Bayern Munich weigh deputy CEO succession: Max Eberl and Rouven Kasper in frame, vacancy still possible

Bayern Munich have yet to make a final decision on who will succeed Michael Diederich as deputy CEO. Two internal candidates are under consideration: Max Eberl, the club’s powerful board member for sport, and Rouven Kasper, a leading executive overseeing the club’s commercial and marketing strategy. However, keeping the role vacant remains a live option as Bayern reassess their executive structure under CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen. The decision will shape how sporting and commercial operations are aligned during a pivotal stretch of the season and ahead of the next transfer window, with clarity expected once internal evaluations are complete.

The situation stems from Bayern Munich’s ongoing executive restructuring following Michael Diederich’s departure from the deputy CEO position. Club leadership is reviewing whether to redistribute responsibilities among existing board members or appoint a direct successor. Max Eberl, appointed in 2024 as board member for sport, and Rouven Kasper, a senior executive driving the club’s commercial growth, are the two names being seriously evaluated. Retaining a leaner setup and leaving the deputy CEO role empty is also being examined to streamline decision-making under CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen.

No decision has been made yet on who will replace Michael Diederich as deputy CEO between Max Eberl and Rouven Kasper. It's also a possibility that the role simply remains vacant [@_kochmaximilian]

@iMiaSanMia

Impact Analysis

The outcome of Bayern’s deputy CEO deliberation will reverberate across both operational and sporting fronts. An appointment of Max Eberl would consolidate authority, potentially accelerating decision-making in areas where sporting strategy intersects with finance and executive governance. That could mean tighter alignment on squad planning, contract renewals, and academy-to-first-team pathways, with fewer bottlenecks and faster execution. The trade-off is concentration of power, which demands robust checks and balances at board level to maintain institutional stability.

If Rouven Kasper is chosen, Bayern would signal a prioritization of commercial innovation and global brand expansion at a moment when broadcast, sponsorship, and digital monetization are evolving. Strengthening the commercial pillar could fund long-term sporting sustainability without compromising financial prudence, mirroring best practices across Europe’s elite clubs.

Leaving the role vacant would endorse a flatter hierarchy. This could streamline lines of reporting to CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen and encourage cross-functional collaboration, particularly between sport, finance, and marketing. Yet it risks overloading key executives during a high-stakes campaign. In all scenarios, the decisive factor is execution: Bayern’s ability to maintain speed, clarity, and accountability in a season that requires agility in transfer strategy, contract management, and continental ambitions.

Reaction

Fan conversation is energetic and split, with a clear chorus favoring Max Eberl taking on greater authority. Several supporters argue that a football club should “be run by a football person,” pointing to Eberl’s strong start in Munich and his decisive style as reasons to elevate him. Some even suggest reverting Jan-Christian Dreesen to a CFO-style remit and handing broader reins to Eberl, reflecting a desire for sharper sporting leadership at the very top.

Others are wary of over-centralizing power, countering that Eberl’s focus should remain on transfers and squad building to keep momentum in a season stacked with Bundesliga and Champions League targets. There’s also a pragmatic strand calling for Kasper, citing his commercial expertise and the club’s need to keep strengthening revenue streams. As with any viral update, off-topic replies and humor surface, but the core sentiment boils down to two camps: those who want Eberl’s authority formalized for faster sporting execution, and those who prefer a balanced structure with strong commercial stewardship or even a leaner model with the deputy CEO post left unfilled.

Social reactions

The media are absolute clowns btw. They’ve been telling us for months that Eberl is close to getting fired and now all of a sudden they want to make him deputy CEO??? Don’t believe anything you hear from any of these clowns without double checking…

FCBJoker02 (@FcbJoker02)

Just because he showed Coman the door, Eberl deserves the role

Maxza #RejectedSZN 🇩🇪🇮🇹 (@MaxzaFCB)

Pls make Eberl the ceo so that he stop handling transfers

Olamide (@olatemi_olamide)

Prediction

Three credible pathways emerge. First, Eberl is elevated to deputy CEO, becoming the clear No. 2 to Jan-Christian Dreesen. That would likely be accompanied by a refined delegation model where key operational leads report through Eberl on sport-adjacent decisions, compressing timelines on renewals, sales, and targeted acquisitions. Expect a more assertive stance in the summer market, with early groundwork translating into quick closures.

Second, Kasper takes the role, signaling a commercial-first evolution: deeper partnerships, new digital products, and international brand pushes. Sporting operations would remain under Eberl, but with reinforced commercial scaffolding to underwrite long-term squad investment without breaching financial guardrails.

Third, the position stays vacant, with Bayern adopting a matrix structure. In this scenario, decision rights are clarified rather than centralized, encouraging cross-department agility. This could be announced alongside an internal governance update and KPIs to assure stakeholders. Timelines suggest clarity before the next strategic window—well ahead of major summer planning—so that whichever model is chosen can be stress-tested during the run-in and pre-season.

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Conclusion

Bayern Munich are calibrating governance for high performance, not change for change’s sake. Whether through elevating Max Eberl, empowering Rouven Kasper, or streamlining around CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen with no deputy, the club’s priority is faster, cleaner decision-making that sustains domestic dominance and maximizes European competitiveness. Each option carries distinct benefits: Eberl’s football-first alignment, Kasper’s commercial acceleration, or a leaner structure that keeps communication lines short.

What matters next is clarity and cadence. The chosen model must protect Bayern’s trademark stability while enabling the ruthlessness required at the elite level—particularly in contract strategy, recruitment, and commercial innovation. Expect a measured but timely resolution, with the rationale communicated as part of a broader strategic narrative. Bayern understand that organizational architecture is competitive advantage; the forthcoming decision will be designed to ensure that advantage is unmistakably theirs.