Summary report of the task force “Future of Professional Football” published
- DFL Executive Committee examines recommendations
- Continuation of interdisciplinary dialogue planned
3 February 2021 – The summary report of the task force “Future of Professional Football” is now available to download. This nine-page document sets out and explains 17 recommendations of the task force for the DFL and the 36 clubs in the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2. In addition, a future outlook outlines the goals that the task force believes both divisions should work towards with a view to year 2030. The plan is that the Executive Committee of the DFL sets the ball rolling by looking at which possible tools and measures could be useful and therefore should be implemented in the short, medium or long term. The 36 clubs in the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 will have the final decision at a DFL Members Assembly.
Summarising the key results of the dialogue within the task force, the report was prepared over the last few weeks under the leadership of Prof. Heidi Möller, who unveiled it in a virtual press conference. Prior to this, the psychologist and Managing Director of the Department of Psychology at the University of Kassel had chaired all the meetings of the three working groups of the task force “Future of Professional Football” between the beginning of October and the end of January. In three meetings per working group, 37 experts from the fields of sport, society, science, politics and business addressed major issues and questions relating to the future of professional football in open-ended interdisciplinary discussions. The approach essentially consisted of reflecting on past developments, discussing matters and devising practical ways forward, when required. In a final virtual meeting last week, all working groups discussed the summary report, which was then edited, supplemented and finalised under the guidance of Prof. Möller.
We regard the summary report not as the end of the dialogue, but as the start of a continuous process of communication with key stakeholders of professional football.
Christian Seifert, Speaker of the Executive Committee of the DFL
Christian Seifert, Speaker of the Executive Committee of the DFL, says: “On behalf of the Executive Committee of the DFL and myself, I would like to thank everyone involved for their hard work. The outstanding commitment of the task force provides further motivation to advance the ideas arising from this unique interdisciplinary dialogue and the content devised so far. In this respect, we regard the summary report not as the end of the dialogue, but as the start of a continuous process of communication with key stakeholders of professional football.”
Prof. Heidi Möller says: “By setting up the task force, the DFL has ventured into entirely new ground. All kinds of aspects were discussed in highly constructive debates. The summary report reflects a large number of the recommendations and ideas of all task force members, and I think it is a magnificent outcome. Given the wide-ranging perspectives on the complex and sometimes highly emotionally charged issues, it is clear that everyone involved had to accept compromises with a view to achieving a mutually acceptable outcome. Based on what was a positive experience, I wholeheartedly welcome the fact that the DFL intends to continue the interdisciplinary dialogue in order to maintain a platform for many voices to discuss these aspects.
The report can be downloaded here:
The members of the task force:
– Dr. Cornelius Baur (Managing Partner of McKinsey Germany)
– Oliver Bierhoff (Director of the National Teams and Academy at the DFB)
– Fredi Bobic (Management Board at Eintracht Frankfurt; DFL Football Commission)
– Helen Breit (Fan Culture Working Group)
– Britta Dassler (FDP, Member of the German Bundestag, Member of the Sports Committee and spokesperson)
– Max Eberl (Sporting Director at Borussia Mönchengladbach; DFL Football Commission)
– Dr. Vera-Carina Elter (CHRO for Family Owned Businesses at KPMG)
– Tanja Ferkau (Founder and CEO of IMPCT gGmbH)
– Manuel Gaber (Fans working group “Future of Professional Football”)
– Dr. Peter Görlich (Managing Director at TSG Hoffenheim; DFL Internationalisation Commission)
– Jan-Henrik Gruszecki (Chief of staff Strategy & Culture, Borussia Dortmund)
– Dr. Mario Hamm (Director Finance at 1. FC Nürnberg; DFL Finance Commission)
– Lutz Hangartner (President of the Association of German Football Coaches)
– Anna-Maria Hass (Fans working group “Future of Professional Football”)
– Robin Himmelmann (Player; Professional Footballers’ Union VDV; Players’ Alliance)
– Daniela Huckele-Görisch (Director of Strategic Initiatives at SAP; S20 The Sponsors’ Voice)
– Dirk Huefnagels (Head of Marketing at UniCredit; S20 The Sponsors’ Voice)
– Jörg Jakob (Editor-in-Chief of “kicker”)
– Alexander Jobst (Chief Marketing, Sales and Organisation Officer at FC Schalke 04; DFL Marketing & Sponsoring Commission)
– Lars Klingbeil (SPD, General Secretary)
– Philipp Köster (Editor-in-Chief of “11 Freunde”)
– Katja Kraus (Managing Partner at Jung von Matt/Sports)
– Carsten Linnemann (CDU/CSU, Chairman of Mittelstands- und Wirtschaftsunion (MIT), Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary Group)
– Andreas Luthe (Player at 1. FC Union Berlin; Professional Footballers’ Union VDV; Players’ Alliance)
– Dario Minden (Fans working group “Future of Professional Football”)
– Prof. Dr. Martin Nolte (Head of Institute for Sport Law at German Sport University Cologne)
– Cem Özdemir (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, Chairman of the Committee on Transport and Digital Infrastructure, Deputy Member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs)
– Fabian Otto (Director of Finance and Personnel at Bayer 04 Leverkusen; DFL Finance Commission)
– Dr. Frank Rybak (Professional Footballers’ Union VDV, legal advisor; Specialist Sports Lawyer)
– Sylvia Schenk (Chair of the Sport Working Group at Transparency International Germany)
– Carsten Schmidt (CEO of Hertha BSC)
– Christian Schmidt (Fan Culture Working Group)
– Prof. Sascha L. Schmidt (Director and Chairholder of the Center for Sports and Management at WHU)
– Martin Schulz (SPD, member of the German Bundestag; former President of the European Parliament)
– Ramona Steding (Fan Culture Working Group)
– Dr. Martin Stopper (Sports Lawyer)
– Heike Ullrich (Deputy General Secretary at the DFB)