Uli Hoeness claims he would “rip my a** open for Bayern Munich” ahead of his departure this month.
The club supremo has spent 49 years with the Bavarian giants as a player, general manager and president.
But ahead of his exit on November 15, Hoeness has reflected on his time at the club, conceding his biggest regret is serving time in prison for tax evasion in 2014.
“My biggest mistake was my taxation,” Hoeness told Bayern’s official club magazine, 51. “I deeply regret it and criticism of it is highly justified.
“In hard times, I remember the fates of some of the people that I saw in there. One day, somebody sat in my cell, even though he was free to go. He said he did not know what to do. At some point, he was just sitting in a taxi with nowhere to go. Experiences like that are not lost on me.
“I knew that I would have to go to prison (after the Champions League victory over Borussia Dortmund). Franck Ribery cried and the fans sang my name. That moved me beyond belief.
“Some of the letters I got in prison were so touching that I cried like a baby in my cell.”
Hoeness then summarised his relationship with Bayern with an unorthodox metaphor and believes the fans appreciate everything he has given them.
“When I look out the window in the morning, I’m happy with my 49 years at Bayern,” he added. “I have not regretted a single day and I owe everything to this club.
“Not even as an employee but I’ve always felt like the number one fan. I feel nothing but gratitude.
“I can only smile about [the criticism]. I think the fans know that, deep down, I have always ripped open my a** and given everything for them.”
