Hoeneß: Al-Saibari caught my attention, and I apologised to Eberl for my comments | Goal.com

Published on 30 Jul 2026 | Reading time: 2 minutes

Uli Hoeness has admitted he got it wrong. Bayern Munich's honorary president conceded that his earlier remarks about the future of sporting director Max Eberl were a mistake, and confirmed he apologised to him in person.

Ahead of the German Cup final against Stuttgart, Hoeness had put Eberl's chances of staying at "60 to 40", a comment widely read as casting doubt over the sporting director's future at the Bavarian giants. Eberl's contract runs until the summer of 2027.

Turkish warnings: Salah could become a burden on Besiktas, and the fans will show him no mercy

FIFA in an official statement: Embolo's sending-off was a correction of justice, and it was approved by the IFAB

Speaking to German network "SPORT1" on Thursday, Hoeness explained that he had not expected his "Der Spiegel" interview to run straight before the final.

"First of all, I have to say that I was extremely angry with myself," he said, adding that he had believed his remarks would be published a week later. He called that belief "naive".

He continued: "Clearly they liked my remarks a great deal, so they were already published on the Saturday morning. As a result, I did not handle things with Max in the appropriate manner before the Cup match, and I also apologised to him."

Where does that leave Eberl now? Asked about his chances of staying, Hoeness replied: "At the present time, I think they are 100%."

Bayern's success in the summer transfer market for the second season running is one reason for Hoeness's satisfaction with Eberl.

Working alongside fellow sporting director Christoph Freund, Eberl landed Nathaniel Brown and Ismail Saibari, two players the club felt it needed. The supervisory board approved both deals "with great pleasure".

Moroccan star Saibari had caught Hoeness's eye during the World Cup. Brown, who arrived from Eintracht Frankfurt, he described as a "huge talent". He added: "He had offers from England, but he never gave them any thought. He was extremely keen to move to Bayern Munich. I love players like that."

The club's finances also drew praise, with Hoeness pointing to the revenues from the sales of Noel Aseko, Daniel Peretz, Alexander Nübel and Jonah Kusi-Asare.

Read the original news