It is a title, ultimately as irrelevant (but trendsetting) as the Supercup. Every year at Bayern Munich, the so-called “winners of pre-season” are crowned. Who triumphed over the past five years? And what happened next for them?2021: Stanisic causes a stir for the first timeAfter the summer’s major tournaments, several key Bayern Munich players missed the start of pre-season in 2021, as usual. That opened the door for two talents to step into the spotlight under new coach Julian Nagelsmann: Josip Stanisic and Tanguy Nianzou.Then 21 and a product of the club’s academy, Stanisic had already made his first-team debut the previous season. He then benefited from an injury to Benjamin Pavard and even started at right-back in the Bundesliga opener against Borussia Mönchengladbach. Stanisic made more appearances in the weeks that followed, but Pavard took back his regular place once he had recovered. Stanisic initially stayed in the rotation before returning to Munich in 2023/24 with a completely different standing after a loan spell at Bayer Leverkusen.Nianzou had joined from Paris Saint-Germain in 2020 as one of the most promising defensive talents in world football. After a debut season disrupted by injuries and suspensions, the summer of 2021 looked like his moment. But the strong pre-season turned out to be only a brief flash in the pan. Nianzou moved to Sevilla FC in 2023, and since this summer he has been playing for Lille OSC.IMAGO2022: Sabitzer and Gravenberch only burn brightly for a short time”If you want, you can call him the winner of pre-season,” said Nagelsmann in August 2022, and by “him” he meant Marcel Sabitzer. The Austrian midfielder had disappointed in his first season at Bayern Munich and was already seen as a candidate for sale. But in the 2022 pre-season he suddenly hit form in the absence of the injured Leon Goretzka. Sabitzer’s revival did not last. He quickly faded into the background, joined Manchester United on loan in winter and then moved permanently to Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2023.Nor was Sabitzer the only midfielder to catch the eye in the summer of 2022. New signing Ryan Gravenberch also showed strong early form. Like Sabitzer, the then 19-year-old Dutchman benefited from Goretzka’s injury. In the end, though, Goretzka “outlasted” not only Sabitzer but Gravenberch as well. Frustrated by too few opportunities, he left after just one season in Munich for Liverpool FC, where he developed into a top player.Club FriendliesBayern MunichFCB15 Aug 202621:30RB LeipzigRBLMeanwhile, Pavard’s future was up for debate at Bayern Munich in the summer of 2022. The bosses were reportedly considering a sale, but Nagelsmann argued for him to stay. At right-back, the Frenchman beat new signing Noussair Mazraoui to a starting place and had a good season. The following summer, by then with Thomas Tuchel in charge, Pavard himself pushed for a move. In the end, he got it and joined Inter Milan.IMAGO2023: Laimer instead of a “holding six” and Tel as Kane stand-inThe summer of 2023 revolved around the Harry Kane saga and Thomas Tuchel’s desire for a “holding six”. Away from those two storylines, two winners of pre-season emerged.First came Mathys Tel. While Munich waited for Kane to sign and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting recovered from his knee joint problems, the then 18-year-old Frenchman became the first-choice striker in pre-season. Once Kane arrived, Tel naturally dropped into the background. In the following season, though, he established himself as a very prolific joker.At the same time, Tuchel was pushing hard for the signing of a “holding six”, while free transfer arrival Konrad Laimer kept producing one strong friendly display after another. “The discussion about the six does not arise for me at all, because I believe Laimer is a transfer from whom we will get very, very, very much enjoyment,” said club patron Uli Hoeneß. In the following season, Laimer played plenty of minutes in defensive midfield as an important rotation player before fighting his way into a starting spot as a flexible full-back.Also in the summer of 2023, a home-grown talent made a splash: Frans Krätzig. Although he had never been regarded as a so-called super talent, Tuchel surprisingly took him on the Asia tour. The 20-year-old left-back impressed in his appearances and scored a wonder goal against Liverpool FC. But he was denied the really major breakthrough. After spells at Austria Vienna, VfB Stuttgart and 1. FC Heidenheim, Krätzig now plays for RB Salzburg.IMAGO2024: Serge Gnabry? A starter instead of a candidate for sale In 2024, Irankunda took on Krätzig’s role from the previous year. The then 18-year-old Australian scored goals, did somersaults and was already being compared to Xherdan Shaqiri. But it would not be enough for a competitive appearance in the following season. He is currently on the verge of a €15 million move from Watford FC to Sporting Lisbon, with half of the fee set to flow to Munich thanks to a sell-on clause.Two long-serving key players could also call themselves “winners of pre-season 2024”: Joshua Kimmich and Serge Gnabry. During his difficult time under Tuchel, Kimmich had at times been considered a candidate for sale. New coach Vincent Kompany wanted no part of that and immediately restored him as the undisputed leader in midfield. It is a role Kimmich still fills to this day.For Kimmich’s best man Gnabry, the summer of 2024 went just as well. Plagued by numerous injuries, he had missed large parts of the previous season and ultimately Euro 2024 on home soil as well. But at the start of pre-season he looked in top shape and then made the most of his head start over team-mates who had been on holiday longer. Talk of a departure, which had previously been mooted, soon vanished, and Gnabry operated as a starter in the early weeks under Kompany.Elsewhere, Tel put together a second strong pre-season in a row. This time, though, he did not make use of his head start. After a sobering first half of the season without making any impact, Tel left for Tottenham Hotspur in January 2025.IMAGO2025: Gnabry does it again – Karl hits top formLike the previous year, Gnabry was again among the big winners of pre-season. His momentum from the summer of 2024 had faded over the course of the season before he hit top form again 12 months later. Because Jamal Musiala was out for a long time with his serious fibula and ankle injury and Thomas Müller was not given a new contract, Gnabry initially had his starting place at No 10 secured. In spring 2026, an adductor injury slowed him down, which also cost him participation at the World Cup.Then there was Goretzka. Despite effectively having already been written off, he suddenly had serious hopes of a starting place again after a strong pre-season, but then lost the duel with Aleksandar Pavlovic and ultimately left on a free transfer. He still has no new club.Seventeen-year-old Lennart Karl surged forward and laid the foundation for his breakthrough in the months that followed. Stanisic also became a winner of pre-season for the second time after 2021. This time it had lasting consequences: across the whole season, he was part of the extended core of regular starters.IMAGO2026: Bischof as the leader of the young starsTom Bischof has been the most eye-catching player of this year’s pre-season so far. At 21, he was the only established outfield player to start training on time and fit. At that point, all his team-mates were either still on special World Cup leave or dealing with various knocks. That also applied to two-time pre-season winner Gnabry, who is currently working on his comeback and therefore missed out on his personal “treble”. Meanwhile, Bischof is emerging as the leader of an improved youth selection and is now eyeing the starting place of his mate Pavlovic. Among the club’s own talents, two in particular have impressed: 16-year-old striker Bastian Assomo (two goals in four friendlies) and lively left winger Maycon Cardozo. Will one of the two be the next Lennart Karl?Next up is Saturday’s friendly against RB Leipzig, followed by the dress rehearsal against 1. FC Heidenheim on 18 August. The first competitive match of the season comes on the 22nd, the Supercup against Borussia Dortmund.
