The HSV is debt -free and aims to record sales. The once highly indebted club can again look positively into the future. While other clubs such as Schalke or Hertha are financially stumbling in the 2nd league, HSV healthy people. This has a significant thing to do with a man.
The HSV employees can look forward to an extra payment in July. The club transfers 1000 euros in a special premium to the employees as recognition for the currently accommodating additional work around the ascent, the event summer with concerts in the stadium (including Ed Sheeran) and the annual balance. Cast bonus as a motivation, thanks and at the same time a symbol that the HSV is currently doing quite well financially.
The club, which has been considered a renovation case in the past and made more than 80 million euros in the past for eleven years, is healthy in the 2nd league. Board of Directors Eric Huwer announced the best news at the general meeting: the HSV is debt -free. The net financial liabilities (all debts are against the liquid funds) are processed. In 2017 there were still 74 million euros net debt. The HSV also saves millions in credit interests.
But how did Huwer and the HSV do it – while other clubs like Schalke or Hertha stumbling financially in the 2nd league?
“My strategic target has always been to emancipate the HSV from the short -term sporting success. We developed the strategic fields of action derived from it a good two years ago,” explains Huwer. Less transfer revenues or particularly high TV money ensure full health insurers, but the income from card sales, sponsorship and hospitality or merchandising. In the past season, the club took around 20 million euros with fan articles. A goal that you actually only wanted to achieve in 2027. The stadium is always full (spectator record of 56,324 per game, record utilization in the VIP area) and also booked with numerous concerts in summer.
“The HSV never had an income problem”
“We have created an identity and certainly also benefited from the trend that people came to the stadium so numerous to Corona,” says Huwer. The club now employs more than ten people for fan culture to address the supporters even better. In Merchandising, on the other hand, he reduced staff and had the range changed so that the articles can also be carried better in everyday life. “The HSV never had a problem of taking, we worked on the effectiveness of sales. We are number one in Germany in the profitability of our fan articles.” At the same time, the department won a sustainability price of the DFL.
The money further gushes: sales in the past season is around 125 million euros. And from the beginning of the season until 2028, the association sold the name rights at the arena to investor Klaus-Michael Kühne, who pays 4.5 million a year and receives the name Volksparkstadion.
When Huwer came to the HSV in 2014, the situation looked different. “I have experienced the HSV in all aggregate states,” says the doctor of sports manager: “The hardest time was around 2015. It was only a short-term cash. The license was shaken in 2015, the documents were filed late and there was a penalty payment to the DFL. We fought for the HSV in the contracts for the payment.”
The club recovered slowly, Huwer became more and more important under ex-finance boss Frank Wettstein. At the end of 2021 he was to become a board of directors, an introductory press conference on Christmas Eve was postponed at short notice-and two weeks later it was not Huwer Neuer Boss, but the windy supervisory board and shareholder Thomas Wüstefeld promoted himself to the post.
“I was very surprised at the decisive conversation and the information on how the solution should ultimately look. Of course, alternatives also came into my head, but the HSV is more than an employer for me too,” says Huwer today. The 41-year-old remained, prepared the financing of the stadium moderations for the European Championship 2024-and followed a year later on Wüstefeld as a board. In the meantime, his voice is very respected among the DFL clubs.
Born in Saarländer, who played in youth like CEO Stefan Kuntz for Borussia Neunkirchen, is based on managers such as Axel Hellmann (Frankfurt) or Klaus Filbry (Bremen), who conduct a traditional club patient and stable. Up to four times a week he goes to the fitness area of the professionals with sports director Claus Costa in the morning. In September he wants to learn to the Elite University Harvard for a few days and in a further training program of international clubs and sports organizations.
In catering, the HSV is “a most exciting partner in Europe”
“We, as HSV, want to increase the likelihood of sporting success every day, which is particularly important for me to get better every day in order to reach the next strategic milestones. After many years of reacting, we are now before the wave and can act. I have the hottest job in the world and a great ambitious team here at the HSV,” says Huwer, who has intended to extend his contract last year until 2029.
By 2030, the association wanted to crack the sales brand of 180 million euros per year. “If things go on, it may be faster and we will soon head to the milestone of 200 million euros.” A large project on the way there is stadium catering, which will be modernized and up to date from this season for up to 20 million euros. Huwer: “In discussions with the market -leading stadium caterers, we notice that we are one of the most exciting partners in Europe on this topic.”
For investments such as this, a cooperative will soon be introduced with the Supporters Trust, in which members can buy shares and which could bring in a further million amount. Huwer: “We also want to go our own way here. We do not want to put these capital grants into the team, but in projects that bring us more identity and revenues in the long term – and thus increase our ambitions step by step and sustainably.”
