August 10 – He may be new to his high-profile role, but Bayern Munich CEO and former goalkeeper Oliver Kahn (pictured) has dived straight in to tackle perhaps the biggest issue in the club game, and called for a salary cap.
German clubs have amassed massive losses as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic with Dortmund announcing a deficit of €72 million and Bayern losing €150 million. In an interview with Welt am Sonntag, Kahn said that “there has to be a salary cap” to help clubs through the new financial challenges, and he added that the European Club Association (ECA) aims to “introduce clear restrictions”.
“Several models are being discussed, some approaches could be adopted from the system in US professional sport,” said Kahn.
He suggested it could either be a hard or a soft salary cap to bring finances back under control.
This summer Bayern Munich have remained quiet on the transfer market. The club brought in defender Dayot Upamecano for €42 million from RB Leipzig, but that deal had been sealed last season. Javi Martinez, David Alaba and Jerome Boateng were three high-profile departures, all on free transfers.
Last week, Kahn indicated that Bayern didn’t need reinforcements in the current climate. He said: “Sporting-wise, we’re the best in many areas, of course. But economically, the situation today is completely different to the one I found here on 1 January 2020. Until now, FC Bayern has alays been able to draw on its full resources.”
“Now, for the first time in many years, we have a situation where that’s no longer the case. The national TV revenues for the next four years will be lower than those of the previous period. The income from spectators will probably be lower again this season due to coronavirus. That’s why we have to get creative and explore new avenues. That’s our task, because we want to carry on being among the top three in Europe.”
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