After tough negotiations, the German Football Association (DFB) and the German Football League (DFL) have agreed to extend the basic contract.
On Friday, both parties signed an agreement in Frankfurt/Main that is valid until June 30, 2029. The contract is still subject to the approval of the DFL General Assembly and the approval of the DFB Bundestag.
The respective decision is expected to be made in September 2023. The previous agreement would have expired at the end of the month.
“The new basic contract is an important building block in order to strengthen and promote football at the grassroots in the long term,” said DFB President Bernd Neuendorf: “We have found a good solution together with the DFL in the interests of our more than 24,000 clubs, not only with a view to the financial volume of the basic contract, but above all with regard to numerous structural issues with which we want to make football future-proof.”
Hans-Joachim Watzke, spokesman for the DFL Executive Committee, spoke of a “very difficult process in times of scarce financial resources. However, everyone involved was always aware of their shared responsibility for German football, and this compromise, which was sustainable for everyone involved, was logically reached .”
The basic contract regulates the mutual rights and obligations as well as the cash flows between DFB and DFL. And especially when it came to finances, the road to agreement was rocky. A trip to an arbitration court or even a break with the DFB was in the room because the DFL did not want to meet the allegedly “exorbitant” demands from the amateur camp.