After the disaster at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and the separation from director Oliver Bierhoff, DFB President Bernd Neuendorf answered questions from journalists for the first time on Tuesday.
sport.de broadcasts the explosive press conference today from 12:00 p.m. at this point in the LIVE stream. The stream opens in the image window at the top.
The “balance sheet for the year 2022” has been announced, but it is also clear: In view of the mixed situation in the national team and beyond, the date on the Frankfurt DFB campus has trend-setting importance.
These are Neuendorf’s first public words after returning from Qatar eleven days ago, much too early.
Why is Neuendorf only speaking now?
A silent president. This impression could arise in the past week. Separation from long-term manager Oliver Bierhoff, loyalty bonus for national coach Hansi Flick. And from Neuendorf there were only written comments in press releases. The DFB boss left the stage to his association vice and DFB supervisory board chairman Hans-Joachim Watzke, which he also used tolerably for his interests.
The President’s break in broadcasting apparently had a system. “I’m a big fan of clear procedures, we’ve initiated that,” said the 61-year-old when he appeared at Doha airport shortly before his journey home.
Neuendorf has only been in office since March, at the World Cup he was presented by FIFA boss Gianni Infantino in the affair about the One Love captain’s armband, much to the chagrin of the DFB team. The politician now wanted to act with a steady hand during the World Cup clean-up work. In the background he worked on the procedure for a fresh start towards the home EM 2024.
What exactly can be expected from Neuendorf’s appearance?
The issues should be resolved. But not yet the personnel issues. That means: The DFB boss will not present one or even two successors for the various tasks of Bierhoff. Despite the various candidates – serious ones like Fredi Bobic or Per Mertesacker or hardly realistic like 1990 world champion Jürgen Kohler, who practically applied himself.
“We still have to look ahead and will therefore initiate an orderly process on how to deal with this situation,” was another key statement from Neuendorf in Doha.
The analysis that he demanded from national coach Hansi Flick and also from Bierhoff at the time cannot have existed in depth, but Neuendorf should have laid down his path for a realignment by now. It is unlikely that the DFB boss will go it alone. He could bring expertise into the lurching boat.
There are enough examples from German football crises at the beginning of the millennium with commissions and working groups. Watzke already hinted at that. “If at some point the DFB has the feeling that we have to ask a few experienced people for advice and want to institutionalize it on our own, that is certainly a way of thinking, but Bernd Neuendorf has to decide that with his people,” said the BVB boss. The DFB boss can now give an answer.