On Tuesday (08/16/2022), the regional court in Hanover is hearing about the dismissal of Martin Kind as managing director of Hannover 96 Management GmbH by the parent club. Both sides face each other irreconcilably.
As usual, Kind did his rounds through the world championship stadium on the Maschsee in the early Sunday afternoon. The majority shareholder of the second division club was relieved after the 1-0 win against SSV Jahn Regensburg, the first triple point win this season.
On Tuesday, the entrepreneur wants to celebrate a preliminary legal success himself when the internal conflict between himself and the capital side on the one hand and the parent club on the other is fought out before the district court.
Kind dismissed as managing director at the end of July
The registered association surprisingly dismissed Kind as managing director of Hannover 96 Management GmbH at the end of July. The urgent legal protection procedure on Tuesday is now about whether the 78-year-old was effectively dismissed or not. The parent association thus chose the maximum level of escalation and Kind defended himself legally. Thanks to a decision by the regional court, he was allowed to continue working as managing director until the date of the oral hearing.
Who has power at 96 going forward?
In principle, the negotiation is about nothing less than the interpretation sovereignty in the club – and it can decisively influence the future of the club. While some emphasize Kind’s financial merits for the club, others accuse him of being distant from football and going it alone. The reasons for the dismissal have so far remained rather nebulous. It seems as if individual, smaller proxy conflicts have exhausted the already strained relationship from the point of view of the parent club.
The dispute has been going on for about three years
The club and the capital have been arguing for more than three years about a potential successor to Kind. The two sides have never been able to agree on a joint managing director and successor. Robert Schäfer, appointed by Kind and co-partner Dirk Rossmann, was rejected by the eV management. Conversely, Kind rejects Andreas Rettig, who is favored by the other side. Last week, the parent association sent its members details of the decision to dismiss in a letter. However, it remained unclear which “important reasons” are meant exactly.
The dismissal had become necessary “because otherwise the club would face a serious disadvantage”. Kind had “repeatedly and seriously violated instructions and contractual agreements,” it said.
Parent club raises allegations against professional football KGaA
The parent club had accused the club’s capital side of repeatedly violating the so-called Hanover 96 Treaty and the sponsorship agreements that had been concluded at the same time. A fixed donation was not paid at all and further donations “were not paid at the agreed time”, it said. The club’s capital side denies this. “Further legal processing of the allegations made and at the same time discrediting Mr. Martin Kind will take place at a legal level, with all the associated consequences, in order to avert further damage and dangers from Hannover 96,” announced the professional football KGaA.
In the letter to the members, the board made it clear that it was not about power, but about Hannover 96. The eV board was also not fundamentally against children. He tried to implement a goal-oriented approach between all 96 participants. “Unfortunately, that failed almost completely,” said the parent club.
Complicated club structure at 96
The dispute between the eV and the capital side must be understood in the context of a complicated association structure: Kind is the majority shareholder of Hannover 96 Sales&Service GmbH&Co. KG, which owns 100 percent of the professional football KGaA. Since the 50+1 rule in Germany stipulates that the parent association must always have the majority of votes in an outsourced corporation, the managing directors of the KGaA are appointed by Hannover 96 Management GmbH. It is 100 percent owned by the parent club.
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NDR 2 Sports | 08/16/2022 | 11:03 p.m
