Oliver Kahn, CEO of FC Bayern München AG, finds playoff thoughts “exciting”. Photo: Sven Hoppe/dpa. (Source: dpa)
Munich (dpa) – Bayern board member Oliver Kahn is open to possible master playoffs in the Bundesliga. “I find it exciting to think about new models such as playoffs for the Bundesliga,” said the head of the German soccer record champions from Munich to “Kicker”.
“A format in the Bundesliga with semi-finals and finals would mean excitement for the fans. So it makes sense to play through such an idea. We at FC Bayern are always open to new ideas,” said the 52-year-old.
The new DFL boss Donata Hopfen had brought up the playoffs. “The league would of course be more attractive if it had more competition at the top,” said the 45-year-old in an interview with “Bild am Sonntag” with a view to FC Bayern Munich’s possible tenth title in a row. “If playoffs help us, then we’ll talk about playoffs. But we mustn’t forget that Bayern have done a super job in recent years.”
DFL wants to hold talks with clubs
After a “Kicker” survey within the Bundesliga, playoffs are rejected by a majority. Among them are club representatives such as Rudi Völler from Bayer Leverkusen, Markus Krösche from Eintracht Frankfurt or Dirk Zingler from Union Berlin, the report said.
The DFL answered a “kicker” query as follows: “As is well known, there are different ideas in various places in the league with a view to the game mode, but these are currently far from a decision and even less from being implemented.” Such a far-reaching decision must be preceded by an intensive and structured dialogue with the clubs and the responsible league committees, weighing up all the arguments. The DFL will carefully prepare this open-ended discussion process and lead it together with the clubs in the coming months.