Former 1860 player becomes youth coach at FC Bayern

Lars Bender Burghausen 2026

Former Germany international Lars Bender is set to become the new coach of FC Bayern Munich's U17 side. The German record champions announced the appointment on Friday.

Bender succeeds Leonard Haas at Bayern's training ground, as Haas steps up to coach the U19s. Bender said: "It is a privilege to take on this role at FC Bayern. From the outset, the talks have been very positive. I am looking forward to this challenge and the opportunity to continue developing here."

Bender spent the majority of his playing career at Bayer Leverkusen, making more than 300 Bundesliga appearances. He also earned 19 caps for Germany.

An intriguing twist is that the Rosenheim native began his career in the youth setup of Bayern's cross-town rivals 1860 Munich and turned professional there in 2006 before moving to Leverkusen three years later.

Lars Bender joins FC Bayern from Wacker Burghausen.

After hanging up his boots, Bender moved into coaching, working within the DFB's youth set-up and at SpVgg Unterhaching, among other posts. He has been in charge at Regionalliga side Wacker Burghausen since January 2025. Wacker finished last season in ninth place, and Bender announced several weeks ago that he would be leaving Burghausen in the summer.

FC Bayern is delighted to welcome the new face to the campus. "He has a wealth of experience as a player and has already worked as a coach in both youth development and the senior team," said Michael Wiesinger, Head of Sport and Youth Development. "On top of that, he's a really good bloke; we could sense his enthusiasm for this role right from our first meeting with him."