Clubs complain about a lack of transparency
The question of billions tears at German football
05/18/2023 2:26 p.m
Behind the multi-billion dollar entry of an investor in the DFL are always larger question marks, professional football is facing a crucial test. Second division FC St. Pauli finally wants to postpone answers to his questions and the process. That would be an affront to the DFL leadership.
This is not going according to the ideas of the league bosses: instead of bagging the planned entry of an investor in the German Football League (DFL) quickly in the next week thanks to a broad consensus, the billion-dollar deal threatens to fail due to the skeptics. Professional football is heading for an ordeal, driven by the top clubs, the division of the Bundesliga from the rest as a result of the disagreement no longer seems unrealistic.
The debate about the founding of an elite club and the associated end of the “subsidies” for the smaller clubs can hardly be prevented if Oke Göttlich’s plan is implemented. The president of the second division club FC St. Pauli wants to postpone the decision to start negotiations with the four potential investors at the meeting of club bosses on May 24th and has announced a corresponding application.
“I will not agree under the current conditions,” said Göttlich at “Zeit Online”: “My questions have not yet been fully answered,” the 47-year-old justified his position. “You shouldn’t break anything over your knee,” said Göttlich: “Personally, I am responsible, not only as part of the DFL Executive Committee, but also towards my members in the club.”
The necessary majority is no longer certain
However, a postponement would have to be seen as an affront to the two DFL interim bosses Axel Hellmann and Oliver Leki. After all, they both presented their plans, including a detailed schedule, just two weeks ago. At another meeting in early or mid-July, the green light for the selected investor is targeted.
The investor is to acquire 12.5 percent of the shares in a subsidiary that has yet to be founded and to which the media rights will be outsourced, over a period of 20 years. This should generate two billion euros, which should primarily (750 million euros) be put into central marketing and the development of a streaming platform.
300 million euros should go to the clubs for free use (according to the currently applicable distribution key), the rest is earmarked for investments in infrastructure. Critics warn against a further cementing of the balance of power and against the possible influence of an investor.
Is the DFL even threatened with a split?
But even if there is no postponement of the vote among the 36 clubs, the necessary two-thirds majority is far from certain. The fact that Leki considers a vote beyond the two-thirds mark to be necessary (“We must succeed in making it clearer”) does not make the starting position any easier.
In addition, there are protests from numerous fan groups, which make it difficult for some club bosses to approve. A secret ballot is expected so that the public cannot identify the clubs as supporters or opponents. Leki leaves no doubt about what he thinks of the lack of transparency: “Rejection is okay, but you have to say that.”
If the investor model fails, however, Leki sees the merger of the first and second division clubs in the DFL as a threat. The Ausschere of the Bundesliga would then at least be discussed. “I’m a big fan of the 36,” said Leki on Bild-TV: “But I could imagine that the debate would take place.”