Founding of FC Bayern Munich in 1900

Lore & Background

Founded in 1946, Bayern's basketball section had early success in the 1950s and 1960s, before mostly disappearing from the national first level in the following three decades. The team had a resurgence in 2010s and has since been among Germany's best teams, as well as a EuroLeague regular. Bayern plays its domestic home games at BMW Park, which was opened in 1972, while international games are played at the SAP Garden, which opened in 2024. FC Bayern Munich Basketball also has a reserve team that plays in German third-tier level ProB.

In Their Own Story

The air inside the Gasteig was thick with cigar smoke and the friction of unspoken grievances. Franz John didn't just speak; he slammed his hand on the scarred wooden table, the sound cutting through the murmur like a starting whistle. 'We will not wait for permission to play the game that matters,' he declared, his voice echoing against the stone walls as he locked eyes with the ten men before him. Outside, Munich's winter bit at the windows, but inside, a different kind of fire had been lit. They didn't sign a contract; they signed a pact in ink that would outlast empires and reshape German sport. There were no floodlights to cut the darkness, no roaring crowds to cheer their names—just eleven men, a shared defiance, and the first spark of red and white.

Reader's Guide

The club's home arena for domestic games is BMW Park, seating 6,700 spectators. For EuroLeague games, the team plays at SAP Garden, which seats 12,500 spectators. The club has won seven German League titles (1953–54, 1954–55, 2013–14, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2023–24, 2024–25) and five German Cups (1968, 2018, 2021, 2023, 2024).

Did You Know?

• Bayern Munich's basketball section was founded in 1946 after a former football player started the team.
• The club drew 40,000 fans to an open-air test game against Lancia Bolzano in 1956.
• Bayern was one of the founding members of the Basketball Bundesliga in 1966.
• The club won its first national title in 60 years in 2014, beating Alba Berlin 3–1 in the Finals.