Players of Bayern Munich attend training sessions at Saebener Strasse training ground in Munich, Germany, March 12, 2020. /VCG
Bayern Munich of Germany's Bundesliga on Sunday announced that the club's first team will restart training practice from Monday. Moreover, the sessions will take place without any public presence. Bayern suggested their fans "continue to follow the instructions of the authorities" and not come to the training ground.
Before Bayern, VfL Wolfsburg, also of the Bundesliga, resumed training but did it in four groups spread over different time periods at the gym. According to Kicker, Bayern will adopt the same method and also not provide meals for players at the training ground.
Herbert Hainer, president and chairman of the Supervisory Board of Byaern Munich. /VCG
Bayern's president Herbert Hainer gave an interview with members' magazine "51" about the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hainer was selected for this role six months ago. "No one saw this situation coming," said Hainer. "Now it's a matter of steering FC Bayern through this difficult time together with all those responsible and the club's employees." The Bayern president stressed that every member of the society should play their part for the benefit of the community.
"Right at the beginning of the crisis, I appealed to all our staff, members and fans to please behave sensibly and follow the rules and regulations of politicians and experts. That is currently the top priority. We all want to get back to our usual lives as soon as possible, and of course we all want to gather again in football stadiums, basketball halls and on other sports fields in good health," said Hainer.
Logo of Bayern Munich. /VCG
Hainer assured Bayern fans that the club are doing everything they can so Bayern will remain "the club we all love so much." "There will be a time after the corona crisis. And there FC Bayern will again delight people with great sport and hopefully many titles."
Thanks to the spread of the virus all over Europe, football competitions, both at club and national levels were shut down. That led to a reduction in revenues and, as a result, many clubs are struggling financially.
Hainer admitted that even Bayern face "a major financial challenge." "But our club is in an excellent position. We work day after day to ensure that FC Bayern can navigate through this phase without any major damage. Despite this immense task, we're looking to the future with confidence."