After 18 years in the service of FC Bayern, Michael Gerlinger is leaving the German football record champions on September 30th. The Munich-based company announced this on Wednesday. There will also be a personnel restructuring on the Supervisory Board.
Lawyer Gerlinger, who has been in the service of FC Bayern since 2005 and spent most of his time as legal director and most recently as vice president of sports business and competitions for the German industry leader, is leaving the Munich-based company at the end of the month. “This is done in close coordination with the board,” says an official statement from FCB.
“It was 18 great years, I was able to do pioneering work for FC Bayern: the founding of the European Club Association (ECA), working in the newly regulated transfer market and, above all, the signing of Javi Martínez – the first clause transfer ever in football – or even that Cooperation with the Los Angeles Football Club. I will always carry with me the joy of many titles, especially the triple victories in 2013 and 2020,” said Gerlinger, commenting on some of his milestones on Säbener Straße and adding:
“Now was the right time for me to leave, even though saying goodbye to FC Bayern is extremely difficult for me. I would like to thank the board very much for the trust they have placed in me.”
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who played a key role in determining the fortunes of FC Bayern as CEO for decades, said: “I regret that Michael is leaving FC Bayern. With his great expertise and his excellent network throughout the football world, he is of great service to FC Bayern proven.”
Gerlinger “felt and lived the ‘Mia san Mia’,” added Rummenigge’s successor Jan-Christian Dreesen.
FC Bayern: Döllner follows Duesmann
Later on Wednesday, FC Bayern also announced a restructuring of the supervisory board: The new CEO of Audi AG, Gernot Döllner, will take Markus Duesmann’s place as second deputy chairman of the supervisory board.
“We would like to thank Markus Duesmann for his commitment to the supervisory board. He was a valuable advisor to us and we will always remain on friendly terms, especially since he is a big fan of FC Bayern. We are pleased that Gernot Döllner has joined us with immediate effect “We are sure that with his decades of experience in business he is a first-class addition to our supervisory board,” said Bayern President Herbert Hainer about the change.