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The Bundestag of the German Football Association degenerates into a place of ostensible harmony. Even two red cards from a rebel from Lower Saxony are annoying. The DFB’s debate culture lacks debate.
A Bundestag is intended as a place for debates. It should be used as an opportunity to discuss different approaches and then decide with the majority on the supposedly best one.
The Bundestag of the German Football Association stood out on Friday (07.11.25) as a place where there are no debates. “Does anyone want to speak? That’s not the case,” was one of the standard sentences.
No debates – anywhere
There were certainly motions that could have been debated, and probably even should have been. There was, for example, proposal 11, which concerns the financing of the regional associations. So it’s about the money for the amateurs, which has been a point of contention for years. “There is explosiveness in this,” said influential officials in advance. But please don’t quote.
Application 11 was actually explosive, because it may well be that the amateurs will soon no longer receive as much money as they currently do.
There would have been a wonderful discussion about how, if the worst came to the worst, it would be ensured that the amateurs who were considered so important in the numerous Sunday speeches would continue to be provided with the necessary resources. But only the cards were held up, mostly the green ones – for approval.
Only Eintracht Braunschweig received two gray cards for abstention. That was close to the rebellion that the second division team from Lower Saxony actually dared to do with Nicole Kumpis as president. With two applications in a row and again later, Braunschweig showed the red card for rejection.
Nicole Kumpis: one “Basic democratic Disaster”
“Nicole, what’s going on?” asked Ralph-Uwe Schaffert, President of the Lower Saxony Football Association, who led the votes.
After the Bundestag, Nicole Kumpis was rightly horrified by the culture of debate in the largest individual sports association in the world because there are no debates. One “grassroots democratic catastrophe” she also mentioned the decision in an interview with Sportschau, “en bloc” to let people vote. So it is difficult to document resistance against individual people.
Chaled Nahar, sports show, November 7th, 2025 3:30 p.m
With the mouth instead of the voting card, there was no resistance at all on Friday. The climate of silence and nodding is not necessary at all.
Neuendorf with a mixed record
The DFB achieved good to very good results in the first three years under President Bernd Neuendorf. But in some areas the boss, who was re-elected with 100 percent approval, also fell well short of his own demands.
He called for “active action” to stand up for human rights. However, he also applauded the fact that the autocrat and FIFA President Gianni Infantino sold off the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia.
Nothing at all has been said about the much more current topic, the 2026 World Cup with the autocrat and great friend of Infantino, US President Donald Trump.
“Our voice is heard, nationally and internationally,” said Neuendorf in Frankfurt. Which voice?