Now there’s a stir abroad too
Bayern boss Dreesen sharply rebukes protesting fans
February 10, 2024, 1:11 p.m
The fan protest against the planned entry of an investor into the DFL has recently increased – much to the displeasure of the Bayern boss. In an interview he shares a lot. Meanwhile, the game interruptions are now also causing a stir internationally.
CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen of Bayern Munich has criticized the ongoing fan protests against investors’ entry into the Bundesliga and has clearly rejected a possible new vote on the controversial issue. “I have the feeling that in some ultra scenes, content and the discussion of facts no longer play a role. That it is no longer about football, but primarily about a demonstration of power,” Dreesen told “Welt am Sonntag “.
The fight for an integrity competition includes “a contentious debate. If criticism is then expressed, I have no problem with that at all. But it is not part of it to influence the game using unfair means,” said Dreesen in view of the continuous game interruptions by the fans . These influences, the member of the DFL executive committee emphasized, “will not change the fundamental attitude of the majority of the 36 Bundesliga clubs.”
Dreesen warns: Bundesliga is losing touch
This had spoken out in favor of the entry of an investor. However, club bosses such as Claus Vogt from VfB Stuttgart and Dirk Zingler (Union Berlin) have suggested a new vote. Especially since critics question the legality of the previous vote because it remained unclear whether Hanover’s Martin Kind had implemented his club’s instructions to vote against the project.
Jan-Christian Dreesen warns.
(Photo: picture alliance / Eibner press photo)
“The representative of a club is its legitimate representative. The way the legitimate representative’s vote is cast is how it counts,” Dreesen countered: “Then I can’t simply question this vote and the vote if I don’t like it afterwards what comes out.”
If the deal fails, the Bundesliga would “lose touch with the big leagues in Europe. There may be people who say: ‘We don’t care!’ But my perception is that the vast majority of fans want to see more competitive German clubs in international football.”
The investor dispute had reached a new level of escalation at the start of the Bundesliga weekend. The second division game between Hamburger SV and Hannover 96 was on the verge of being canceled in the second half.
Martin Kind in the crosshairs
He was actually “super happy,” said Hannover coach Stefan Leitl after the game. His team defeated HSV 4-3 in a wild second division game and can dream of returning to the Bundesliga again. But some of Leitl’s own supporters ruined the evening. “You always hear: Football belongs to the fans. But football also belongs to the footballers,” said Leitl angrily: “What happened today has no place in a stadium. That’s just annoying.”
The bike locks didn’t hang on the gate for long.
(Photo: picture alliance / Eibner press photo)
Three posters with portraits in crosshairs appeared in the guest block, including the head of Hanover’s managing director Martin Kind and the CEOs of possible investors CVC and Blackstone. The fans provided an explanation for this on large banners. “CVC & Blackstone: puppets of sportswashing Saudi Arabia. Consistent action when faced with personalized threats of violence. Game interruption now!”, it was written there. And so it happened: referee Sören Starks interrupted the game for over half an hour.
“A clear death threat,” commented the “Bild” on the incidents, the SID news agency spoke of “tasteless protests” and the “Kicker” called the crosshairs a “disgusting border crossing.” On LinkedIn, however, sports lawyer Stephan Dittl pointed out the flanking banners that “refer to the DFB’s handout on the three-stage plan” and the DFB with the demand “Interruption of the game now!” take aim. “Above all,” wrote Dittl, “the fans are showing that the crosshair poster is not intended to call for violence, but rather to force a game to be interrupted.” That succeeded.
Protests also in Dortmund
The game was about to be canceled. The banners and double holders disappeared, Starks continued the game and Hannover won with a goal in stoppage time. Hanover boss Kind announced consequences. “There will be reactions. End!” he said, according to “HAZ”. Child plays a central role in the dispute between some of the fans and the DFL. The managing director of the professional department in Hanover is said to have voted for the entry of an investor at the DFL general meeting in December, contrary to his club’s instructions. Without Kind’s vote, the deal would have failed. Since then, the fan soul has been boiling. In Hamburg, the home fans also protested and chained bicycle locks into the goal nets.
Gregor Kobel passed the time.
(Photo: picture alliance / Anadolu)
The game between Borussia Dortmund and SC Freiburg was also interrupted after fans threw chocolate chips and tennis balls onto the pitch. National player Niclas Füllkrug later expressed understanding for the fans’ protests, but criticized the game interruptions they caused. “It’s important to stay relaxed and not let it get to you. You can get upset for a moment. I can of course understand the fans wanting to use the stage in the stadium to express their opinion. Whether it’s right or wrong is an open question “, said the Dortmund attacker after his team’s 3-0 (2-0) win at DAZN. “It’s not so cool if you’re interrupted several times. You get cold. That’s not ideal for the muscles.”
There is great interest in bicycle locks abroad
The protests are now also gaining international attention. “Protests by anti-investor investors in German soccer escalated on Friday when fans attached bicycle locks to a gate and displayed banners showing the face of a club board member in the crosshairs,” wrote the AP news agency. On its Instagram channel, the US broadcaster ESPN, which shows the Bundesliga in the United States, shared a picture of BVB keeper Gregor Kobel juggling a tennis ball and explained the protests in a few words. The post received over 100,000 likes in the first ten hours.
The renowned British Guardian also reported on the protests and, like much of the international media, made the bicycle locks on the gate in Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion a major issue. Unlike the reporting that dominates in Germany, which is based on the crosshairs. Further protests are expected this Saturday.