Bernd Neuendorf is the new President of the German Football Association. The 60-year-old prevailed in the election at the DFB Bundestag on Friday in Bonn with 193:50 votes against Peter Peters (59). Neuendorf came as a candidate for the influential amateur representatives, Peters was supported by professional football. The election in the World Conference Center became necessary after Fritz Keller resigned from office in May 2021.
“I would like to do everything to ensure that this association comes to rest again,” said Neuendorf in his application speech immediately before the election. “That we can say in a few years that the work was worth it.” His core message is: “Football must be the focus again, not the quarrels at the top of the association.”
People are “simply tired” of reading about scandals and house searches again and again. “They turn away, they are annoyed, they no longer feel represented,” said Neuendorf. “We need a new culture of togetherness. And I’m optimistic that we can do that.”
The crisis-experienced association has high hopes for Neuendorf. Four presidents have resigned early since 2012. Most recently, Keller had to take this step after he called Vice President Rainer Koch the name of a Nazi judge during a DFB meeting. It was the low point of months of wrangling. Since then, the association has been run by Koch and Peters on an interim basis.
Neuendorf is seen as a career changer in football. It was only in 2019 that he took over the presidency of the Mittelrhein Association. The SPD politician previously worked, among other things, as State Secretary in the Ministry for Family, Children, Youth, Culture and Sport of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia. During his speech before the election, applause could be heard for a short time in the Bonn conference hall. Because there were two candidates for the first time, the vote was carried out in secret.
Neuendorf previously campaigned for a return to a trusting cooperation with the professional camp. “We have to keep the store together, there is no alternative to that,” he said, emphasizing: “We have great opportunities to advance football in our country in the coming years.”
The controversial functionary Rainer Koch meanwhile no longer belongs to the DFB presidium after 15 years. The previous interim president lost surprisingly clearly in a vote against the sports science professor Silke Sinning. He did not stand for re-election for the position of First Vice-President Amateurs. Koch (63) is accused of numerous misconduct and involvement in dubious machinations by his critics. Most recently, the former DFB presidents Theo Zwanziger, Reinhard Grindel and Fritz Keller called for the “Koch system” to end. However, Koch is still on the DFB board.
Bundestag in the live stream
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Who will be the new DFB President?
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Video: DFB, Image: EPA
Hans-Joachim Watzke was unanimously confirmed by the delegates as first vice president of the league. The successor to the departed Stephan Osnabrügge as treasurer was Stephan Grunwald, Koch’s successor for the amateurs Ronny Zimmermann. Donata Hopfen, as CEO of the German Football League (DFL), is also a confirmed Vice President. Former international Celia Sasic takes over as the new Vice President for Equality and Diversity.
