Entry of investor: DFL managing director wants to talk to clubs and fans

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DFL managing director wants to talk to clubs and fans

As of: 12:43 a.m. | Reading time: 2 minutes

Protest against investor plans: Tennis balls hail from the fan block at a Union Berlin game

Source: picture alliance/dpa/Arne Dedert

Fan protests, threatened game cancellations, letters from the clubs: DFL managing director Steffen Merkel announces talks in the dispute over the entry of an investor and defends the goals. The concerns were taken seriously and respected, said Merkel.

In view of the protests against an investor joining the German Football League, DFL managing director Steffen Merkel has renewed his willingness to hold talks with fans. The concerns would be taken seriously and respected, Merkel said on Friday on the TV channel Sky. He also announced that they would like to meet with the clubs in the coming days to discuss a possible new vote, but at the moment the majority of clubs are not in favor of it.

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The 36 clubs in the Bundesliga and the 2nd league voted by an extremely narrow two-thirds majority for the entry of an investor. Since then, the voting behavior of Hanover’s majority shareholder Martin Kind, who was instructed by his club to vote against entry, has been under discussion. It is unclear whether his vote may have secured the necessary majority.

Before the announced talks with the clubs, Merkel also said: “Until then, and this has also been explicitly discussed in the Presidium, this mandate is valid for now and that we are therefore bound by this mandate – for the time being.” This mandate can you can’t just put it down. “We have had the whole thing legally reviewed because there are liability issues with regard to the execution. These legal reports have shown that the voting results and the DFL’s actions are tenable,” explained Merkel.

DFL managing director Steffen Merkel

Quelle: picture alliance/Kirchner-Media/Thomas Haesler

He emphasized that an investor cannot have a say in game operations, foreign games and kick-off times. “Nothing will change in the next 20 years of partnership,” emphasized the DFL managing director. It’s not about increasing player salaries, transfer fees and consultant fees, but about investing sustainably. He regretted the cancellation of the US company Blackstone this week and said the process was continuing within the red lines. “If we cannot comply with them, there will be no final mandate. Then we don’t have to conclude,” said Merkel. Discussions are currently only underway with the company CVC.

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In the two second division games in Hanover and Berlin as well as the Bundesliga game in Cologne, fans protested again on Friday evening against an investor entry, and the game between Hannover 96 and SpVgg Greuther Fürth was about to be canceled. Merkel said protests can sometimes be loud. At the DFL and the clubs, no one will accept a game being canceled lightly. He couldn’t rule out an abortion.