Chilly or visionary? German clubs are known to be traditionally reluctant to see foreign capital into their football, driven by the idea that money from the sky is probably not such a good idea in the long run. New illustration this Wednesday, with the rejection of a project to two billion euros yet ardently desired by the League because considered vital for the competitiveness of German professional football.
Meeting in a General Assembly near Frankfurt, the 36 Bundesliga and second division clubs failed to find a two-thirds majority, necessary for the opening of discussions. Only 20 clubs voted in favour of continuing the DFL project, four short of the two-thirds majority needed to continue the process, said Hans-Joachim Watzke, chairman of the DFL executive board. "The project is abandoned today. This is democracy," he said, face closed, at a press conference.
A 20-year partnership
The DFL wanted to find an investor capable of injecting two billion euros into German professional football: 750 million for the marketing and creation of a streaming platform, 300 million for clubs according to a free distribution (faithful to current distribution principles), and the rest in investments.
In return, the German league created a subsidiary with a lifespan of more than 20 years, into which all the income from television rights in Germany and abroad was paid, and in which the investor held 12.5% of the shares. Currently, the broadcasting rights of the German first and second division championships generate revenues of 1.3 billion euros each season.
The project has been strongly criticised by the fan groups of most clubs, banners "NO to an investor", have bloomed in recent times in German stadiums, for fear of interference by the chosen investor. A petition with 9,000 signatures was presented at the DFL meeting. Some historic clubs had led the sling against the DFL management, including FC Cologne and Sankt-Pauli.
- Football
- Bundesliga
- Sport
- Foreign investment