Basketball Bundesliga team BG Göttingen receives from the Corona aid program “Elite sport” Of the german Bundestag support of 343,000 euros for the current year 2020. That was on Friday during a visit by the Goettingen member of the Bundestag Fritz Güntzler (CDU) communicated in the basketball center.
“Without the money, it would be almost impossible for us to get through the season,” said BG managing director Frank Meinertshagen on Friday with. The aid program is capped at 800,000 euros per company, with the exception of the first and second clubs Football Bundesliga.
The federal government has made 200 million euros available for the program. The calculation basis is the ticket income between April and December 2019 and a comparison with the income in the same period of the current year. A maximum of 80 percent of the difference will be reimbursed by the Bundestag initiative.
Women’s basketball Bundesliga team flippo Baskets BG 74 also benefits from the aid program. However, those responsible for the Göttingen DBBL team did not want to provide any information about the amount of the donations.
“Otherwise the clubs would not survive the current situation,” said Güntzler, Member of the Bundestag Sports Committee, on Friday. “The Elite sport we need because it also serves to promote popular sport. We need role models. ”At the same time, the CDU politician emphasized that it is also comprehensive for popular sports clubs Funding programs admit, both regional and national.
With regard to the “Elite sport“Aid program, he is proud that the initiative for it came” from the center of Parliament “- the impetus had the CDU in the sports committee of the German Bundestag given, reported Güntzler. There is also a close exchange with the recently deceased Göttingen Bundestag Vice-President Thomas Oppermann (SPD) given.
Swift implementation through Federal Ministry of the Interior
Güntzler praised the lead Federal Ministry of the Interior for the swift implementation of the aid program: On July 1, the corresponding budget decision was made, a key issues paper was presented on August 7, and the directive was adopted on September 28. “I am happy that the Göttingen basketball players can now benefit from the aid program. The money will be paid out shortly ”, underlined Güntzler.
So far, 60 million euros have been called from the funding pot, reported the CDU politician – 140 million euros can still be awarded. In this regard, there are considerations to carry over the money to 2021 and to extend the program to the coming year. Solutions for 2021 are currently being sought, taking into account EU state aid law, so Güntzler.
“We have the hope that the program will be extended”, clarified BG boss Meinertshagen. “If no spectators are allowed in 2021 either, it would help us to make ends meet.” In order to benefit from the highest possible aid amount of 343,000 euros, a major hurdle had to be overcome: a partial repayment of a KFW loan was actually not intended, a full repayment was not possible – “alternatively, we could have applied for fewer”, so Meinertshagen. The “house bank” of BG, the Sparkasse Göttingen, then reached the possibility of a partial repayment of the loan with an application to the KFW “at the last minute”.
Another aspect of Güntzler’s visit to the basketball center was the game and training operations under the current Corona conditions and the prospects for the coming year. Güntzlers Impression: “The professional leagues have presented very good concepts.” It is true, for example, in the quarantine question to achieve “even more uniformity in the interpretation”, “but the leagues just do a good job”.
You can contact the author by email at [email protected]
From Eduard Warda
.
