February 2025 BAYERN FAMILY
Sammy Kuffour has to take off his jacket first . It ‘ s five o ‘ clock in the evening in Accra , the sun is about to set , and even towards the end of the working day , it continues to blaze down on Ghana ‘ s capital city . Kuffour has just got home from the office , where he works in the property business . His tie will still be in place when he says goodbye to us in two and a half hours , but now even he needs to take a breather . The television on the terrace is showing football . Of course , you might think , but if you took a closer look , you ‘ d be surprised : it ‘ s women ‘ s football . Kuffour takes a sip of water from a “ weißbier ” ( wheat beer ) glass which is decorated with the FC Bayern Munich logo . The discarded jacket , which he repeatedly slips back on for photos , is perfectly finished off with a flower on the lapel and a pocket handkerchief . It ’ s a stylish touch in a prominent place : Kuffour used to wear the FC Bayern logo there , above his heart , which still beats for the German record champions . He ’ s doing well , very well , says the 42-year-old , and he must thank God and the people in Munich . The fans ” still sing my name today – it ‘ s crazy there “, he says , and he actually says it in Bavarian : ” da Wahnsinn “. The memories come in such quick-fire succession , it ‘ s impossible to interrupt him . Whenever he visited coach Hermann Gerland at home , the cooking was done by ” Frau Hermann “, as he calls the wife of the man who discovered him , and Gerland ’ s three daughters took him to Austria to show him how to ski . The born-and-bred Bavarian Klaus Augenthaler taught him how to swim (” I couldn ‘ t do it “) and how to drink weißbier (” He said , as a Bavarian you have to be able to do it “). Uli Hoeneß ‘ secretary at the time Karin Potthoff is still called ” Mama “ and the former president ” Papa “. He has never met a more honest person than Hoeneß and thinks you should always stand up when talking about him , ” out of respect .“ And Karl-Heinz Rummenigge was always berating him . ” But if someone who was such a global star told you something , you had to listen . Kalle meant well . You have to meet people like those at FC Bayern if you want to have a great career .“
A home like a museum
Entering Kuffour ‘ s house feels like being in the foyer of a luxury hotel . Wide staircases lead up and away on both sides of the expansive hallway , and there are lots of photographs on the walls : Kuffour as a player , Kuffour with Ghana ‘ s greatest statesmen , a portrait of the player . On the floor , further paintings and photos , for which
no more space could be found , lean against the walls . As a child , there was no way to tell Kuffour would one day have a home like a museum . His family lived in humble circumstances in Kumasi , Ghana ‘ s second-largest city . He was discovered while playing street football , and when he received his first call-up to Ghana ‘ s Under-17 team , his mother flogged the TV so he could buy football boots . His three sisters complained ( Sammy was the only boy ), but his mother encouraged him to continue playing . Ahead of his debut against Sierra Leone , she predicted he would get a goal , and he did indeed score to secure a 1-0 win . With his first decent bonus , he bought the family a new television . A bigger one . These days Kuffour has two living rooms , and there ‘ s a giant TV in each of them . He drops onto a sofa . Generally speaking , he watches all of Bayern ‘ s games , even when travelling and also working as a pundit on South African TV . He freaks out when they win : When the Reds won the Champions League in 2013 , ” I was the craziest person in the TV studio “. He was as happy as if he ‘ d played himself . ” It was such a big thing to win after the “ finale dahoam ” [ final at home ] in 2012 , it was the same situation with us in 1999 and 2001 . That ‘ s FC Bayern Munich , you don ‘ t give up . Mia san mia .“
Golden career : Kuffour keeps his trophies and medals in display cabinets , while photos of him on the pitch and with statesmen adorn the walls .
FC Bayern Magazine 101