Bayern Munich president Karl Hopfner does not believe that Uli Hoeness will resume all of his previous responsibilities at the Allianz Arena following his release from prison.
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Before starting his three-and-a-half-year prison term for tax evasion earlier this year, Hoeness said he intends to return to the club following his sentence.
"That's not the end," the former Bayern president told a club meeting on the day Hopfner succeeded him in his role.
But speaking on BR TV, Hopfner, who also succeeded Hoeness as the chairman of the supervisory board, has now said he does not think his predecessor will fully return to the Bundesliga giants.
"Personally, I don't think that he will return into all of his old functions at the club. But I hope that he returns," he said.
However, Bayern sporting executive Matthias Sammer contradicted Hopfner's statement on Sky.
"Uli Hoeness has taken a short time out. When a great personality like him has the feeling that he's not finished with his job after such a difficult period, then all doors will always be open for him," Sammer said.
"He and his spirit are always around. I often think about what his move in a particular situation would be."
Sammer has entered the final year of his three-year-contract at Bayern, but hopes to stay at the Bundesliga champions beyond the summer of 2015.
"I am in good talks with Karl Hopfner," he said. "If FC Bayern wants me to stay in this position for a long spell, then I want to stay for a long spell."
Sammer succeeded Christian Nerlinger as the club's sporting director, and was also handed a place on the Bayern board. During his two years at the club, Bayern won the treble in 2013, and the domestic double this summer.