Bayern Munchen (Ger)

Location: Munchen, Germany
Year Founded: 1900
Stadium: Allianz Arena
Capacity: 66000
German Champions:
Winners (20): 1932, 1968/69, 1971/72, 1972/73, 1973/74, 1979/80, 1980/81, 1984/85, 1985/86, 1986/87, 1988/89, 1989/90, 1993/94, 1996/97, 1998/99, 1999/2000, 2000/01, 2002/03, 2004/05, 2005/06
German Cup:
Winners (13): 1957, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006
League Cup:  
Winners (6): 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2007
German Supercup:
Winners (3): 1982 , 1987, 1990
UEFA Champions League:  
Winners (4): 1974, 1975, 1976, 2001
European Cup Winners Cup:
 Winners (1): 1967
UEFA Cup:
Winners (1):  1996



Squad Information:

Staff:
Ottmar Hitzfeld

Goalkeepers:
Oliver Kahn 
Michael Rensing
Bernd Dreher

Defenders:
Willy Sagnol
Philipp Lahm
Marcell Jansen
Lucio
Martin Demichelis
Valerien Ismael
Daniel van Buyten
Christian Lell

Midfielders:
Bastian Schweinsteiger
Andreas Ottl
Hamit Altintop
Stephan Furstner
Jan Schlaudraff
Mark Van Bommel
Ze Roberto
Franck Ribery

Forwards:
Miroslav Klose
Stefan Maierhofer
Lukas Podolski
Luca Toni



                                                Team   History


               The first 100 years of Bayern Munich's history - and its success story - begin and end with the name Franz. Is it just a coincidence that the leader of the eleven spirited rebels who met to form FC Bayern in the Gisela Restaurant in Munich on the night of 27th February 1900, was a certain Franz John? Or that it was a Franz who masterminded the split from MTV 1879, the original club, which had suppressed every attempt by the footballers at independence? Is it only chance that exactly a century later, another Franz, this time Beckenbauer, would lead Bayern Munich, now an experienced and visionary club with countless titles to its name, into the new millennium as its president?
               Much time and many other differences separate now from then. Franz John co-founded and built Bayern up from nothing and was delighted with relatively modest results, like Bayern's 7-1 victory in their first match against their former team, MTV 1879. But John also gave this 'cavalier' club its first individual touch.
             In the early days, people recognised Bayern, then known as Schwabinger Bayern, by the players' straw hats. In his turn, Franz Beckenbauer would help make Bayern Munich what it is today: an international club with millions of fans, an institution reaching way beyond German football.
            Not in his wildest dreams could Franz John have imagined that future, or that his team would one day be German champions, European Cup Champions and even World Club Championship winners. Nor could he have imagined that nearly a century later, on a mild spring day in 1999, Beckenbauer would meet the world's leading heads of state, and no less than the British prime minister, Tony Blair, would whisper to him that he was the most famous person there.
           Clearly something incredible happened in the 100 years between Franz and Franz.

 
         During the 2006-2007 season, Bayern have suffered a number of setbacks. Apart from only finishing fourth in the league, they have also failed to qualify for the Champions League, lost in the DFB Cup and the League Cup, garnering them with no titles whatsoever. A number of injuries also hit them as Lukas Podolski, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Valerien Ismael, Lucio, WIlly Sagnol, Mehmet Scholl and Ali Karimi were all not 100% during the year. They finished fourth with 65 points. In the recent UEFA Champions League, they fell at the hands of eventual cup winners AC Milan 2-4 on aggregate. The UEFA Cup will be their main European campaign next season.
          Bayern Munich have been in a busy mood during the summer, as they seek to build a stronger team. Owen Hargreaves completed a transfer to Manchester United, Claudio Pizarro left on a free transfer to Chelsea, Ali Karimi is moved to Qatar while Hasan Salihamidzic has agreed to a contract with Juventus. Mehmet Scholl ended his career with the Bavarian side retiring having scored in the last game of the season.
            Bayern Munich today have introduced a new home kit design featuring white hoops on a red background. Along with this new image, a new team has been in construction. With 6 confirmed total summer signings: Jan Schlaudraff from Alemannia Aachen, Hamit Altintop from Schalke 04, Jose Ernesto Sosa from Estudiantes de la Plata, Marcell Jansen from Borussia Monchengladbach, Luca Toni from ACF Fiorentina and Franck Ribery from Olympique Marseille, the fallen Bundesliga giants are plotting to break ground once again next season. Ze Roberto of Santos FC is also set to rejoin the club. Finally, Miroslav Klose of Werder Bremen, joins Bayern this season, after a contract agreement. On what is reported to be a summer spending spree, Bayern have proven that they can compete financially with the wealthy European teams, with outstanding profit during a losing campaign and a completely different approach to transfer markets. All in all, their spending spree on all their winter and summer signings amount to an estimated $94 million.