Article by Aurelian Botezatu – published Tuesday, August 12, 2025, 09:28 / Updated Tuesday, August 12, 2025 09:29
Former executive director of BayernKarl-Heinz Rummenigge (69 years old), accuses the increasing power that their players and impressions have.
The big problem in world football at this time, according to Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, is the explosion of players' salaries. In an interview with Kicker Sportmagazin, Bayern's former executive director warned over the increasing power of players and their agents. He admitted that his former club also had and suffered from this phenomenon.
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge criticizes Christian wages
“The biggest problem (no – in world football) is represented by the salary increases. And we, the ones from FC Bayern, sometimes pay too high salaries for what is offered to us,” said the former German international, today 69 years old.
The best paid player of the German champion, Harry Kane (31 years old), receives around 24 million euros annually. And in order to be able to connect to the club for a long time, Bayern recently raised Jamal Musiala (22 years old) at the same level as the English goalscorer!
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge: “Otherwise the whole system will be over the head”
The “veterans” Manuel Neuer (39 years old) and Joshua Kimmich (30 years old) also exceed the threshold of 20 million euros per season, after having extended their contracts in the spring. And at other clubs it is even worse!
“There is almost one direction: up. Not just at FC Bayern, but in general. Agents and players need to know where their limits are. These limits should not be changed, otherwise the whole system will be over the head ”, believes Rummenigge, who in his career has played in Bayern, Inter Milan anda Geneva.
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge praises the new policy implemented by PSG
Rummenigge believes that clubs do not have to accept all the requests of the players: “You have to have the power to say and no. Bayern generally has done well with this approach. If a player feels that he has to behave in inconsistency with what looks on the field.”
That is why, Rummenigge praises the policy that PSG now leads, who just took out Gianluigi Donnarumma because he has financial claims that the club does not consider acceptable: “The club has said goodbye to the expensive stars (no – Messi, Neymar, Mbappe) and won the Champions League. So you can achieve sports success and with smart and sustainable investments ”.
