Bernadette Amani ‘living her dream’ at Bayern Munich

Several months after moving to Germany, Bernadette Amani is clearly where she wants to be, having won both the Bundesliga and the German Cup in her first half-season since joining Bayern Munich.

“It’s a dream come true for me to be here, and I’m living my dream to the full,” the 28-year-old midfielder told DW in a recent exclusive interview.

“Munich is a very, very big club. Beyond just making me happy, it’s a real achievement, a dream come true to be here, to play for such a prestigious club.”

Amani, who recently captained Ivory Coast at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), added that playing for Bayern’s women has been a major step up from what she had come to know playing for CD Tenerife Femenino of Liga F, Spain’s topflight.

“I was already professional when I was in Spain, but let’s just say it wasn’t quite the same level of professionalism,” she explained.

“In Spain or the Ivory Coast, the coaching staff might have consisted of no more than five or six people. But here there are eight or 10 people. And that enables them (the players) to perform at that high level for a long time.”

This structure, and the experience of the players around her, she said, make it virtually impossible for a new player not to improve on their own game.

“I’ve learned a great deal about aspects I wasn’t already aware of; how to position myself, how to position my body, how to interact with the ball and how to think. Really understanding the game is something I’m gradually learning alongside (the players) and the coaching staff.”

Moving to the capital to further education

Getting to the Bundesliga champions was anything but a straight, plotted path for Amani, who, when she began kicking a ball with the boys in her local village as a youngster, had no idea that football could be a career option.

Her parents were anything but encouraging of her passion. They just wanted their daughter to get a good education. To this end, she wound up moving from the village of Dougbafla, where she grew up, to the capital, Abidjan — a move that turned out to be pivotal to her career as a footballer.

“I discovered the women’s football league. I went to a match and, as luck would have it, it was the top team against the second-placed team,” she recalled.

“I saw the intensity, I saw the technique, and then I heard that so-and-so isn’t here today because she’s playing in Serbia, another isn’t here today because she’s playing in Turkey. And that was a real eye-opener for me; it made me realize that I could make a living from what I love.”

One of the clubs she watched on that day in 2019, Onze Soeurs de Gagnoa, offered her a trial – and she made the team. Within a year, she was in Spain’s third tier, and five years later, she found herself in Liga F with Eibar. Always looking to take that next step, she quickly moved on to Tenerife, her launching pad for Bayern, which she describes as “the top.” Still, there’s no question of complacency.

“Someone on the outside will say to you: ‘You’ve put in the effort, you’ve made it to Bayern, a club that wins titles, that’s professional and renowned all over the world,” she said.

“But someone who’s involved in football will tell you that’s where the hard part begins. Staying there is even better. And it’s hard not to let your guard down.”

Disappointment at WAFCON

With Bayern about to start their Women’s Bundesliga title defense against Union Berlin, Amani is back in the Bavarian capital following what will have been a disappointing Women’s Africa Cup of Nations for the Ivory Coast. Prior to the tournament, Amani had told DW that her team’s goal would be “to do no worse than we did at the last Africa Cup of Nations we took part in — that is, to finish third.”

However, not only did Ivory Coast fall to Algeria 2-1 in the quarterfinals, but to make matters worse, they’ve failed to qualify for next year’s Women’s World Cup in Brazil. Ivory Coast fell 2-1 to Ghana in one of two play-in matches for the inter-confederation playoffs, the last possible path to the World Cup. 

While male players tend to get time off after a major summer tournament, Amani was already back on the Bayern bench for Saturday’s DFB Supercup win over Wolfsburg (3-0) – just two days after Ivory Coast’s defeat to Ghana in Casablanca. Now the focus is squarely back on retaining Bayern’s Women’s Bundesliga title.

Ali Farhat contributed to this article.
 

This article was originally published on July 28, 2026. It was updated on August 20, 2026 to reflect developments at the recent WAFCON tournament.

Edited by: Matt Pearson