toward his colleagues and stated he remains deeply connected to the club. His exit follows personnel changes across the youth development and scouting departments at the Säbener Straße, making Zahn an official to leave the club.
Early in November, the club announced that overall Scouting Director Nils Schmadtke would also leave his post, as reported by SPOX. Schmadtke’s contract runs until January 31, 2027, at which point he officially departs. His original contract would have tied him to Munich until the summer of 2027.
Schmadtke originally arrived on the recommendation of Max Eberl, Sportvorstand, with whom he previously worked at Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Unlike Zahn’s immediate exit, Schmadtke remains tied to the club for over a year under his remaining contract terms. Bayern bosses plan to handle Schmadtke’s succession internally rather than bringing in an external replacement immediately, according to kicker reporting noted by SPOX.
The latest exits coincide with a broader structural realignment at the campus. Supervisory board member Karl-Heinz Rummenigge confirmed that Eberl no longer oversees the campus, leaving sole responsibility to Freund and Campus Director Jochen Sauer, according to Merkur. Prior to these shifts, the club had already replaced youth sporting director Markus Weinzierl with Michael Wiesinger.
Reporting from t-online highlighted that these adjustments have created underlying tensions among the sporting leadership, particularly regarding Schmadtke. Meanwhile, SPORT1 said that links to the Red Bull network continue to shape discussions around personnel, given that Freund spent 17 years in Salzburg, Sauer also possesses a background in the Red Bull cosmos, and assistant coach René Marić shares the same history.
The club also brought in Bernhard Seonbuchner from the Red Bull Academy Salzburg last summer to serve as head of game and trainer development as well as the transition area at the campus.
Whether Eberl personally blocked specific external candidates remains unconfirmed, as reported by FCBinside.
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