England captain Harry Kane has joined Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich from Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur on a four-year deal, the German club said on Saturday.
Bayern said the 30-year-old striker was signed until 2027 after protracted talks between the two clubs.
They did not disclose the transfer fee, which media reports have put at around 100 million euros ($109 million). That would be a Bundesliga record, smashing the 80 million euros paid by Bayern to sign Lucas Hernandez from Atletico Madrid in 2019.
“The fans can look forward to Harry Kane and the new season,” said club CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen. “Harry was at the very top of our wish list. So we went a bit all-in but always within a framework and within financial reason.”
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.
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.
To his old club, Kane left an emotional video message. “It’s not a goodbye because you never know how things pan out in the future, but it’s a thank you and I’ll see you soon.
“Obviously a lot of emotions going through me right now,” Kane said, “and sad to be leaving the club I’ve spent nearly 20 years of my life at, from an 11-year-old boy to a 30-year-old man now.
“I felt like this was the time to leave,” he added, “I didn’t want to go into the season with a lot of unresolved future talk.”
