DFB Vice-President Winkler was also criticized by other football officials after his statements about Ukraine’s head of state Selenskyj. Saxony’s social media post has long been a political issue.
DFB Vice President Hermann Winkler has triggered criticism and irritation among other football officials with his disrespectful statements about the Ukrainian head of state Volodymyr Zelenskyj.
“That’s not the attitude of the Berlin Football Association. Our values are different,” said the head of the association, Bernd Schultz, of the German Press Agency. “You don’t attack a personality like a president like that,” said Schultz.
Holger Stahlknecht, President of the Saxony-Anhalt Football Association, expressed his surprise at Winkler’s controversial social media post. “I think that’s clumsy,” said the former interior minister of Saxony-Anhalt. He was fundamentally opposed to “politicizing sport”. For a further opinion, he wanted to speak to Winkler first.
Post with a photo in front of the Soviet memorial
In an Instagram post, Winkler described Selenskyj as a “former Ukrainian actor” without naming the name and office of the Ukrainian President, and cited his visit to Berlin as the reason for the disruption to tourists. In his post, Winkler shared a picture of himself at the Soviet memorial in the Berlin district of Treptow. The German Football Association then announced a conversation with Winkler about the post.
Schultz wants to get an idea of the opinions of other officials in the Northeast German Football Association, which Winkler leads as president. As was heard from NOFV circles on Monday, there is fear of damage to the image of the entire football region with its five state associations from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to Saxony.
Page no longer accessible
Winkler’s Instagram page was no longer available on Monday. The post was still available on Facebook. At the request of the German Press Agency, Winkler did not comment on the Instagram page, which can no longer be accessed. On Sunday he had confirmed the authenticity of the contribution.
Zelenskyy was in Berlin early Sunday morning and arrived in Germany for the first time since Russia attacked Ukraine. On Sunday afternoon he and his people were awarded the Charlemagne Prize in Aachen.
The national team will play their 1000th international match in Bremen on June 12 against the Ukraine. In this context, too, BFV boss Schultz sees Winkler’s statements as difficult. The DFB is calling for donations for the people of Ukraine. In principle, however, Winkler’s political stance is known, added Schultz.