"People do talk about money!" Bayern's legendary striker now lives on the breadline

Carlotta Henggeler

28.1.2025

He became champion with Bayern Munich and scored one of the most important goals in BVB's history. He earned a lot - and lost everything. Today, Jürgen Wegmann (60) lives on a meagre disability pension.

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  • Jürgen Wegmann, former Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund football legend, lives on a disability pension of 1,300 euros after the end of his career due to financial losses and health problems.
  • In the Sat.1 documentary "Über Geld spricht man doch!", Wegmann reveals that a torn cruciate ligament in 1994 heralded the end of his career, while financial losses due to divorce and bad decisions ruined him financially.
  • The contrast with other prominent guests on the show, such as Anne-Sophie Briest, who found her way back to prosperity after difficult phases, illustrates Wegmann's modest financial situation and limited scope for luxury.

He was the "Cobra". He could score goals on the pitch like few others. He spent ten years in the Bundesliga, playing for Dortmund, Schalke and Bayern, who brought him in as their "king transfer" in 1987.

He scored the "Goal of the Year" and became champion. "I'm more venomous than the most venomous snake," he said. He earned "an average of 300,000 marks a year" for ten years.

The fame remained, the money disappeared. On "Talking about money!" (Sat.1), Jürgen Wegmann confessed: "My monthly goal? Hope!"

The cruciate ligament rupture was the beginning of the end

Jürgen Wegmann will never forget two days in his life; even today, almost 30 years later, he can still comment on the events as if they were happening live. On May 19, 1986, he scored BVB's 3:1 goal against Fortuna Köln at the last second ("The referee didn't even blow the whistle"). He thus saved BVB from relegation from the Bundesliga and laid the foundation for the "golden 90s". His goal is considered one of the most important in the club's history.

Then, on January 20, 1994, when his great career was already on the downswing, he tore a cruciate ligament in training - the beginning of the end of his career. He still suffers from the late effects today, which also affect him professionally: Jürgen Wegmann lives on a 1300 euro disability pension. The legend is a low earner. It's hard to live on fame alone. He spent a lot of money on a divorce, but most of it he simply "blew it", as he freely admits.

Jürgen Wegmann is at the bottom, Anne-Sophie Briest at the top

Even the temporary jobs that Dortmund and Bayern gave him could not be continued for health reasons. Where he is now, Anne-Sophie Briest was also at the bottom. Her partner, the father of her daughter Faye Montana (21), fell ill with cancer in the mid-2000s (and died in 2010), her income fell to zero - Briest was dependent on social welfare.

Today she is "a millionaire in terms of goodwill and real estate". She founded two daycare centers in her hometown of Berlin and then a catering company for daycare centers and schools. She owns three rental apartments and is saving up for a fourth. She took part in "Talking about money" because: "I think it's important to talk about money. I wanted to show that you can work yourself out of difficult situations and create something."

"I believe," says the former actress with conviction, "that even today you can achieve something with hard work." It certainly looks that way: Briest is a top earner and has 14,330 euros per month.

Maren Gilzer: "The days when credit cards were red-hot are over"

Maren Gilzer (64) and Gitta Saxx (60) commute between Wegmann and Briest. Gilzer became famous in the 90s as the "letter fairy" on the show "Wheel of Fortune", turning over signs and revealing letters in almost 3,000 broadcasts. Saxx mainly revealed herself. She was voted "Playmate of the Year" in 1988 and "Playmate of the Century" in 2000. Both are considered high earners with a monthly budget of 5,000 euros.

Gilzer's career path was rather steady, even if she says in retrospect: "The days when the credit cards were glowing are over." Just like her acting career. She is now "more into real estate", drives a convertible and is married for the second time. She currently has extraordinary expenses.

She and her husband Harry have moved house. The cost of furnishing their new home is driving their finances into the red. In the end, they are almost 800 euros short. But she can remain calm: The sale of her former home should bring in around 1.5 million. "Then I won't have to scrimp any more."

A dubious guru drove Gitta Saxx to ruin

Gitta Saxx, real name Gitta Ilona Sack, earned "easily between 20 and 30,000 marks a month in her heyday as a model." That was over 20 years ago, and the money is gone. Firstly, "I spent it with my hands full" on travel, cars, outfits and lifestyle. Secondly, she sat on a dubious guru who emotionally controlled her for eight years. He relieved her of "a high six-figure sum", says Saxx in the SAT.1 documentary. When she finally broke up, she was broke - personal bankruptcy in 2016.

But Gitta Saxx is also a "stand-up smoker". She works as a DJane and is working as a model again, earning four-figure sums for each job. She commutes between Berlin and Mallorca and looks after herself and keeps fit. "My body is my capital", she knows and accepts the expenses "for the maintenance of this body, which is still in the public eye".

Anne-Sophie Briest saves as much in one month as Jürgen Wegmann receives in five

None of the four celebrities in the third episode of "We don't talk about money" live lavishly. Nevertheless, Wegmann can probably only dream of Gilzer's luxury. "For me, luxury means independence, doing things that I enjoy". She can afford to spend 600 euros at the garden center, Wegmann can afford a currywurst for a tenner.

But the man doesn't complain. "What should I talk about money? I don't have any." And anyway, when it comes to money, just like in football back then, it's all about one thing: "The attitude. You have to find the right attitude to deal with it."

Nevertheless, the differences are of course significant. Briest saves more than 6,300 euros in a comparable month (that's almost five times Wegmann's monthly budget) and puts it into a fixed-term deposit account - for the next rental apartment. Wegmann has 27.75 euros left over. "Hallelujah," he says. Gitta Saxx ends up with almost 800 euros left over. "My piggy bank is happy."


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