São Paulo FC

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São Paulo Sao paulo fc.png
Full name São Paulo Futebol Clube
Nickname(s) Tricolor Paulista (Three Colour)
Tricolor do Morumbi
O mais querido (The most loved)
Founded January 25, 1930
December 16, 1935 (re-founded) [1]
Ground Morumbi, São Paulo, Brazil
(Capacity: 80,000)
Chairman Brazil Juvenal Juvêncio
Manager Brazil Ricardo Gomes
League Série A
2009 Série A, 3rd
Home colours

Away colours
Current season

São Paulo Futebol Clube, usually called São Paulo FC or just São Paulo, is a traditional Brazilian football team from São Paulo, founded on January 25, 1930, and re-founded on December 16, 1935. Their home stadium is Cícero Pompeu de Toledo, better known as Morumbi.[2] They play in a white shirt with two horizontal stripes—one red and one black, white shorts and socks. They are the third most popular football club in Brazil, with over 17 million supporters. [3]

São Paulo is the most successful club in Brazil, holding the most national league and international titles of any Brazilian club. They have won the Série A six times (a national record shared with current Série A champions Flamengo). They have also won the Campeonato Paulista 21 times. Internationally they are sixth overall with the most international titles won by a club, tied with Juventus and Liverpool at 11. Their international trophy hall includes three World Club titles (two as Intercontinental Cup, and one as FIFA Club World Championship), three Copa Libertadores, two Recopa Sudamericanas, one Copa Conmebol, one Supercopa Sudamericana, and one Copa Masters Conmebol. In the case of the Copa Libertadores, Recopa Sudamericana, Intercontinental Cup, and FIFA Club World Championship, they are either the most successful Brazilian club in those competitions or tied as one.
Contents
[hide]

* 1 History
o 1.1 1900 - 1934: From Paulistano to São Paulo da Floresta
o 1.2 1935 - 1939: The rebirth of São Paulo FC
o 1.3 1940 - 1950: The Steam Roller
o 1.4 1951 - 1957: The Drought
o 1.5 1958 - 1969: Just the Stadium
o 1.6 1970 - 1975: The Glory Again
o 1.7 1976 - 1979: Affirmation Times
o 1.8 The 1980s: Tricolor Decade
o 1.9 1990 - 1995: The Telê Era[9]
o 1.10 1996 - 2004: Post-Telê Traumatic Shock?
o 1.11 2005: Once Again, the Best in the World
o 1.12 2006: A Good year
o 1.13 2007: Undisputed Best
o 1.14 2008: Six titles, three in a row
o 1.15 2009: The end of the Muricy era and the rise of "Jason"
* 2 Colours and badge
* 3 Stadium
* 4 Current squad
o 4.1 Out on loan
* 5 Notable former players
* 6 Notable managers
* 7 Titles
o 7.1 International
+ 7.1.1 World championships
+ 7.1.2 Continental championships
o 7.2 National competitions
* 8 Records[15]
* 9 References
* 10 External links

[edit] History
[edit] 1900 - 1934: From Paulistano to São Paulo da Floresta

In 1900, the Clube Atlético Paulistano was founded[4]. After winning several championships, due to the football professionalization, they decided to end their activities in this sport, as did Associação Atlética das Palmeiras.[5] Then, the players and the supporters of both teams founded the São Paulo Futebol Clube on January 25, 1930. São Paulo's stadium at that time was called Floresta (Forest), so the team was known as São Paulo da Floresta.[5] In this year, the team was runner-up on the Paulista Championship, and in 1931 São Paulo won a championship for the first time. In 1933, São Paulo played the first professional football match in Brazil: 5-1 against Santos.[6]

Due to many mistakes made by the club's board, the team was deeply in debt. So, they merged with Clube de Regatas Tietê. The football department was closed on May 14, 1935.[5]
[edit] 1935 - 1939: The rebirth of São Paulo FC

Just after the merge with Tietê that buried São Paulo da Floresta, the founders and re-founders created the Grêmio Tricolor, which originated Clube Atlético São Paulo, on June 4, 1935, and, finally, São Paulo Futebol Clube, founded on December 16 of the same year.[5]

The first game was against Portuguesa Santista on January 25, 1936. The match was almost cancelled, due to the city's anniversary. Porphyrio da Paz, football director and composer of the club's anthem, pleaded the Board of Education Office and obtained the permission.[7]

Another merge happened in 1938, this time with Estudantes Paulista, from Moóca neighborhood. With this new merge, they reached the second place on 1938s Paulista Championship.
[edit] 1940 - 1950: The Steam Roller

In 1940, when the Pacaembu stadium was inaugurated, a new era began in the São Paulo state football. São Paulo was the club which better took advantage of the moment. In 1941, the club was again Paulista Championship runner-up. In 1942, after paying 200 contos de réis (with today is the equivalent of R$ 162,000), São Paulo acquired Leônidas da Silva, from Flamengo, who was one of the greatest players of that time. As it was already a major club, São Paulo brought other great players, like the Argentinian António Sastre, and the Brazilians Noronha, José Carlos Bauer, Zezé Procópio, Luizinho, Rui and Teixeirinha. With them, the Tricolor formed the famous team known as the Steam Roller, five times Paulista champions in the 1940s (1943, 1945, 1946, 1948 and 1949). At this time, the club already had Canindé, used as a training field. This groundplot was later sold to Portuguesa to raise money to the Morumbi stadium construction.
[edit] 1951 - 1957: The Drought

São Paulo was not very successful in the beginning of the 1950s. São Paulo won the state championship in 1953.

São Paulo won again the state championship only in 1957. At that time the club was helped by the experience of the Carioca player Zizinho, who was 35 years old, and the Hungarian manager Béla Guttmann. From this moment upwards, with the uprising of Pelé's Santos and the construction of Morumbi stadium consuming all the efforts and resources, São Paulo had their largest titleless period in its history.
[edit] 1958 - 1969: Just the Stadium

The club's planning was focused on the Estádio do Morumbi construction, and for this reason, few players were hired by the club, most of them inexpressive ones, but Roberto Dias and Jurandir were exceptions to this rule. During the twelve years after the 1957 Paulista Championship title, the club did not win any important title. In 1960, Morumbi stadium was inaugurated, and named after the late Cícero Pompeu de Toledo, who was the club's chairman during most of the stadium construction. One of the few happy moments during this period was the 1963 Paulista Championship 4-1 victory against Pelé's Santos.
[edit] 1970 - 1975: The Glory Again

In 1970 the Morumbi stadium construction was concluded, and players like Gérson, of Botafogo, the Uruguayan midfielder Pedro Rocha, of Peñarol; and the Santos' goalscorer Toninho Guerreiro were hired. The club, managed by Zezé Moreira, who was the 1954 FIFA World Cup Brazil national football team manager, won the Paulista Championship one week before the end of the competition, after beating Guarani 2-1 in Campinas.

In 1971, the club won again the state championship, and most of the club's players were the same of the previous year. The club beat Palmeiras 1-0 in the final. The goal was scored by Toninho Guerreiro. In the same season, the club was the runner-up of the first Brazilian Championship ever, staying only behind Atlético Mineiro, which was managed by Telê Santana.

In the following years, Pelé's Santos and Corinthians declined, and São Paulo and Palmeiras dominated the football of São Paulo state. In 1972, Palmeiras won the state championship title with only a point of advantage over São Paulo. In 1973, Palmeiras won the Brazilian Championship and São Paulo was the runner-up. In 1974, São Paulo disputed Libertadores Cup being defeated in the final by Argentina's Independiente, after losing in the final match replay.

In 1975, the club was managed by the former goalkeeper José Poy, winning the Paulista Championship after defeating Portuguesa in the penalty shootout.
[edit] 1976 - 1979: Affirmation Times

Valdir Peres, Chicão and Serginho were the best club players during the successful 1977 Brazilian Championship campaign, won at Mineirão, against Atlético Mineiro in the penalty shootout. The club did not win any relevant title until 1980. Among the player who played for the club during this period were Zé Sérgio and Serginho Chulapa, who is still the club's top goalscorer in history.
[edit] The 1980s: Tricolor Decade

In the 1980s São Paulo won an impressive amount of titles. The club's central defenders were the talented Oscar and Dario Pereyra. Those players helped the club win the Paulista Championship in 1980 and in 1981.[8]

In 1985, the manager Cilinho introduced to the world the Menudos of Morumbi: Silas, Müller and Sidney. In the same year, the club won the Paulista Championship. The club's striker was Careca, a centre forward who played in the 1986 FIFA World Cup Careca then went on to join forces with Maradona and Giordano at Napoli, the "MaGiCa" (magic) later Maradona would refer to Careca as the best player he had ever played with. In the midfield there was Falcão, who came from Italy's AS Roma, nicknamed the King of Rome.[8]

In 1986, the manager Pepe lead the club to its second Brazilian Championship title, defeating Guarani in the penalty shootout, a final regarded to this day as one of the most exhilarating matches in Brazilian Football History. In 1987, Dario Pereyra left the club. In this year, the Menudos team won its last title. The Tricolor Decade ended with the 1989 Paulista Championship title and with the Brazilian Championship second place, after losing to Vasco da Gama in the final.[8]
[edit] 1990 - 1995: The Telê Era[9]

In 1990, the club, after a poor campaign, was relegated to the Paulista Championship "yellow group" division, formed by the weaker teams of the state. Telê Santana was hired as the club's coach. São Paulo was the Brazilian Championship runner-up, behind his main rival Corinthians. In the following year, the club won the Paulista Championship and Corinthians was the runner-up.

In 1991, after being two times in a row Brazilian Championship runner-up, São Paulo won its third competition title, after beating Carlos Alberto Parreira's Bragantino.

In 1992, the São Paulo of Telê, Zetti and Raí qualified to the Libertadores Cup final, against Newell's Old Boys of Argentina. In the first leg, in Rosario, Newell's Old Boys won 1-0. In the second leg, São Paulo beat the other side 1-0, and won the competition in the penalty shootout.

In the same year, in Tokyo the club won its first Intercontinental Cup, beating Johann Cruyff's "Dream Team" FC Barcelona 2-1, after reversing the score. After returning to Brazil, the club beat Palmeiras 2-1 and achieved its 18th state championship title (since 1930).

In 1993, São Paulo won again the Libertadores Cup, after beating Universidad Católica of Chile. After the competition ended, Raí left the club. São Paulo won the Intercontinental Cup again, in Tokyo, after beating Fabio Capello's and "Gli Invicibili" AC Milan 3-2. Müller scored the winning goal in the 86th minute of the match from a Toninho Cerezo assist. The São Paulo vs Milan clash has gone down in the annals of the game as one of the most spectacular matches in history.[10]

In 1994, the club again reached the Libertadores Cup final, this time against Argentina's Vélez Sarsfield, but it was defeated by the Argentine side in the penalty shootout, at Morumbi stadium.

But by the end of this year, São Paulo won the Conmebol Cup (its current equivalent is the South American Cup) defeating Peñarol of Uruguay, one of the most important clubs of the continent, in the final of the tournament.
[edit] 1996 - 2004: Post-Telê Traumatic Shock?

In the beginning of 1996, due to health issues, Telê Santana left São Paulo, ending the club's golden era. After him, between 1995 and 2004, 14 managers worked on the club without staying long. Among the most notable titles during those 10 years were the 2000 Paulista Championship and the club's first Rio-São Paulo Tournament title in 2001. Rogério Ceni, Julio Baptista, Luís Fabiano and Kaká were the club's stars. The club's idol, Raí briefly played for the club between 1998 and 2000, and with him, the club won the Paulista Championship twice, in 1998 and 2000, after beating Corinthians and Santos, respectively. In 2004 São Paulo was back in Libertadores Cup after 10 years since its last final against Vélez. The team reached the semifinals but it was surprisingly eliminated by the underdogs Once Caldas, from Colombia. In the end of that year Émerson Leão was hired as the club's coach, after the club's unsuccessful campaign in winning the Libertadores Cup again.

In 2003, São Paulo FC made a deal with Santangelo Club Aficionado, from the Spanish amateur league, and since then, the Spanish club changed its name to São Paulo Madrid. [11]
Rogério Ceni
[edit] 2005: Once Again, the Best in the World

In 2005, with Leão as the club's manager, São Paulo easily won the Paulista Championship. However, he soon left the club, and Paulo Autuori, which was previously the Peru national football team's manager, was hired to replace Leão. São Paulo won the Libertadores Cup, beating another Brazilian team, Atlético Paranaense, in the final. Atlético had to play at a different site because its own stadium, Kyocera Arena, has a maximum capacity below the minimum capacity allowed by CONMEBOL in Libertadores Cup final matches. The first leg, at Estádio Beira-Rio in Porto Alegre, ended in a 1-1 draw. In the second leg, at Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo beat Atlético Paranaense 4-0. São Paulo became the first Brazilian club to win three Libertadores Cup titles.

In December, 2005, São Paulo played the FIFA Club World Championship in Japan. After beating Saudi Arabia's Al Ittihad 3-2, the Brazilian team faced the giant Liverpool, from England, on the final match. A 1-0 scoreline against the "unbeatables" was enough to give São Paulo its third Intercontinental title, in a memorable match by Rogerio Ceni. The single goal was scored by Mineiro in the first half of the match.
[edit] 2006: A Good year

After the almost perfect 2005 season, São Paulo experienced some changes. Paulo Autuori left the team to coach the Kashima Antlers squad. Muricy Ramalho was signed, being the coach who led Internacional to the runners-up position in 2005 National Championship. In his first tournament as manager Ramalho reached 2nd place in Paulista Championship, losing the title to Santos.

During that period, São Paulo began playing the 2006 Libertadores Cup, reaching once again the finals, but this time against another Brazilian team, Internacional. They lost the first match 1-2 and tied the second 2-2, which was not enough to assure its fourth title.

After the end of the Libertadores Cup the squad focused only on the National Championship. In the 12th round they grabbed the leading position and kept it all the way 'till the end of the season, celebrating their 4th Brazilian Championship trophy in the 36th round (of a total of 38) on November 19, 2006 with a 1-1 tie against Atlético Paranaense. São Paulo also broke some records, such as reaching 28 rounds leading the National Championship in a row (the former record was 18 rounds). Also, they became the 1st team to become National Champions in the league system with most victories, the best offense and defense among all teams.
[edit] 2007: Undisputed Best

Again after not showing good results in 2007 Libertadores Cup, São Paulo won the Brazilian Title for the second year in a row. Hence, becoming the first team in Brazil to have officially won the national title 5 times. The team was 15 points ahead of the second place Santos Futebol Clube.
[edit] 2008: Six titles, three in a row

In the middle of the season, São Paulo was 11 points behind the league leaders, Gremio, and almost gave up fighting for the title. But in the end, the team won the championship for the third year in a row, becoming the first team in Brazil to have won the national title six times. Manager Muricy Ramalho was also the first manager in Brazilian soccer to win three Brazilian titles in a row with the same team.
[edit] 2009: The end of the Muricy era and the rise of "Jason"

After losing the semifinals of the Campeonato Paulista 2009 to eventual champions Corinthians, manager Muricy Ramalho was being under pressure from the beginning of the year, when the squad did not perform well. The dissatisfaction from the board of directors led to his being fired from the manager post, following a defeat in the home leg of the 2009 Libertadores Cup to Cruzeiro. That was São Paulo FC's fourth consecutive Copa Libertadores elimination to a team from Brazil. Ricardo Gomes took over the position from Ramalho. Then, São Paulo had a hard time before recovering its breath to compete again against the big dogs. The crowd and press brought again an old São Paulo nickname: "Jason" (as per the fictional character Jason Voorhees), because he never dies and always returns stronger than ever. Just like the club, which usually becomes strong when everyone thinks it gave up.
[edit] Colours and badge

When Paulistano and Palmeiras merged, their colors (red and white for Paulistano and black and white for Palmeiras) were inherited by São Paulo. Not only the colors match the ones in São Paulo's state flag, it also represents the three main races that lived in Brazil during that period: the native Americans (represented by the red), the caucasians (represented by the white) and the Africans (represented by the black).

The home uniform is a white shirt, with two horizontal stripes at chest's level, the upper one being red and the lower one being black, with the badge in the center of the chest. The shorts and socks are all-white.

The away uniform consists in a red shirt with red, black and white vertical stripes (the white stripes are narrow than the others), black shorts and socks.
Estádio do Morumbi (Morumbi Stadium), inside view

The badge, which was designed by Walter Ostrich in the early days of São Paulo, consists in a shield with a black retangle in the upper section with the initials SPFC in white. Below the rectangle it shows a triangle with three colors: red, white and black). The badge also shows five stars, two gold and three red ones. The gold ones pay homage to Adhemar Ferreira da Silva's world and olympic records and the red ones represents the world championships won by São Paulo.
[edit] Stadium
Main article: Estádio do Morumbi

São Paulo's stadium is officially named Estádio Cícero Pompeu de Toledo (Cicero Pompeu de Toledo Stadium), although most people refer to it by its nickname Estádio do Morumbi (Morumbi Stadium). It was inaugurated in 1960, with a maximum sitting capacity of 80,000 people.[2]

The club also owns two training grounds, one named Centro de Treinamento Frederico Antônio Germano Menzen (Frederico Antônio Germano Menzen Training Center), and nicknamed Centro de Treinamento (CT) da Barra Funda (Barra Funda's Training Center), which is used mostly by the professional team.[12] The other is the Centro de Formação de Atletas Presidente Laudo Natel (President Laudo Natel Athletes Formation Center), nicknamed Centro de Treinamento (CT) de Cotia (Cotia's Training Center), which is used by the youth teams.[13

REAL MADRID C.F.

2001-2010
Figo, Beckham, Zidane, Ronaldo... The best players in the world joined the Club and formed one of the most spectacular teams in history. The Santiago Bernabéu was expanded and the new Real Madrid City in Valdebebas was built. The crowning moment was the Club’s ninth European Cup title.

The Real Madrid Sports City rezoned
After the mandatory formalities, Real Madrid's Sports City was rezoned after a three-way agreement that was signed in the headquarters of Madrid's Autonomous Community Council on 7 May 2001. The three parties implicated were Florentino Pérez, José María Álvarez del Manzano and Alberto Ruiz Gallardón in representation of Real Madrid, the City Council and the Madrid Autonomous Community, respectively. The agreement accrued income worth ESP 80,000 million - EUR 480 million for the Club.

The King of Spain, Honourary Centenary President
In the prelude to the celebrations of the Real Madrid Centenary, Florentino Pérez and the Board of Directors unanimously agreed to offer His Majesty the King of Spain the Honourary Centenary President distinction. The monarch accepted the honorary presidency with his habitual modesty.

A Centenary riddled with successes
The Club Centennial took place in 2002 and attracted worldwide acclaim. From the sporting perspective, Madrid won their ninth European Cup after defeating Bayer Leverkusen in Glasgow 2-1; the first European Super Cup against Feyenoord with an identical result (2-1); and their third Intercontinental Cup beating Club Olimpia by 2-0 in Tokyo. One could not have wished for a better 100-year anniversary.

Florentino Pérez resigns
On 27 February 2006, Florentino Pérez irrevocably resigned his Presidential post. Fernando Martín became the acting President, followed by Luis Gómez Montejano, who in turn called last summer's Presidential elections.

Ramón Calderón elected President
The Real Madrid presidency was disputed by five candidates, Ramón Calderón, Juan Palacios, Juan Miguel Villar Mir, Lorenzo Sanz and Arturo Baldasano. Following the 2 July 2006 vote, Ramón Calderón was elected President after having won the in-person vote.

Capello's comeback
On 5 July 2006, Fabio Capello signed for Madrid for the second time in his life. The Italian manager asked for and got the signings of Cannavaro, Emerson, Diarra, Reyes and Van Nistelrooy. The winter transfer window saw three new players join the Whites: Marcelo, Higuaín and Gago.

Death of Puskas
Ferenc Puskas Biro died on 17 November 2006 from an illness he had been suffering from for a long time; he was 79 years old.

Honourary Club Member Joseph Blatter
FIFA President Joseph Blatter was awarded the Club’s Gold and Diamond Insignia by Honourary President Alfredo di Stéfano, whom Blatter considers to be the all-time greatest football player. Real Madrid also made the FIFA Premier an Honourary Club Member.

ULEB Cup
The first of the two titles won by the basketball section in 2007 was the ULEB Cup. Real Madrid were practically invincible throughout the competition and defeated Unics Kazan and Lietuvos Rytas in the semifinals and final, respectively.

League champions
The ‘Together we can, together we stand’ campaign worked wonders and got the fans and the team to stand together and eventually win the Club’s 30th football League title. The Whites won the title after an impressive comeback against Mallorca the last day of the competition (3-1). It was Ramón Calderón’s first football title as President.

ACB Champions
One week later, the Basketball team also won its 30th League title by defeating Barcelona in the playoffs at the Palau Blaugrana. Pamesa and Joventut also fell against them on their road to victory. Felipe Reyes earned MVP honours in the final.

March 6 2008
Real Madrid turns 106 today. Since its foundation, the Club has been extremely successful and has embodied the greatest of sports values: to always have a fighting spirit and respect your opponent.

Back to Back league titles
The 2007/08 season began with a new project under new head coach Bernd Schuster and several new faces in the lineup: Robben, Heinze, Sneijder, Drenthe, Saviola, and Metzelder. Real Madrid took hold atop the table in Matchday 2 with a 0-5 victory over Villarreal, a position they never abandoned throughout the year. The Whites ended the campaign as the highest scoring (84 goals) and the least scored upon (36) team. They also established a new La Liga record by notching 85 points, 18 more than third place Barcelona.

Eighth Spanish Super Copa
After winning their second consecutive league title, Real Madrid faced Valencia in the Spanish Super Cup prior to the start of the 2008/09 season. Valencia won the first leg 3-2, but despite falling behind in the return leg at the Bernabeu, the Whites mounted an incredible turn around to claim their eighth Spanish Super Cup.

Florentino Perez begins second term as President
Florentino Perez returned to the presidency of Real Madrid on 1 June 2009 during an election campaign in which he ran unopposed, perhaps due to the overwhelming support of members as evidenced by several polls taken by major media outlets. Under the slogan "Excitement Returns", the Florentino Perez candidacy brought about a sense of optimism that helped raise spirits after experiencing the dominance displayed by Barcelona. A new and exciting project backed by the legacy left by the same Board that ruled over the club for nearly six years is underway; six years during which Real Madrid lived some of its most memorable highlights ever.
1991-2000

This was the decade in which the Club won its seventh and eight European Cups. Real Madrid sat on the European throne once more at the end of the 1990s, which had an uneasy first half for the Whites with two League titles lost against Tenerife.

Today, 6 March 2007, Real Madrid celebrate their 105th anniversary. In a meeting held in Rome in 2000, FIFA decided to name the entity the Best Club of the 20th Century or, by all accounts, the best Club in the history of football. Five years after receiving this distinction, the beat goes on and the Whites are looking to take on a new lease on life and relive the good old days, the ones that put Real Madrid in centre stage of world football.

Mendoza advances elections
Although he still had a full year on his ticket, then President Ramón Mendoza advanced the Presidential elections to 14 April 1991. Opposite him was writer Alfonso Ussía, whose results were more than honourable in spite of his diminished resources. The electoral success won Mendoza another four years in the Presidential chair.

Tenerife, the “cursed island”
Ramón Mendoza dismissed coach Antic in mid-season. At the time, the Serbian coach had led Real Madrid to a seven point lead during the 1991-92 campaign. He was substituted by Dutch manager Leo Beenhakker, who had re-joined the Club as Technical Director just weeks before. With the Dutchman coaching the team, Madrid were robbed of the League title in Tenerife in the last day of the season. It was exactly the same story the following year, this time with Benito Floro at the rudder. After losing two consecutive titles in the last game of the campaign in exactly the same spot, the Canary isle of Tenerife was tagged a “cursed island ” for Madridismo.

Renovations at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium
The renovations of the Santiago Bernabéu stadium began on 7 February 1992 and ended two years and change later, on 7 May 1994. The expense of the works was in excess of ESP 5,000 million (EUR 30 million), including the ESP 300M (EUR 1.8M) for the insurance that would cover both the construction workers and the attending spectators during the time.

Valdano returns to coach the team
After snatching two League titles from Real Madrid and eliminating them from the King's Cup in his capacity as coach of Tenerife, Jorge Valdano signed a coaching agreement with Real Madrid set on putting the Whites back on the road to success and terminate the 4-year Liga title drought. The Argentine did just that in his first season at his former team and all Real Madrid fans got to sing along to the victory chant at the end of the season.

Sanz relieves Mendoza in Club Presidency
After ten and a half years in office, Ramón Mendoza handed in his irrevocable resignation on 20 November 1995. He was relieved by Lorenzo Sanz, who held recourse to Club by-law 49 to get elected as heir to Mendoza by the 11 directors who continued in the Board of Directors following the transfer of power.

Capello makes his debut with Real Madrid
On 20 May 1996, Lorenzo Sanz presented Fabio Capello as new head coach of Real Madrid. The Italian trainer landed in Madrid borne out by his five successful seasons with AC Milan, with whom he won the 1994 European Cup. Although Capello only stayed with the team during the 1996-97 season, he managed to win the League.

Seventh European Cup
After a less than impressive domestic run, coach Jupp Heynckes led the team to win the very much awaited -last one was in 1966, 32 years earlier- European Cup. The venue: Amsterdam Arena. Date: 20 May 1998. The Merengues conquered their seventh top European trophy with a goal by now Sporting Director Pedja Mijatovic against the Italian side of Juventus, who were the hot favourites that night.

Second Intercontinental Cup
Guus Hiddink was the manager in charge of guiding Real Madrid to their second Intercontinental Cup after the surprising resignation of Juan Antonio Camacho in July 1998, before the actual season even began. An extraordinary goal by Raúl in Tokyo sealed the more than fair 2-1 end result for the Whites.

Eighth European Cup & First Spanish Final
Vicente del Bosque took over John Benjamin Toshack as head coach of Real Madrid in mid-season and spearheaded the Madridistas towards raising their eighth European Cup -second Champions League title. The venue was superb: the newly built Saint-Denis stadium of Paris would host the first ever Spanish final -as well as the first ever final of the European Cup between two teams of the same country- on 24 May 2000. It was a vibrant game which saw Madrid triumph over Valencia with a final 3-0 result. It was the last European Cup of the 20th Century and, as the first one, it belonged to the Whites.

Florentino Pérez wins the elections
On 16 July 2000, Florentino Pérez was elected new President of Real Madrid after defeating Lorenzo Sanz in the polls. Pérez's successful campaign was based on two pillars: get rid, for once and for all, of the historical Club debt and sign the best players in the world.

Best Club 20th Century
On 11 December 2000, during the FIFA gala in Rome, Florentino Pérez and Honourary Club President Alfredo di Stéfano received the accolade honouring Real Madrid as the Best Club of the 20th Century.
Real Madrid City
REAL MADRID CITY

Welcome to Real Madrid City, the largest sports facility ever built by a football club. It is the future home to a new generation of Madridistas, the home to the 21st Century Real Madrid. Professionals and followers will coexist on 1,200,000 square meters; two families united by the same feeling. Welcome to Real Madrid City.

THE FUTURE
The Club is already planning for the future by designing a heritage development strategy for the stadium and Real Madrid City. Real Madrid’s heritage offers a world of opportunities for the Club and its Members, who will always receive preferential treatment within the frame of a Social Club designed for everyone who identifies with Real Madrid values.

FC CHELSEA

CLUB BADGES


Chelsea's official badge has changed five times (with a few variations on each) in our 100+ year history.


Badge 1905-1952This is the the first Chelsea badge showing one of the famous Chelsea Pensioners that gave rise to our early nickname. It was never worn on any shirts however but did appear on later matchday programmes.



Badge 1952-1953When Ted Drake became Chelsea manager in 1952, he instigated a move away from the old 'Pensioners' tag and wanted a new image to go with the new nickname, the Blues. While the new design was being worked on, this cipher of the club's initials was used for a solitary season as a stop-gap.



Badge 1953-1986Probably the most famous of the Chelsea badges and used for 33 years, this design was inspired by the civic coat of arms of the Metropolitan Borough of Chelsea.

The lion was derived from the Arms of Earl Cadogan who was president of the club and also held the title Viscount Chelsea. The staff is that of the Abbot of Westminster whose jurisdiction extended over Chelsea. The roses represent England and the footballs more obviously represent the game.

Chelsea did not start wearing badges on their shirts until 1960 making this the first one used in that way. For the first few seasons the full badge, complete with circle, was sewn onto the shirts.

However due to the complexity of the design several simplified variations were stitched into the shirts during the 60s and 70s, even though the full design complete with circle remained the official club badge. The cup triumphs of the early 70s were marked with the addition of an FA Cup symbol and stars.



Badge 1986-2005In 1986 the club adopted our fourth badge to make the most of the growing merchandising opportunities around football. While the design of the lion and CFC letters was always constant, several colour combinations were used over time and the design was at various times used within circle or shield outlines.

The badge was used for almost 19 years and many fans will have started supporting Chelsea knowing no other form. While it served the club well, fans inundated the new board of directors with demands for a return to the old-style design to take Chelsea into a new era, especially ahead of the centenary year.



Chelsea Logo BadgeLaunched in November 2004, the new badge became effective from May 2005. Additionally, a special centenary version was used during that initial commemorative year.

At the launch, Peter Kenyon said: "We are incredibly proud of Chelsea's heritage. The design of this new badge is based on the one from the 1950s and it was a conscious decision to do this.

"As we approach our centenary year, and the club embarks on a new and very exciting era, it is appropriate that we have a new identity that reflects our tradition and can represent us for the next 100 years."

STADIUM HISTORY


Chelsea's home stadium is called Stamford Bridge and has a history as varied and unique as the team itself.

Stamford Bridge officially opened on 28 April 1877. For the first 28 years of its existence it was used almost exclusively by the London Athletic Club as an arena for athletics meetings and not for football at all.

In 1904 the ownership of the ground changed hands when Mr H A (Gus) Mears and his brother, Mr J T Mears, obtained the deeds, having previously acquired additional land (formerly a large market garden) with the aim of establishing a football team there on the now 12.5 acre site.

Stamford Bridge was designed by Archibald Leitch and initially included a 120 yard long stand on the East side which could hold 5000 spectators.

The other sides were all open in a vast bowl with thousands of tons of material excavated from the building of the underground railway provided high terracing on the West side.

The capacity was originally planned to be 100,000 and was the second largest in country behind Crystal Palace - the FA Cup final venue.

Initially the stadium was offered to Fulham FC to play there, they turned down the chance and so instead a new side, Chelsea Football Club, was born in 1905 and moved into the new Stamford Bridge stadium.

Why is it called Stamford Bridge?
The name and place of Stamford Bridge is one with great significance in English history having been the site in Yorkshire of one of the most famous battles of King Harold's reign in 1066 against the Vikings.

However it is believed that this is not connected to the naming of Chelsea's football stadium which came about less because of historical significance and more to do with local landmarks and a fair degree of chance.

The 18th century maps show the Fulham Road and Kings Road area including the current day site of the stadium. It shows a stream called 'Stanford Creek' which runs along the route of the present day railway line behind the East Stand and flows down into the Thames.

Where the stream crosses the Fulham Road it is marked 'Little Chelsea Bridge' which was originally called Sanford Bridge (from sand ford). While a bridge over the stream on the Kings Road was called Stanbridge (from stone bridge). It seems that these two bridge names and that of the stream, 'Stanford Creek', together evolved into the name Stanford Bridge, which again later evolved into Stamford Bridge as the adopted name of the stadium.

Timeline - 1930
From it's creation the stadium remained largely unchanged until 1930 when the "Shed End" terraced area was erected. A vast bank of terracing behind the southern goal it was to become the mecca for Chelsea' most die hard supporters and would forever be associated with Stamford Bridge.

As the stadium developed the Shed End really came into its own in the 60's, 70's and 80's and was the focal point of the hardcore Chelsea fans and the originators of most of the singing and atmosphere. Adorned with a rather unique 'roofed' area (which barely covered 1/5th of the whole terrace) there is debate over how and when it developed the name 'Shed' as it wasn't given a name when it was built.

The Shed was demolished in 1994 following new laws compelling grounds to be all seater and was replaced with the new Shed End seated stand in 1997. The final match with the old Shed was Sheffield United at home on 7th May 1994 although sadly no one knew at the time it would be the last game so the Shed was never given the send off it deserved.


Timeline - 1939
In 1939 the North Stand was built. A curious stand in the north east corner it was an extension to the East stand and stuck out for being a completely different design to the rest of the stadium but it did provide extra seating. It survived until 1975 when it was demolished and the north end was then open terracing until 1993 when it too was demolished at the start of the modern redevelopment of the entire stadium.


Timeline - 1964/65
In 1964/65, during one of Chelsea's best periods on the pitch, saw the vast western terrace replaced by a seated stand. The stand was 3/4 seating and 1/4 concrete slabs affectionately known as the 'Benches'. The West stand existed for 25 years until it was the last of the old stadium to be demolished in 1998 and despite by that stage being a rickety, crumbling stand it too was a sad day for many when the old West Stand with it's wooden seats went, and like the Shed, is a source of nostalgia.

Yet its replacement is quite simply one of the finest stadium stands in the country costing an estimated £30 million to build, and housing 13,500 people in luxury surroundings with superb views.


Timeline - 1973/74
In 1973 the East Stand was built, a marvel of engineering of the time and still one of the most striking stands in the country there's little doubt it was ahead of its time. The only part of the current stadium that survived the mass rebuilding of the 1990's it has though undergone extensive refurbishment and refitting.

The East Stand, for all its magnificence also has a controversial past. When Chelsea were at their peak in the late 60's and early 70's the then owners decided the all star team on the pitch deserved to be playing in the best stadium in the country. Their plan was hugely ambitious to completely redevelop Stamford Bridge into a 50,000 all seater circular stadium. It proved too ambitious and many feel brought the club to it's knees, forced the selling of the star players, relegation and nearly forced the club into complete ruin by the start of the 1980's.

It took another 20 years to rebuild not only the stadium and team but the entire club, yet for all that the East Stand itself remains as impressive today as it always did.


Timeline - When Stamford Bridge nearly became no more!
With the club virtually bankrupt in the late 70's the then owners made the drastic decision to sell the Stamford Bridge site to property developers to pay off some of the debts. It was a decision that very nearly saw Chelsea lose it's ground, be forced to share with Fulham or QPR and the famous stadium converted into houses or a supermarket.

With Chelsea no longer owning their own ground they were unable to do any more rebuilding and lagged behind other clubs in that respect. A bitter, expensive and close run 10 year fight by chairman Ken Bates to fight the property developers and win back ownership of Stamford Bridge was finally successful in 1992. With an ironic twist is was the property developers who were forced into bankruptcy and Chelsea FC got it's ground back.

It was a close run thing at times but Stamford Bridge survived its biggest ever challenge and in 1994 the process of the most extensive redevelopment of any stadium in the country began. Turning a dilapidated and crumbling ground with views miles from the pitch into one of the most impressive in the country.


Timeline - 1994/95
The rebuilding of Stamford Bridge from the ashes began with the redevelopment of the North Stand area. The old banked terrace that in recent times had housed the away fans was demolished and the new stand began to rise. Renamed as the Matthew Harding Stand in memory of the Chelsea director killed in a helicopter accident it has now established itself as the home of the most vocal and die hard Chelsea fans.


Timeline - 1997
Next up in the redevelopment queue was the new Shed End Stand. The old Shed terrace was replaced with temporary seating for a couple of years before work began on the new Shed End. At the same time the Chelsea Village Hotel, which would be the centre piece of the massive Chelsea Village development, was built at the same time.

Like all the new stands as well as being modern, smart and comfortable they were also much closer to the pitch something many feel had hindered Chelsea's atmosphere for some time.

Timeline - 1998
The final piece of the new Stamford Bridge story proved to have one more hurdle to overcome. The lower tier of the new West stand was built on schedule but then problems with the local council over planning permission meant a 2 year delay before the rest of the stand could be built.

Finally that last battle was won and work began on completing the biggest and best part of the stadium, the huge 13,500 seater West Stand. It opened for the first time on 19/08/2001 and marked, at last, the completion of Stamford Bridge which had begun way back in 1973 with the East Stand.


Timeline - The Present
The current capacity stands at 42,055 and the ground has gone from being a huge oval shape to 4 sides close to the pitch. There is almost no part of the current stadium that hasn't markedly changed in the past 10 years with only the old Shed wall remaining of the original stadium. As well as all the work on the stadium itself the whole 12.5 acre site has seen the building of 2 four star hotels, 5 restaurants, conference and banqueting facilities, nightclub, underground car park, health club and business centre. It has come a long long way since the original athletics venue was first built in 1876!
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CLUB INFORMATION

Nickname
The Blues

Formed
1905

Stadium Capacity
41,841

Pitch
103 x 67 metres

Training Ground
The training ground is at Cobham in Surrey but sessions are not open to the general public. Special open days are organised at Stamford Bridge when fans can see the team train.

Creche
Chelsea operates a creche during the match on home weekend matchdays and caters for children from one to five-years-old. The service is free but donations for equipment are appreciated. Bookings are taken on 08719 841905.

Chelsea Matchday Programme
If you wish to advertise in the Matchday Programme call Profile Sports Media on 020 7332 2000.

Hooligan Hotline
Chelsea Football Club works in partnership with the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham and the Metropolitan Police Service in our endeavours to create a safe enviroment for supporters and the local community.

If you have any information concerning football hooliganism, please forward your concerns to the National Hooligan Hotline on 0800 515495. This is a confidential line which will not appear on your phone bill.

Should you have any information concerning ANY crime, this may be confidentially reported to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

If you wish to receive information about a career within the Metropolitan Police Service as a Police Officer; member of the Civil Support Staff or voluntary service within the Special Constabulary then further information may be found on the Metropolitian Police website (www.met.police.uk) and the Crimestoppers website (www.crimestoppers-uk.org).


Chelsea Customer Charter
If you would like a copy of the charter you can download it by clicking here or write to Customer Charter, Call Centre, Chelsea Football Club, Stamford Bridge, London, SW6 1HS.


Ground Regulations
Chelsea Football Club's ground regulations apply to anyone entering the stadium. A copy can be requested from the club.


Fighting Racism
Chelsea Football Club practices a zero tolerance policy towards racism at Stamford Bridge and takes a leading role in all the major anti-racist campaigns such as Kick Racism Out of Football, Show Racism the Red Card and all Uefa backed Europe-wide campaigns.


Payments to Agents - 2008/09
Total Amount paid to Agents in the period 1 October 2008 to 30 September 2009: £9,562,222.56

Explanatory Note:
The amount shown is the aggregate of all payments made to agents during the reporting period for agency activity, including payments made by the club on behalf of players.


CLUB PERSONNEL

Chelsea FC plc is the company which owns Chelsea Football Club.

The ultimate parent company of Chelsea FC plc is Chelsea Limited and the ultimate controlling party of Chelsea Limited is Roman Abramovich.

CHELSEA FC plc BOARD :
Chairman: Bruce Buck.
Directors: Bruce Buck, Eugene Tenenbaum, Ron Gourlay (chief executive), Peter Kenyon.


CHELSEA FC plc BOARD BIOGRAPHIES:

Bruce Buck, Chairman:
Born in New York, he has been a Chelsea supporter since coming to London in 1983 and has been a season ticket holder since 1991. He is a shareholder in Chelsea Limited, the ultimate owner of the club, and the company used by Roman Abramovich for the takeover in 2003 and is managing partner in Europe for the US law firm Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom.

Ron Gourlay, Chief Executive:
Previously chief operating officer, he had been with Chelsea for five years in a variety of director-level roles before becoming chief executive in November 2009. He has more than 25 years experience in football having previously undertaken senior roles at Manchester United and Umbro.

Peter Kenyon, Non-Executive Director:
Joined as chief executive in February 2004 after previously working in the same role at Manchester United. Oversaw Chelsea's most successful period until stepping down from a full-time capacity in October 2009. He continues as a non-executive director and represents Chelsea on various Uefa and the European Clubs' Association committees.

Eugene Tenenbaum, Director:
Born in the Ukraine but moved to Canada at an early age, Eugene is one of Roman Abramovich's closest associates and was formerly chief financial officer at Sibneft, the oil company sold by Mr Abramovich in 2006. Eugene is now director of Millhouse Capital UK, Mr Abramovich's investment vehicle.

The day-to-day running of Chelsea is undertaken by the football club's Executive Board headed by chief executive Ron Gourlay:

EXECUTIVE BOARD BIOGRAPHIES:
(in alphabetical order)

Chris Alexander, Finance and Operations Director:
Trained as a chartered accountant with Price Waterhouse and has 20 years financial experience in different industries. Prior to joining Chelsea in March 2003 he worked in France as the FD of a construction related business where he completed an MBA at one of Europe's leading business schools.

David Barnard, Director / Club Secretary:
Joined Chelsea in July 2002. Has overall responsibility for the day-to-day administration of the Football Department. Has just completed 30 seasons in football. Previous clubs are Fulham, Colchester and Wimbledon. Also a member of the Football Club board which oversees football policy for the club.

Company Secretary, Alan Shaw:
Joined Chelsea in 1993. Has a wide range of business knowledge, having run legal, construction, HR, customer services and planning teams through a variety of projects in differing organisations from retail to engineering , merchant banking and professional football. Interests include tennis, horse racing and cinema.

FOOTBALL CLUB BOARD:
Bruce Buck, Eugene Tenenbaum, Ron Gourlay, Peter Kenyon, David Barnard, Mike Forde, Frank Arnesen.

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L.A. GALAXY SOCCER

For the second consecutive season, the Galaxy failed to qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs, finishing fifth in the Western Conference with a record of 9-14-7.

The year began with a bang for LA as the club announced the signing of David Beckham in early January, making him the club’s first-ever Designated Player. The England international agreed to join the club after the completion of his season with Real Madrid, meaning that he would miss the first half of his new club’s season.

The Galaxy’s schedule was weighed heavily toward the back end of the season, giving the club the opportunity to have Beckham in the lineup for more than half the season, but also creating a heavy schedule from mid-July on through the end of the campaign. The schedule had definite effects over the first three months of the season as LA, despite strong showings from Landon Donovan, who again led the team in scoring, Kyle Martino, Joe Cannon and rookie Ty Harden, stood at just 3-5-4 and had been knocked out of the U.S. Open Cup by the July All-Star break.

A July 21 friendly against Chelsea saw Beckham make his LA debut, but the team continued to struggle, despite drawing massive crowds in every market to which they traveled, and sat in last place in the Western Conference heading into mid-September when the tide began to turn.

Following a 2-2 draw at Real Salt Lake on Sept. 19, the Galaxy won five straight, with Gavin Glinton, Chris Klein, Edson Buddle, Carlos Pavon, Kyle Martino and Troy Roberts all scoring huge goals for the club to give the Galaxy a chance at postseason qualification. A draw with New York in the regular season home finale meant that Frank Yallop’s squad would need a win in Chicago on the season’s final day to reach the postseason. However, despite a spirited performance, the Fire grabbed a late goal to win 1-0 and end the Galaxy’s 2007 campaign.

The Galaxy also took fans on a wild and memorable ride in the inaugural SuperLiga tournament, which pitted four MLS teams against their Mexican counterparts. Wins over Pachuca and FC Dallas, in a thrilling 6-5 encounter, saw the Galaxy win their group and set up a semifinal matchup with D.C. United. David Beckham scored his first-ever goal for the Galaxy, beating Troy Perkins with a freekick from 25 yards out, and then set up Landon Donovan to seal the win and set up a SuperLiga Final meeting with Pachuca. A first half own goal and an injury to Beckham could have been enough to kill off LA, but the players kept fighting and grabbed an equalizer with the final kick of regulation, as Chris Klein scored with an acrobatic overhead kick, sending the match to extra time. The Galaxy had the better of the play in the extra session but could not conjure up a winner, sending the match to penalties where Pachuca eventually came out victorious, winning 4-3 to win SuperLiga.

The 2007 season will also be remembered as the final season in the long and illustrious playing career of Cobi Jones. A true Galaxy legend, Jones retired after the 2007 season as the club’s all-time leader in every statistical category for the club. The 37-year old reminded fans just how good he is with a series of sensational showings, perhaps none greater than his two-goal performance off the bench to earn LA a 2-2 draw with the Wizards after falling behind 2-0 early in the second half.
STADIUM:

Q: Where is The Home Depot Center?
A: The Home Depot Center is located off of the 405 and 91 Freeways on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills at 18400 Avalon Boulevard in Carson, California. To find driving directions from your destination, click here.

Q: Is there anything I am not allowed to bring to The Home Depot Center?
A: For a current list of prohibited items, please visit The Home Depot Center's official website. Please also note that in addition to the items prohibited by The Home Depot Center management, horns have been banned from Galaxy home games. This no-horn policy was implemented by Galaxy management for Galaxy home games in response to overwhelming fan feedback.

Q: How early do parking lots open before a Galaxy game?
A: Parking lots typically open two (2) hours before kickoff (e.g. 5:30 pm for a 7:30 pm game).

Q: What are the parking charges for Galaxy games at The Home Depot Center?
A: The standard parking charge is $15 per vehicle. A limited number of preferred parking spaces are available for $30 per car, and valet parking is available for $45 per car. Please be aware, though, that The Home Depot Center management reserves the right to change parking rates for certain events. Oversized vehicles must pay for additional spaces. Event day parking for guests with disabilities is available in Lots 10, 13, and 15 on a first-come, first-served basis. View a detailed parking map for more information. To obtain additional parking information before you arrive at an event, please call The Home Depot Center parking office at 310-630-2147 (English) or 310-630-2061 (Spanish).

Q: Where should guests with handicapped parking placards enter?
A: Guests with disabilities who have disabled parking placards and are seeking parking reserved for disabled guests may enter at any gate; if entering through Gate A, use the Pass Lane.

Q: Is tailgating permitted?
A: Tailgating is not permitted in The Home Depot Center parking lots.

Q: What time do the stadium gates open?
A: Stadium gates typically open to the public 90 minutes before kickoff (e.g. 6:00 p.m. for a 7:30 p.m. game).

Q: How many people does the stadium seat?
A: The Home Depot Center's soccer stadium can seat 27,000 fans. For a seating chart, click here »

Q: What accommodations are available for disabled fans?
A: The Home Depot Center provides access for guests with disabilities. These areas include gates, restrooms, suites, ticket windows, drinking fountains, concession counters and seating areas. Please advise us of your needs at the time you purchase your tickets so that we are better prepared to make your Galaxy game day experience an enjoyable one. For more information, please visit The Home Depot Center's official website. You also may leave a message on The Home Depot Center's Guest Services Hotline (310-630-2055) concerning any needs you have for your visit.

Q: Are there specific Galaxy supporters sections at Galaxy games?
A: Sections 137 and 138 in the Southeast corner are designated for the LA Riot Squad. The Angel City Brigade sits in General Admission (north endline) in and around Section 121, and the Galaxians sit in General Admission (north endline) in Section 122.

Q: Are there designated seating sections for visiting fans?
A: For certain matches, opposing teams may organize a specific seating section for their traveling fans; call 1-877-3GALAXY (1-877-342-5299) or 310-630-2200 to inquire about any visiting fans' sections.

Visiting fans are not prohibited from sitting in any particular section but are advised to avoid sitting in or near Sections 121, 122, 137 and 138, the designated Galaxy supporters' sections.

Q: How can I sit on the lawn below the DiamondVision (big screen)?
A: The inclined lawn (also called the berm) above the north goal is opened up as a seating section for fans when seating in the stands is sold out. For more information, contact a Galaxy representative at 1-877-3GALAXY (1-877-342-5299) or 310-630-2200 .

Q: Are seats numbered, or is seating General Admission?
A: The Galaxy offer General Admission seating in six (6) sections behind the North Endline (Sections 119-124). Tickets for these General Admission Seats are numbered for tracking purposes, but General Admission ticketholders may sit anywhere in the General Admission sections. All other sections in the stands have designated, numbered seats.

Q: Which sections have actual seats and which have bench seating?
A: The sections along the east and west sidelines (Sections 107-115 and 128-136) have individual seats; other sections of the stadium offer bench seating.

Q: How can I reserve a suite for a Galaxy game?
A: The suites located along the west sideline and south endline are typically reserved by companies and other groups on a full season basis. To inquire about availability of individual suites on a game-by-game basis, please contact a Galaxy representative at 1-877-3GALAXY (1-877-342-5299) or 310-630-2200 .

Q: How do I get in to the Stadium Club restaurant?
A: During Galaxy games, access to the American Express Stadium Club restaurant is exclusive to club seat ticketholders and suite ticketholders. Outside of match days, the American Express Stadium Club restaurant may be reserved for private functions and special events. For more information on the American Express Stadium Club, click here.

FC BAYERN MUNCHEN

ALLIANZ ARENA
Gerade einmal drei Jahre existiert die Allianz Arena. Nach dem Grünwalder Stadion und dem Olympiastadion ist der neue Fußball-Tempel im Münchner Norden die dritte Heimspielstätte in der langen Bundesliga-Geschichte des FC Bayern München und gleichzeitig auch die spektakulärste. Das modernste Stadion Europas, das knapp 70.000 Menschen Platz bietet, hat sich trotz seiner kurzen Geschichte schon längst einen Platz im kollektiven Gedächtnis der Fußball-Fans in aller Welt gesichert.

Insbesondere die Fassade beeindruckt die Besucher immer wieder aufs Neue. 2.760 rautenförmige Kissen bilden auf 66.500 m² die größte Membranhülle der Welt. Wenn zu Abendspielen das gesamte Stadion von außen in Rot erleuchtet, traut man beim Anblick seinen Augen nicht - selbst wenn es nicht der erste Besuch in der Arena ist. Der Innenraum der aus drei Rängen bestehenden Allianz Arena bietet eine außergewöhnliche Akustik, so dass sich das Stadion bei spannenden Spielen schnell in einen Hexenkessel verwandelt.

Kein Wunder, dass die Allianz Arena nahezu immer rappelvoll ist. Fast zwei Millionen Zuschauer pilgerten in der vergangenen Saison ins Stadion, jedes der 17 Bundesliga-Heimspiele war mit 69.000 Fans ausverkauft. Insgesamt sahen die 27 Pflichtspiele des FC Bayern in der Arena 1,824 Millionen Anhänger - das entspricht einem Schnitt von 67.555 pro Partie. Ein unglaublicher Rekord! Und auch in der kommenden Saison darf mit einer Auslastung an der 100-Prozent-Marke gerechnet werden: Schon kurz nach Bekanntgabe des Spielplans Anfang Juli waren mehr als die Hälfte aller Bundesliga-Begegnungen des FC Bayern in der Allianz Arena ausverkauft.

Warum die Fans in Massen nach Fröttmaning strömen? Natürlich wegen der Stars des Rekordmeisters. Doch auch vor und nach den Spielen erwartet die Anhänger ein Rundum-Sorglos-Paket. Auf 6.000 m² Gastronomiefläche wird sich um das leibliche Wohl gekümmert. Geparkt wird im größten Parkhaus Europas, das fast 10.000 Stellplätze für die Besucher bereitstellt.

Ein großes Plus der Arena ist es auch, dass sie für völlig unterschiedliche Besuchergruppen ein perfektes Angebot parat hat. 13.500 Stehplätze bieten den Fans bei Bundesliga-Heimspielen einen preiswerten Eintritt ins Stadion. 2.200 Business-Sitze und 106 unterschiedlich große Logen mit 1.374 Plätzen bereiten dem anspruchsvollen Besucher ein passendes Ambiente. Aber auch für Rollstuhlfahrer ist alles bestens organisiert: Ohne die Ebenen wechseln zu müssen können sie die Spiele auf 165 reservierten Plätzen verfolgen.

Von den inzwischen weltweit berühmten Architekten Jaques Herzog und Pierre de Meuron stammte die Idee für dieses architektonische Kunstwerk. Besonders stolz kann man dabei sein, dass die Allianz Arena von den Münchner Bürgern ausdrücklich gewollt war. Mit überwältigender Mehrheit von 65,8 Prozent stimmten die Münchner bei einem Bürgerentscheid im Herbst 2001 für den Bau. Die Grundsteinlegung erfolgte am 21. Oktober 2002. Nicht einmal drei Jahre später empfing der FC Bayern die deutsche Nationalmannschaft am 31. Mai 2005 zum Eröffnungsspiel.

Mittlerweile ist der FC Bayern alleiniger Gesellschafter der Allianz Arena. Der TSV 1860 München, mit dem das Stadion ursprünglich gemeinsam gebaut wurde, bleibt bis 30. Juni 2025 Mieter in der Allianz Arena, die laut einer Forsa-Umfrage für das Politikmagazin „Cicero" bereits nach drei Jahren geschafft hat, die beliebteste Sportstätte Deutschlands zu sein und zur Top-Ten der wichtigsten Nationaldenkmäler zählt.
History to World War II

The club was formed in 1900 when a number of football enthusiasts split from Münchner TurnVerein 1879 to escape the influence of the club's gymnasts, who did not hold a great enthusiasm for the new game – an attitude typical of the times. Almost from day one Bayern was a strong local side, but failed to have much of an impact beyond that.

For financial reasons, and to take advantage of better facilities held by other clubs, they twice entered into mergers. In 1906, they negotiated a union with Münchner Sport Club. As part of the arrangement the footballers gave up black as one of their team colours and adopted the red of their new partners, which they wear to this day. Bayern won their first title, as champions of the Bavarian league, in 1909 as a department of MSC. In 1919, shortly after World War I, Bayern left MSC, whose focus turned to field hockey and tennis, sports they are still active in today. Bayern then joined forces with Turn- und Sportverein 1890 Jahn München until leaving that club in 1923, and have remained independent ever since.

In these early days, Bavarian football was dominated by teams from Franconia, in the north of the state, notably 1. FC Nuremberg and their twin town neighbours SpVgg Fürth. In 1914, Fürth became the first team from the state to become national champions and by 1930 these two sides had accumulated eight titles between them. Bayern President Kurt Landauer, who would hold the office on and off from 1913 until well into the 1950s, adopted a strategic approach to building up the team and challenging this dominance. He hired William Townley as the side's first professional coach. The Englishman was the best coach on the market in Germany and had a championship with Karlsruher FV, in 1910, to his credit.

In 1926, the Bayern won the South German Championship, but found themselves outdone by local rivals 1860 Munich who, in 1931, became the first side from the Bavarian capital to reach the national final. Inside a year Bayern topped this by even winning the Championship in the final against Eintracht Frankfurt. The team coached by the Hungarian Richard Dombi triumphed through a penalty by Oskar "Ossi" Rohr and another goal by Franz Krumm 2-0.

But history was against Bayern. The advent of the Hitler regime saw the Jewish President resigning quickly, and the team visiting him in his Swiss exile did not help their fortunes in the new era. Dombi, also a Jew, moved on the Netherlands where he picked up the reins of SC Feijenoord in Rotterdam, and laid the foundations for the future greatness of the club. In the ensuing years the club decayed into irrelevance.

An interesting historical footnote is the fact that the last recorded football match played in the Reich was the derby between Bayern and 1860 Munich (3-2) on April 23 1945. Less than three weeks later Germany capitulated.
[edit] Transition years

After World War II, Bayern played in the Oberliga Süd which was one of five upper league conferences established in the western half of the country. Through the period from the formation of the Oberligen in 1947 to the creation of the Bundesliga, Germany's professional league, in 1963, they played as a middling side. The best they could manage in their division was third- and fourth-place finishes. They even found themselves relegated to the second tier 2nd Oberliga Süd for the 1956 season – the first and only time this has happened.

Bayern did enjoy some measure of success outside of regular league play. They captured the 1957 German Cup, just their second national trophy, on a 78th minute goal by Rudi Jobst against Fortuna Düsseldorf. October 16, 1962, marked the debut of the club on the European scene. In the opening round of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup they beat Switzerland's FC Basel (3-0), but then went out in the quarter finals against eventual finalist NK Dinamo Zagreb (1-4) and (0-0).
[edit] Early Successes in the Bundesliga

With the beginning of the 1963-64 season the first German division - which until then had been split into five regional divisions - was unified into one national league, the Bundesliga.

The start of the new league saw disappointment for Bayern. As TSV 1860 had just won the last Oberliga championship - one of the few occasions they have been ahead of Bayern in that era - it was them who joined the new elite of German football. Bayern's newly elected president Wilhelm Neudecker, the father of the modern FC Bayern hired Zlatko "Czik" Čajkovski, a former Yugoslav World Cup player in 1950 and 1954, who had also achieved fame for coaching Cologne to the 1962 championship. This coup paid off, as he formed an aspiring team with the talented young players that should later be referred to as "the axis": goal keeper Sepp Maier, Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Müller. After missing out on promotion to the Bundesliga in 1964, finishing second in the league behind Hessen Kassel, Bayern won the Regionalliga Süd (II) in 1965 and gained promotion alongside future rival Borussia Mönchengladbach.

The team, average age 22, immediately reached third place in the league in a year when a sparkling 1860 won their first and only national champions title. Even more important for Bayern was the win in the Cup final against MSV Duisburg (4-2), leading them into the Cup Winners Cup.

The team's star was the 20 year old Franz Beckenbauer who finished the season off by playing at the World Cup 1966 in England where he captured the imagination of a global audience. His efforts were rewarded with a third place in the voting for Europe's Player of the Year.

In the next season Bayern became the only third German team ever to defend the German Cup as Hamburg proved easy prey in the final and were wiped away with a record 4-0 win. The highlight was the participation in the European Cup Winners Cup in Nuremberg which the young team won in a dramatic final 1-0 against Rangers. The goal in extra time was scored by Franz "the Bull" Roth, who would win many other cup finals for Bayern.

A slowdown of progress in the 1967-68 season saw another Yugoslav, Branko Zebec taking over Čajkovski's job. He curbed the offensive style of the Bayern play and the discipline paid off when Bayern won the 1968-69 Championship with the Cup to boot: the first double in Bundesliga history. During the whole season Bayern used only 13 players.

Borussia Mönchengladbach, promoted to the Bundesliga in the same year as Bayern, emerged as serious rivals to Bayern's ascendancy. They would win the next two championships, and Bayern president Neudecker, on the recommendation of Beckenbauer, called on Udo Lattek from the coaching staff of the national team to take over the reins at Bayern. In his first year he only managed to return the Cup to the banks of Isar river, but with young and hungry reinforcements such as Paul Breitner and Uli Hoeneß he formed the team that achieved the first German Championship hat-trick in history.
[edit] 1972 - the Watershed

In the last match of the 1971-72 season Bayern sealed their return to Germany's top with a stunning 5-1 win against Schalke 04. Schalke needed a win to get the title but only ended up the best runner-up in Bundesliga history. This was also Bayern's first official match in the new Olympic Stadium. The sellout crowd of 80 000 assured the club the first gate in excess a 1 000 000 Marks.

Their home ground until then was the Municipal Stadion an der Grünwalder Strasse, colloquially referred to as the Grünwalder, or Sechz'ger ("Sixtier"), as it was owned before the war by TSV 1860. It was a pretty run down place with a maximum capacity of around 40 000, mostly standing places. Indeed it was so downmarket that Munich - the country's third largest city - had not hosted a single national team match since 1940.

The Olympic Stadium in its heyday considered one of the world's most beautiful and comfortable stadiums, meaning a major boost for Bayern's revenues, not only because of its mere capacity, but also because of the much higher number of premium-priced seats. Thus, the 1972 Olympics in Munich were a major boost for the club and assured them financial superiority at least until the 1974 World Cup with its flood of new and rebuilt stadiums in the rest of the country. Successive successful seasons on the European stage helped to fill the stadium in an era when the gate revenue was still the very major source of income. Sponsorships and TV rights were a welcome but minor addition to annual budgets that were then around five million euros. Transfer fee surpluses could also contribute, but, if achieved, meant generally a loss of quality in the team.

Beyond a quality leadership, the luck of having players of the highest quality grown from the own ranks or acquired cheaply as young talents and the fact that in those days the Italian and Spanish leagues were closed to foreign players, the perfect timing of the arrival of the new stadium was probably the most crucial point in securing Bayern a foremost position on the national and also European level. It allowed Bayern, (as opposed to rivals Mönchengladbach) to keep their major players on board, and even expand from there.

When Spain in 1973 re-opened its borders to foreign talent a giant 1.5m euro offer for Gerd Müller from FC Barcelona could be fended off and Barça had to make do with Johan Cruijff. On the other hand the national rivals from the Rhine, Mönchengladbach, had to let their superstar Günter Netzer go to Real Madrid. Soon thereafter Bayern could also hire the services of Jupp Kapellmann from Cologne's 1.FC for the then national record transfer fee of almost 400 000 euros.

1972, crowned with a championship that broke all records - most of them still intact - was year in which Bayern to became a global player. On top of this, six players from Bayern were part of the German squad, on of their most stylish of all time, that won the European Championship put just another exclamation mark to this watershed season. The defence of the title the following year with a record gap to the nearest suitor served in historic terms merely as confirmation of the new facts.

The third championship in 1974 coincided with Bayern also becoming the first German team to win the European Cup. In the last minute of extra time in the Heysel Stadium, full back Georg Schwarzenbeck surprised everyone (including himself) when he scored an equaliser against Atlético Madrid from 35 meters. The first ever replay of a European Cup final two days later saw two goals each from Uli Hoeneß and Gerd Müller, comfortably winning Bayern the cup.

Six Bayern players were also part of the German side that won the World Cup final of the same year against the Netherlands. In the following season the team's motivation on the national level was exhausted, but under coach Dettmar Cramer they still managed to score the big points. In 1975 Leeds United were defeated in the Champions Cup final in Paris when "Bull" Roth and Müller secured the defence of the cup with their late goals. Bayern then also established a new record of sorts: the only Champions Cup winner to date with a negative national league record in the same season. Within twelve months, in Glasgow, AS Saint-Étienne were beaten by another goal of Franz Roth and Bayern became the third, and to date last team to win the trophy in three consecutive years.

The Intercontinental Cup finals in December 1976 marked the end of this great era. Bayern prevailed once more. In a frosty Olympiastadion the playful Brazilians from Cruzeiro Belo Horizonte fell prey to goals by Jupp Kapellmann and Müller. A monumental defensive effort front of 117 000 held Cruzeiro to a nil-nil draw on their home turf. Within the next couple of years Beckenbauer and Müller left for the USA and Maier's career was ended by a car accident - after he had been ever-present for 13 seasons in the start line-up of the team, which was a world record. Bayern were in need of a new beginning.
[edit] Renewed Success in the 1980s

Lack of success saw president Neudecker on the verge of contracting Max Merkel as new coach - the team unanimously voted against him. This novel type of revolution saw Bayern dominating the television news in a culture where sports were an irregular addendum to them. The resulting resignation of the autocratic president Neudecker, arguably the father of the modern FC Bayern, was again the top news item, even on the highbrow Tagesschau news in an era without commercial television.

Hungarian Pal Csernai, who had been assistant to Cramer's replacement, Gyula Lorant, became head coach. In his tenure he revolutionised the style of Bayern by introducing the spatial defence, then in Munich referred to as Pal System. When Paul Breitner returned via Braunschweig from his years with Real Madrid he formed a partnership with Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. The FC Breitnigge, reinforced with Belgian goal-keeping legend Jean-Marie Pfaff, Klaus Augenthaler and striker Dieter Hoeneß (brother of Uli), brought success back to Munich. Two championships and a cup resulted from this era. Their dreams of another European Cup were thwarted in the final of Rotterdam against Aston Villa, when for a brief moment a man named Peter Withe stepped out of obscurity and scored the decider for the team from Birmingham. This was also the first official final that Bayern had lost in its history after twelve undefeated final appearances.

The era of Csernai came to an end when success no longer seemed assured and his eccentricity endangered the image of the club with their major sponsors. Udo Lattek was appointed for a second spell at the Isar, and he did not disappoint, despite initial financial issues. For hiring Danish playmaker Søren Lerby from Ajax to replace the retiring Breitner, Bayern had pledged "the last money", so president W.O. Hoffmann.

The cup victory in the 1984 final against Mönchengladbach was won in the penalty shootout, the first in the history of this competition. The young Lothar Matthäus, whose transfer to Munich for 1.2m euros was announced just weeks before, missed the first penalty for his old team.

After Rummenigge's transfer to Inter for a world record fee of more than 5m euros restored the club's finances, the team had now lost its superstars, but the reformed squad secured one more cup, as part of a double, and five championships inside six years including the second hat-trick, leading to the tenth title allowing the club to finally overtake 1. FC Nuremberg as record holders. But it became another generation to be denied continental glory when, in the 1987 Champions Cup final of Vienna, FC Porto prevailed thanks to two goals by Madjer and Juary in the last 13 minutes. The early Bayern lead through a header by Ludwig Kögl proved not enough.

Udo Lattek decided to retire afterwards and Bayern, keen on refilling their coffers, let go of quite a few players.

The new coach, Jupp Heynckes, already at his former post in Mönchengladbach successor of Lattek, started with a title-free season, after which Matthäus and Andreas Brehme went to Inter from where a generous reimbursement was received. Also Pfaff and three more players left. As Olaf Thon and Stefan Reuter were the most prominent newcomers, hopes were not high, but in the next couple of years two more championships were won. Augenthaler's retirement and the sale of Jürgen Kohler and Stefan Reuter to Juventus badly depleted the squad. Two seasons without any trophies followed, and cost Heynckes his job.

Søren Lerby rejoined the club as manager, unfortunately his tenure proved to be an absolute disaster as weak signings and ineffective tactics left Bayern facing an unthinkable relegation by the time Lerby was sacked in early 1992. Making matters worse B 1903 Copenhagen ousted Bayern from the UEFA Cup with ease with 6-2 / 0-1. Erich Ribbeck took over as coach, working with Franz Beckenbauer as director of sport, and managed to steer the club to safety.

The club wasn't keen on repeating the disaster of 1991-92, and in the next season Bayern spent 12m euros on the new players. Thomas Helmer (4m), Brazil's captain Jorginho (2.8m) and Lothar Matthäus (2m) topped the bill of a list that also included Mehmet Scholl. Calming the nerves of the thrifty president Dr. Fritz Scherer, economics professor at Munich University, was the sale of Stefan Effenberg and Brian Laudrup for 8.5m euros to Fiorentina. The rebuilt side came close to winning the title, but just missed out. Ribbeck's tactics (which were felt to be overly negative) were blamed for this, and when the following season looked to be going no differently, Beckenbauer dismissed Ribbeck and took control of the team himself. An immediate upturn in form saw Bayern take that year's title.

Kaiser Franz's status as a club legend was reinforced, and a few years later he became president, with Giovanni Trapattoni being hired as the first Italian coach in the Bundesliga. "Trap" gained the respect of the pundits, but problems (supposedly caused by Trappatoni having a poor grasp of German) saw the team in disarray. After a sixth place finish, Trappatoni returned to Italy, and Otto Rehhagel was appointed manager, with the hope that he could bring the success he had earned with Werder Bremen to a team that was by then often referred to as FC Hollywood. As the team continued to have more impact on the social pages of the tabloids than on the pitch "King Otto's" tenure was cut short due to disagreements with the board, and Beckenbauer steered the club to victory in the finals of the 1996 UEFA Cup against Girondins from Bordeaux. Zidane, Dugarry, Lizarazu and Holland's Witschge are outclassed 2-0 and even 3-1 away. Jürgen Klinsmann scored a record breaking 15 goals in this European campaign that led Bayern to their first continental trophy in 20 years, after eliminating, amongst others Benfica, Nottingham Forest and FC Barcelona.

Giovanni Trapattoni returned as coach - now with a fluent grasp of German - and rewarded the renewed trust with an immediate championship, followed by League runner-up and a cup win the next season, after which he once more returned to Italy.
[edit] Beginning of the new Millennium
Opened in 2005: the Allianz Arena, one of the world's most modern football stadiums.

The next six years would be marked by enormous success. It was the time when Ottmar Hitzfeld succeeded Udo Lattek as most successful German coach, even finding a spot for himself amongst the greatest European coaches of all time.

In his first season in 1999 Bayern won the league title, but undeniably the highlight was the unforgettable UEFA Champions League final in Barcelona. Bayern led early after a Mario Basler free kick and controlled most of the match, but Manchester United sensationally turned the match in stoppage time. Inside 90 seconds Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjær transformed an excellent performance of Bayern into the sight of uninhibited tears by Samuel Kuffour and co. Adding insult to injury, Bayern lost in a penalty shootout in the national cup final against Werder Bremen two weeks later. For Lothar Matthäus it was the second time that he missed a decisive penalty in a cup final.

In the next season Bremen saw Bayern take their revenge with a 3-0 victory in a repeat of this cup final and thus Bayern achieving its third double. In Europe the campaign of the team now dominated by goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, midfield engine Stefan Effenberg and striker Giovane Elber ended in the semifinal encounters with later winners Real Madrid (0-2, 2-1).

In 2001, after a quarter of a century of absence the European Cup eventually returned to Munich. Bayern exacted revenge against 1999 winners Manchester United in the quarter finals with two wins (1-0, 2-1). The semifinal again witnessed a revenge fixture, this time Real Madrid were the opponents: Bayern won both matches against the Castilians (1-0, 2-1). At the final in Milan, Valencia CF from Spain came off second best, like in the previous year. In a hardly memorable match all goals where achieved by spot kicks. In the end Bayern prevailed deservedly in the penalty shootout (1-1 (5-4p)). The backbone of this team was Oliver Kahn who held three penalties and whose mental fortitude was also crucial for winning the national championship just a few days earlier. In the heartbreak finish of the Bundesliga Bayern stayed ahead of Schalke through Swedish defender Patrik Andersson's goal in Hamburg in literally the last second of the season and assured the club a third consecutive title. For runners up Schalke 04, their 4½ minutes of championship celebrations proved premature.

In the next season the team was not able to win a record 4th consecutive Bundesliga title, or the cup. In the Champions League quarter-final later winners Real Madrid prevailed with 3-2 aggregate win (2-1 0-2).The saving grace was the win of the Intercontinental Cup in Tokyo against Boca Juniors of Buenos Aires through a goal of Sammy Kuffour in extra time.

National glory returned in 2002-03 when Bayern achieved its fourth double by winning the Bundesliga with the second largest gap ever to the runner up and a straight 3-1 win over 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the cup final. However, the whole season was overshadowed by Bayern's unceremonious exit from the Champions League in the first group stage, without so much as a single win in six matches. In the following season the team, enhanced with the 19m euros acquisition of Dutch striker Roy Makaay from Deportivo La Coruña, overcame at least this hurdle, but even an underperforming Real Madrid in crisis managed to eliminate the Reds in the round of the last 16. Bayern itself was not reaching any consistent form all year and even the formerly sturdy defence proved highly vulnerable. In the end the second place in the league was not descriptive of Bayern's strength but rather of inconsistent performances by the competitors. The cup elimination by second division Alemannia Aachen was symptomatic for a season in which the team showed not a single convincing performance. Even the newcomers Michael Ballack and the World Cup winning defender Lúcio could not make a difference.

At the end it was decided to that Hitzfeld should leave the club and Felix Magath, as player part of the Hamburger SV side of the late 70s to mid 80s which was so highly competitive with Bayern and also successful in Europe, was given the chance to put his mark on a new Bayern generation. In his first year in charge he steered the club to a double.

Beginning with the 2005-06 season, Bayern moved from the Olympic Stadium to the new Allianz Arena, which the club owns jointly with local rivals TSV 1860. Thus far Bayern has won all their matches there, and also the fans have received it well; almost all home matches were in front of sell-out crowds. It was again the national double that could be celebrated in the new ground at the end of the season; however, the club's performance on international level proved once more to be rather dismal: a crushing 1-4 defeat by AC Milan in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League put a quick end to their campaign. The Championship Plate and the Cup were also farewell presents for Bixente Lizarazu and Jens Jeremies, two players who ended their career after many successful years for the club. The loss of influential player Michael Ballack to Chelsea on a free transfer greatly upset Karl-Heinz Rummenigge who has moaned about Chelsea's spending power being "Not acceptable or fair." Bayern's own reputation, as Germany's least loved and most oppressively powerful club, lent his words a certain irony.

For the 2006-07 season, Bayern thinned out their squad with Michael Ballack and Zé Roberto leaving the club (the Brazilian did not get along well with Magath), José Paolo Guerrero being sold to Bundesliga rivals Hamburger SV and Bixente Lizarazu and Jens Jeremies ending their careers. German international Lukas Podolski moved to Bayern after months of speculation concerning his future after the relegation of his former club 1.FC Köln. To strengthen their defence, Daniel van Buyten was signed from Hamburger SV. Due to the club's early exits in the previous years expectations on international level were toned down by the clubs officials, also reflecting their reluctance to spend extremely high sums on "superstar"-players, despite the widespread opinion among observers that a new high profile playmaker was needed to replace Ballack. However, when Dutch star striker Ruud van Nistelrooy's ambitions to leave Manchester United became public, Uli Hoeneß expressed the intention to sign him for Bayern, ultimately failing to do so when van Nistelrooy chose to join Real Madrid. The very final day of the 2006 summer transfer period would still see Bayern making a major announcement as they picked up Dutch international Mark van Bommel who had fallen out of favor at FC Barcelona. Those calling for a real "number 10" were disappointed with this move, as van Bommel is a defensive midfield "worker" rather than a creative playmaker; nonetheless, his leadership qualities and uncompromising style of play would prove important for the team, eventually securing him the captain's armband after Oliver Kahn's retirement in 2008.

After an unconvincing first half of the season, Magath was sacked in January 2007 over fears of not qualifying for the following season's Champions League. He was replaced by Hitzfeld, returning for his second spell in charge. He was, despite his best efforts, not able to turn it around and qualify with Bayern Munich for the 2007-08 Champions League campaign, which "relegated" the Munich squad to the UEFA Cup, in which they had last played in the 1995-96 season. Especially a 0-2 home defeat against AC Milan in the Champions League and a devastating 0-2 away defeat at later Bundesliga Champions VfB Stuttgart caused the club officials to re-evaluate the team at hand that finished fourth in the Bundesliga; it was already stated well within the 2006-07 season that the following year's team would be drastically different.

Months before the season's end, Bayern started courting Werder Bremen's star forward Miroslav Klose without first talking to the club, greatly upsetting Bremen officials, who stated that they fully expected Klose to honor his contract that ran until 2008. Uli Hoeneß replied that if Bremen insisted on Klose playing another season with them, the transfer would definitely take place one year later. It was probably when it became apparent that Klose would be "the player that will join Bayern" for over a year if he stayed that Werder Bremen eventually agreed on the transfer for a purported sum of about 12 million euro.
Apart from Klose, the two most prominent signings for the 2007-08 season were Italian World Cup winner Luca Toni and French midfielder Franck Ribéry, for who a record transfer fee of 25 million euro was spent alone. Other prominent players to join the "new" Bayern for the 2007-2008 season were German internationals Marcell Jansen and Jan Schlaudraff. These five were completed by Argentinian youth international José Ernesto Sosa, Turkish international Hamit Altintop (from Schalke 04) and the returning Zé Roberto for his second spell with the Reds after one year with FC Santos.
The other side of renewing the team was a number of notable players leaving the club. Owen Hargreaves was signed by Manchester United after Bayern had refused the transfer a year earlier. Claudio Pizarro and Roque Santa Cruz left for English clubs; Pizarro joined Chelsea FC, while Santa Cruz quickly rose to prominence at Blackburn Rovers, scoring 19 goals in his first Premier League season after 31 Bundesliga goals in eight years at Bayern. Roy Makaay moved to Feyenoord Rotterdam, seeing his starting team chances dwindle with the signings of Toni and Klose. Ali Karimi left the club after two seasons, while Andreas Görlitz was loaned to Karlsruher SC. With Hasan Salihamidzic and Mehmet Scholl, two players left the club who had played many years for Bayern Munich. Salihamidzic signed for Juventus, while Scholl ended his career at the age of 36, playing in the last match of the season and scoring his last goal. He would be given a farewell match before the start of the new season, when Bayern played against FC Barcelona for the "Franz Beckenbauer Cup".

The effort made would immediately prove fruitful in a successful Bundesliga campaign that saw Bayern dominating the league and exclusively occupying the top spot of the table throughout the whole season, only being defeated twice in 34 matches and setting a new Bundesliga record for least goals conceded at 21. They also completed another double as they defeated Borussia Dortmund in the cup final.
Pre-season top transfers Ribéry and Toni would also prove to be league's most influential players. Franck Ribéry was usually named the league's most technically gifted player and often seemed virtually unstoppable by the opposing defense lines; he scored 11 goals and 8 assists and was voted Germany's Footballer of the Year at the end of his first Bundesliga season. Luca Toni became the league's top scorer with 24 goals, scoring a total of 39 goals in 46 official matches. His popularity was further increased by achieving feats like scoring four goals in a 6-0 UEFA Cup win against Greek club Aris BC, a "perfect" hat-trick in a Bundesliga match against Hannover 96 and four braces within 10 days in a UEFA Cup match, two Bundesliga games and the domestic cup final. His strike partner Klose, however, played a disappointing season overall, starting very strong with eight goals in his first six matches and only two more for the rest of the season.

Bayern's "unwanted" (as the club aspires to play in the Champions League exclusively) UEFA Cup campaign saw mixed performances against teams clearly perceived as weaker (such as Bolton Wanderers, Belenenses or Getafe CF), but they managed to reach the semifinals where they were eliminated in a humiliating 0-4 away defeat to Russian champions and eventual cup winners Zenit St. Petersburg.

The 2008–09 season sees former Bayern star and German national coach Jürgen Klinsmann taking charge as the team's new coach.