The Vice-President and CEO of Bayern Munich, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, has reinforced Bayern Munich’s long-standing transfer philosophy, insisting the club would not consider selling key players even in the face of massive offers, while referencing a historic bid for Franck Ribéry to explain the approach.
Speaking about speculation around a potential €200m offer for winger Michael Olise, Rummenigge pointed back to a defining moment in 2009 when Bayern received what he described as an extraordinary proposal from Chelsea FC for Ribéry.
As reported by Fabrizio Romano on Monday, Rummenigge, when asked about €200m for Olise, was quoted as saying,” In 2009, we had an incredible offer from Chelsea for Franck Ribéry. At the time, it would have been a new world transfer record”.
“I then went to our then CFO, Karl Hopfner, and Uli Hoeneß with this offer.
We discussed it for two hours, trying to figure out what to do with it. That day, we made a fundamental decision: that in the future, we would never sell a player we would miss on the pitch. “This unwritten rule still applies today.
For a player like Olise, no price tag would make us flinch.”
Rummenigge recalled how the proposal was discussed internally at the highest level of the club, involving then CFO Karl Hopfner and former club president Uli Hoeneß.
“I went to Karl Hopfner and Uli Hoeneß with this offer. We discussed it for two hours, trying to figure out what to do with it,” he explained.
He said that decision ultimately shaped Bayern’s transfer policy for years to come.
“That day, we made a fundamental decision: that in the future, we would never sell a player we would miss on the pitch,” Rummenigge said.
According to him, that principle remains firmly in place today.
“This unwritten rule still applies today. “For a player like Olise, there’s no price tag that would make us flinch,” he added.
His comments highlight Bayern Munich’s traditional stance of prioritising sporting continuity over financial gain, particularly when it comes to core first-team players.