Berlin (dpa) – In the debate about the controversial term “The Team” for the German football selection, DFB director Oliver Bierhoff called for a decision “that is then no longer discussed internally”. The 54-year-old said that in an interview with “Welt am Sonntag”.
The 1996 European champion said that the term polarized people. But “the team” was not a term he coined, it is called that all over the world. It is a value of the DFB, that of its most important team. “The Presidium will discuss this term in a timely manner. However, the discussion should not be emotional, but factual,” said Bierhoff. “Are there good arguments against this designation. Or just the famous gut feeling?”
Among others, Borussia Dortmund’s managing director Hans-Joachim Watzke had spoken out in favor of abolishing the designation. Watzke is Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the German Football League and is therefore also a member of the DFB Executive Committee. Record national player Lothar Matthäus had recently pleaded for abolition. The 61-year-old told “Bild” that “The Team” normally stands for a unit. “Germany was recently neither on the field with the disappointing tournament appearances nor in the association. New paths are now being taken at all levels. That’s why it would be good to invent a new name, to bring in freshness.”