The communication of the Bayern bosses on the subject of Qatar and human rights is even more catastrophic than their handling of a member’s request not to extend the cooperation with the sleeve sponsor Qatar Airways. At the YHV, those responsible for the Bayern Munich club fulfilled all the clichés of a detached leadership that was completely decoupled from the fan base. A comment.
Uli Hoeneß likes Thursday evening in the Audi Dome as the “worst event” he “ever experienced at FC Bayern”. But after the, well, turbulent annual general meeting, one can only shout out to the confused bosses who no longer understand their world: “Your shitty mood! You are responsible for that!”
The communication of the Bayern bosses on the subject of Qatar and human rights is even more catastrophic than their handling of Michael Ott’s proposal not to extend the cooperation with the sleeve sponsor Qatar Airways.
President Herbert Hainer – for many years Adidas boss – at times acted like the CEO of a global corporation at a shareholders’ meeting, annoyed by the motions of the small shareholders.
His vice Dieter Mayer – notary and honorary professor at the University of Munich – holed up behind a wall of legal subtleties; In the heat of the moment, the chairman of the meeting of the most important democratic organ of the association even slipped the phrase “this is not about democracy”.
FC Bayern: Kahn was hovering around
Oliver Kahn – before his time as CEO, goalkeeping Cojones representative and walking club legend – shuffled around during his speech and failed to use the word Qatar even once; later he thought it would be a good idea to propose a round table on the subject, possibly forgetting previous complaints from some members that the club had not sent representatives to such round tables on the subject.
There would have been many opportunities for those responsible for the association to deal with the human rights issue in general and Ott’s application in particular at the YHV.
For example, you would have (value-free ranking) …
- … be able to reject Otts carefully formulated request in advance, instead of ignoring him for weeks, sitting out the topic and letting the long-standing member go to court, publicly holding the denied temporary injunction under his nose during the YHV and still calling him Branding Krakeeler.
- … be able to take part in the discussion and accept the application. Also in the knowledge that it had a symbolic meaning above all and had no legal obligation for their actions.
- … wait for the vote of the members and possibly not be able to extend the sponsorship. And then, as the member Gregor Weinreich sensibly suggested during the AGM, perhaps the second best financially, but not so morally complicated offer.
- … apply the brutally honest Karl-Heinz Rummenigge method, shout “Money doesn’t stink” and be able to withstand the contradiction inherent in the system.
- … cancel the entire AGM or allow it to take place virtually – the pandemic situation definitely makes it possible.
FC Bayern: bosses voted against human rights
But they chose by far the worst option. Hainer insulted the members, Kahn whipped around, Hoeness was offended. The appearances of the club officials during the YHV were arrogant, snotty and unsavory. They lacked any empathy and they testified to a very difficult understanding of democracy.
The bosses lacked a sense of the situation on Thursday. You didn’t understand anything. And at the end there was the picture of how the entire presidium, in contrast to the overwhelming part of the members present, voted against the motion to include a commitment for human rights and against discrimination in the statutes.
In short: Bavaria’s bosses fulfilled, intentionally or not, all the clichés of a detached tour that is completely decoupled from the fan base, for whom closeness to the fan is nothing more than a hollow phrase and sees the fans as claqueurs and fantum primarily as folklore.
