Why Bayern Munich’s Sadio Mané doesn’t want luxury cars, diamond watches or mansions
The forward finished a six-year spell at Liverpool to sign for Bayern Munich, but the Senegalese striker is not the stereotypical millionaire star.
Bayern Munich recently acquired the services of Senegalese striker Sadio Mané (30), who after having won everything in his six seasons at Liverpool was looking for a new challenge, one he’s found at the Bavarian club, with whom he has signed for three seasons. It’s a project equal to his own ambition.
But if there is one thing that characterises the striker, it’s not getting carried away by success, fame or money as so often happens to other stars in the world of sports and entertainment, who spend significant chunks of their earnings on luxury goods and extravagant lifestyles. That’s very much not the case with Mané, who knows full well what he’s focused on.
Mané on the value of material goods
“Why would I want ten Ferraris, 20 diamond watches or two airplanes? What are these objects going to do for me and for the world? I went hungry and had to work in the fields; I survived difficult times, I played football barefoot, I had no education or many other things but today, with what I earn thanks to football, I can help my people”, explained the striker to the Ghanaian outlet nsemwoha.com in 2019.
And that is precisely what he has done in recent years. Mané was born in Bambali, Sédhiou (Senegal), a small town of 2,000 inhabitants, and to say that the footballer grew up in poverty would be an understatement. It’s a fishing village, on the banks of the Casamance River, more than seven hours from the capital. There are no paved roads. Cows and goats roam among the people, and many women gave birth in their own homes because the town did not have a hospital, while Mané's own father died from being unable to receive adequate medical care. Mané solved the problem by building a hospital.
But he’s also built a school, given each student a laptop, financed a new gas station, has built an office a post office, a stadium, donates sports equipment to all the children in the town and has even installed a 4G network for everyone in the village. Not to mention that he gives 70 euros a month to all the people in a very poor region of Senegal, helping each family out.
“I don’t need to show off fancy cars, big houses, travel or airplanes. I prefer that my people receive a little of what life has given me”, says the brand new Bayern Munich striker. He’s a star that shines and brightens the lives of his people with his example, ensuring a rain of millions of euros falls just where it is most needed.