England captain Harry Kane has joined Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich from Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur on a four-year deal, the German champions said.
Bayern said on Saturday that the 30-year-old striker was signed until 2027 after protracted talks between the two clubs.
“It’s not a goodbye because you never know how things pan out in the future,” Kane said in a video on X, previously known as Twitter. “But it’s a thank you and I’ll see you soon,” he added.
Hard to put into words how to say goodbye to a club and fans who have done so much for me in my career. You will always be in my heart. Thank you Tottenham, thank you Tottenham fans. 💙 pic.twitter.com/L662cyax7p
— Harry Kane (@HKane) August 12, 2023
A reported fee could hit more than 100 million pounds ($127m), the highest transfer fee ever paid by a Bundesliga club. The previous record was the 80 million euros paid by Bayern to sign Lucas Hernandez from Atletico Madrid in 2019.
In a separate post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, Kane said he and his family had received “an incredible welcome” in Munich and he couldn’t wait to get started.
Bayern kick off their season later on Saturday in the Super Cup against RB Leipzig.
Been an incredible welcome for me and my family in Munich in the last 24 hours! Buzzing to have signed for such a massive club with an incredible history, can't wait to get started! #miasanmia pic.twitter.com/4TjgCGJ70Z
— Harry Kane (@HKane) August 12, 2023
Kane, who passed his medical late on Friday, has spent most of his career at Tottenham after joining their academy as an 11-year-old, scoring a club record 280 goals in over 430 appearances in all competitions – but never won a major trophy.
He is also the second highest Premier League scorer of all time with 213 goals – 47 behind Alan Shearer – and with 58 goals for his country in 84 games, Kane is England’s all-time leading marksman.
“I am happy to be here,” Kane said in a club interview. “I think Bayern are one of the biggest clubs in the world. I want to keep improving and pushing myself to be the very best.”
“I felt it was the right step in my career. [Bayern have] a good winning culture year on year,” he said.
Signing Kane, who also brings a wealth of experience and leadership qualities, means Bayern have finally landed a striker to replace Robert Lewandowski who left for Barcelona in 2022.
The Bavarians struggled for goals last season and only narrowly won the league title after Borussia Dortmund unexpectedly failed to win their last game at home.
Bayern kick off their Bundesliga season against Werder Bremen next week.
Kane’s arrival also looks to improve his own chances of winning major silverware having failed to end Tottenham’s 15-year trophy drought during his time at the club. Spurs failed to qualify for European football this season.
