Football Bundesliga club TSG Hoffenheim sets an exclamation mark in the compatibility of professional sports and family: The players of the Kraichgauer can unilaterally extend their contract by one year in the event of pregnancy in pregnancy in order to gain planning security.
According to its own statements, the TSG ensures a novelty in German women’s football.
“This step is logical for us as a club, because in recent years more and more professional footballers have decided to establish a family during their active career,” said TSG women’s boss Ralf Zwanziger: “We will certainly get relevant in the future.”
Outside of Germany, AC Milan and Norway have already concrete support measures for players who expect young people. In the United States, the club managers also deal with the topic of maternity leave. For example, in addition to collective agreements for professional players, there are also grants for childcare.
“The option to extend the contract gives our players the opportunity to concentrate on their family without endangering their professional future,” said Hoffenheim’s managing director Markus Schütz: “We, as TSG, close the gap with this regulation that is currently still between FIFA specifications, DFB implementations and the reality of football players.”
The TSG receives praise from the “Football can” initiative and its advisory board member Almuth Schult. “With TSG Hoffenheim, a German club finally dares to do this advance, I am extremely happy about it,” said the former goalkeeper of the national team: “As a mother, I can say that this gives players security and support that you want. Furthermore, the association underlines the importance of mothers in sport and that it takes changes. I wish that many clubs from the TSG will follow.”