MUNICH (AP) — Bayern Munich announced club-record financial and membership figures at its annual general meeting on Sunday, when members also celebrated the team’s record 15-game winning start to the season.
Bayern president Herbert Hainer said the club gained 50,000 new members in the last year, taking its total to 432,500, “more than any other club in the world,” before the club’s chief executive, Jan-Christian Dreesen, announced turnover for the 2024-25 financial year had risen to a record 978.3 million euros ($1,133 million), up 2.8% from the previous year.
Dreesen said Bayern’s net profit for the year was 27.1 million euros ($31.5 million).
“Despite turbulent times and a transfer market that has reached new heights, we have once again achieved record revenues and posted solid profits. This demonstrates the extraordinary strength and substance of our club,” Dreesen said. “We are not volatile. FC Bayern is stable.”
Bayern had a relatively quiet offseason for transfers with Luis Díaz’ arrival from Liverpool for a reported 67.5 million euros plus bonuses as the biggest expense.
“We don’t spend more than we earn,” Dreesen said. “This attitude is part of our philosophy and will continue to guide us in the years to come.”
Also Sunday, members re-elected the 71-year-old Hainer for another term as president. The former Adidas CEO succeeded Uli Hoeneß as president in 2019.
Bayern started the season with 15 wins across all competitions, including the German Supercup, a record start among Europe’s big five leagues.
The team next faces European champion Paris Saint-Germain away in the Champions League on Tuesday.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Bayern's Nicolas Jackson, third from left, celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayern Munich and Bayern Leverkusen in Munich, Germany, Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The packed race for California governor has left many Democrats in the state wrestling with who to vote for in the race's closing days.
Though voting began in early May ahead of the June 2 primary, Democrats have been returning their ballots at a slower pace than normal after a chaotic campaign full of surprises. Unlike recent races for governor, there's been no clear front-runner or political superstar (think Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger or Democrat Jerry Brown).
“I’m kind of pinching my nose and voting this go-around rather than being excited,” said Colin Culver, a 21-year-old San Diego resident who ultimately voted for Tom Steyer, a billionaire former hedge fund manager turned climate activist.
Democrats have been particularly perplexed given the state's top-two primary system, which places all candidates on a single ballot regardless of party. There are roughly 60 candidates vying to succeed termed-out Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom. They include six major Democrats and just two prominent Republicans.
With the large number of Democrats running, party leaders feared months ago that the two leading Republicans, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and conservative commentator Steve Hilton, could advance, locking out Democrats. That scenario has grown less likely after former Rep. Eric Swalwell dropped out of the race after being accused of sexual assault, but the scandal further rattled anxious Democrats. President Donald Trump endorsed Hilton in April, which may have coalesced GOP support behind him and decreased the odds of a Republican upset in a state that hasn’t had a Republican governor since 2011.
But the fear among voters remains. Some Democrats are waiting to cast their ballots to see if one candidate breaks away from the pack in the final days, relying on polling to help make their decision. Others have struggled to make up their minds, reluctantly choosing a candidate after being unimpressed with the field.
Even Democrats who typically have a high turnout in primary elections — often older, white voters — have been slow to drop off their ballots, said Paul Mitchell, a Democratic strategist tracking ballot returns.
“My joke is: Call your Democratic parents and tell them to turn in their ballot,” he said. “They are holding onto the ballot because they have seen this kind of topsy-turvy governor’s race. They’re waiting to make sure they’re making the right choice.”
About 10% of the state's roughly 23 million voters had voted as of Wednesday, according to Mitchell's tracker. That includes about 15% of Republicans, 10% of Democrats and 7% of voters registered with no or another party. That breakdown is unusual because Democrats in recent years have tended to vote early while many Republicans wait until Election Day.
Former state attorney general and federal Health Secretary Xavier Becerra and Steyer are among the top Democrats voters are weighing.
A poll conducted in mid-May by the Public Policy Institute of California found that Becerra and Hilton each have the support of about 2 in 10 likely California primary voters. Steyer, Bianco and former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter each drew the support of between 10% and 15% of likely voters in the survey. No other candidates were polling in double digits.
Support for Becerra has increased from only 5% in a PPIC poll conducted in late March and early April, when Swalwell was still in the race.
Some voters aren't relying on the polls to make their choice. That includes San Francisco native Mary O’Neal, who voted for former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa because she liked his record leading the city from 2005 to 2013. Although he's been on the debate stages, he's failed to generate significant support.
Fresno native Alexa Duran, 22, a recent graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, said she’s leaning toward Becerra, despite her concerns about his refusal as attorney general to investigate the killing of a Latino man by an officer in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2020.
“I know he has tons of political experience, but I’m just not sure if he’s the right candidate,” Duran said.
Amber Larson, 41, a judicial analyst for the state living in Chico, likes Ramsey Robinson, a socialist candidate. But casting her ballot for him would be a “waste” because of his slim odds, she said.
She doesn't want to support a longtime politician — Becerra — and she's skeptical of billionaires — Steyer.
“Are we at a point where only a billionaire can beat an establishment, career politician?” Larson said, referencing Steyer spending millions to largely self-fund his campaign.
She planned to go with Steyer anyway because she likes his energy affordability plans and since he's one of the leading candidates.
“I don’t want to throw my vote away,” she said.
Associated Press journalists Jaimie Ding in Los Angeles and Terry Chea in San Francisco contributed to this report.
Katie Porter raises her hand during a California gubernatorial debate hosted by CBS Bay Area and the San Francisco Examiner in San Francisco, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez, Pool)
Tom Steyer speaks during a California gubernatorial debate hosted by CBS Bay Area and the San Francisco Examiner in San Francisco, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez, Pool)
