Kompany: From Drugs and Bars to Manchester City’s “Cheerleader”

It appears that Belgian Vincent Kompany is on his way to a high-level experience, as media reports have linked him to coaching Bayern Munich in Germany, succeeding Thomas Tuchel.

Kompany achieved many successes in his career as a player, but he tasted failure off the field. The 38-year-old faced difficulties in his childhood, as he was expelled from school at the age of 14 due to his focus on football, which later led to his exclusion from the team.

In 2019, Kompany admitted that the prevalence of drugs and gangs in his childhood area might have pushed him to choose a very wrong path at the time. However, he returned to the right path and began his career at Anderlecht before moving to Hamburg and then Manchester City.

Kompany became a legendary figure at the English club, leading the team to four Premier League titles, two FA Cups, and four EFL Cups. After retiring, he began his coaching career at his childhood club, Anderlecht, before moving on to lead Burnley, with whom he secured promotion to the Premier League in 2023.

Kompany did not focus solely on football; he earned an MBA from Manchester Business School in 2018, at the same time he was leading Manchester City to titles. He is described as “articulate” and can speak several languages, including German, English, as well as some Spanish and Italian.

The Belgian married Carla Higgs during his time at Manchester City in 2011. Carla was a big fan of the English club. The couple has two children, Sienna, 13, and Kai, 10.

Kompany did not achieve much success in his investments. In 2014, he opened two bars in Belgium, which were closed within a year. Kompany admitted that sales were not sufficient to cover the costs, saying at the time, “I regret this decision. The first lesson in business is that investments are always a risk. You win some, you lose some.”