IIn the power struggle for the top post at the German Football Association (DFB), the “Football Can Do More” initiative does without a candidate of its own. “In any case, in this situation we cannot advise anyone with a job and reputation to run. There has to be an opportunity to win, ”said initiator Katja Kraus in an interview with“ Die Zeit ”.
You have the impression that “almost 100 percent of those interested in football want a renewal of the DFB, 17 association presidents, all of them men, but decide that everything should go on as before,” said Kraus: “It’s not a real choice there the regional associations unite more than 60 percent of the votes. “The result was” long ago agreed, “criticized national goalkeeper Almuth Schult.
The first candidate for the DFB chief position in the election of Fritz Keller’s successor at the Bundestag on March 11, 2022 is Bernd Neuendorf, the current co-interim president Peter Peters is entering the race as an outsider. The nomination period runs until February 10, 2022.
Broader foundation for the initiative
The group is “far from giving up. We will observe the development and are always ready to put together a great team, “said Schult:” In this situation, however, we don’t want to burn anyone. “The process is” non-transparent. And who votes anyway? The electors are mostly emissaries who are told how to vote ”.
In the meantime, the women’s initiative is putting its fight for gender equality in German football on a broader footing in the future. The group will institutionalize itself “in order to give all those who are just as convinced that football can do more the opportunity to participate and contribute their commitment”, it said in a statement on Tuesday.
The “enormous response and all the support offers made it clear how many people are moved by the desire for renewal in football,” wrote the nine-member group, which published a position paper for the first time in May. However, the initiative also “clearly felt demonstrations of power and the fear of losing control,” said Kraus.
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