From the age of 14 Bergmann had been earmarked as a potential great goalkeeper on Europe's biggest football stages - having played at Under 15 level in Hamburg, he was selected for the German Under 17 team and his life changed.
Now being recognised in public and "feeling the pressure" of becoming a professional, Bergmann's confidence was left shaken when an injury put him on the shelf for a spell. Bergmann decided he wanted to make sure he completed an education to make sure he had a future if things did not work out in his playing career.
His sister was already living in Rotorua so his parents suggested New Zealand, which being a rugby-mad nation was away from the glare of the footballing limelight.
"I was a bit scared that as a youth player that if you get injured at that age level - it's all gone," said Bergmann.
"I really wanted to take a step back from Hamburg, that's two million people, to Wanganui.
"You can't take things too quick. Before, my life was just fast, fast moving."
Returning home last summer holidays, Bergmann earned a "second time around" when he played in a UEFA Under 19 invitational tournament, which led to offers to trial with Manchester United, Arsenal and Bayern Munich.
But for the teenager there was no choice - he wanted the Munich club not just because he could live with family but due to its unparalleled success.
Current champions in the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich are the most successful club in German football history and one of the greatest in all Europe.
They have won a record 23 national titles and 16 national cups, along with five European Cup/UEFA Champions League titles - including the 2012-13 final against Borussia Dortmund 2-1, in what was the first ever UEFA Champions League final between two German clubs.
This is big business - crowd attendance in Germany exceeds the Premier League and most other European nations and the player salaries are astronomical.
Bergmann will leave Wanganui on January 9 and will play pre-season football in Germany before going straight out on loan from Bayern Munich to join third division club Unterhachingen, who are based 50km from Munich.
Bayern will still pay him and while Bergmann cannot reveal what he's making - it will "very much so" pay for every fulltime living aspect a young man could want.
He will also travel back to train with Bayern's first team at every opportunity and here it can be judged just how well set his future could be.
Online websites list the Bayern player wages for 2013-14 from close sources, and their official contract expiry dates.
Diego Contento, a 23-year-old on the books, has one of the smallest starter salaries estimated at 18,000 (NZ$34,428) a week. That's right, a week.
The average players get around 60-85,000 ($114,539- $162,000) a week while the stars like Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben pull down a cool 165,000 ($315,000).
This is where Bergmann could be within a few years.
"My long term goal is to play at the highest level I possibly can at First League.
"Just purely playing at this level, every minute of it I enjoy. I also want to make the World Cup."
Having taken this gap time for perspective, Bergmann feels he can now handle the spotlight with the help of friends and family.
"That [support] will be there, but being on a larger scale it will take time to adapt. I will be able to cope, though."
Bergmann said he needed to thank local mentors like Wanganui Athletic coach Kerry McGuiness and Sam Heirangi for their help on and off the field.
His hosts, the Parker-Bourne family, football mad, also did so much for these last two years.
And then there's the mates - many of whom were unhappy their friend never told them he could be a bona fide superstar, just so he could live a every-day life for a short while.
"They've all given a tremendous amount of support, which they're probably not even aware of, just by not being football people."
