UEFA Congress in Belgrade: Neuendorf and Watzke before re-election in UEFA and FIFA committees

At the UEFA Congress in Belgrade, parts of the UEFA Executive Committee and European representatives in the FIFA Council are new or re-elected-including DFB President Bernd Neuendorf and DFL supervisory board head Hans-Joachim Watzke.

The places bring many advantages for the officials: In the UEFA Executive Committee and in the FIFA Council, important contacts are made, negotiations are conducted, information exchanged-and there is also a lot of money.

FIFA Council: No competition for Neuendorf

There is no competition for Neuendorf as a UEFA representative in the FIFA council. Four UEFA members in the FIFA Council are determined in Belgrade, exactly four candidates are available for this: Razvan Burleanu (Romania), Georgios Kouma (Cyprus) and Dejan Savicevic (Montenegro) Like Neuendorf, all three stand for re -election, there are no challengers.

In addition, with Belgium’s association president Pascale Van Damme A candidate for European Square in the FIFA Council for election, which is guaranteed to a woman. The Italian Evalina Christillin The office gives up. As so often in football, the places could be awarded by acclamation and without a real coordination.

The term is four years. The post guarantees Neuendorf and all other members of the FIFA Council $ 250,000 gross per year. The remuneration by the DFB of around 240,000 euros, in which Neuendorf stands for three years in autumn, is added.

The FIFA Council is the highest body in the World Association. It is the successor organ of the scandalumed FIFA Executive Committee and recently came into the focus when it was a procedure criticized by the Norwegian association All measures takento award the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia.

UEFA Executive Committee: Gangs for few places, Watzke in the middle of it

In contrast, there must be a vote in the UEFA Executive Committee, because there are significantly more candidates than free places. Seven posts are awarded, they want eleven men. Below with Hans-Joachim Watzke is the Presidium spokesman and DFL supervisory board head.

*stand for re -election

Voting behavior of the DFB with a view to women EM 2029

The candidates have to unite an absolute majority of the valid votes and leave at least four of the other candidates behind to be elected. For the DFB, the question of which candidates will support the DFB in the application for the European Championship of women in 2029. The competitors are Italy, Poland and Portugal, who also represent candidates.

Watzke would continue his role as a “multifunctional”. As a DFL supervisory board head, he wants to be re-elected in autumn, which secures the post as 1st DFB Vice President. In addition, there would be the role in the UEFA Executive Committee. He had given up his post on the board of the powerful club association ECA. Watzke’s main job is currently that of the managing director at Borussia Dortmund, where he has announced his departure.

Members of the UEFA Executive Committee have received 160,000 euros per year since 2017. In addition to his salary in Dortmund and the Honorar of UEFA, Watzke also receives remuneration from the DFB, but according to the association does not use a third of these payments.

Those EXKO members who are Vice President or Vice President of the UEFA receive 250,000 euros a year. The UEFA President’s salary Aleksander Ceferin Most recently was CHF 2.875 million.

Also Israel Association president stands for election

In addition, two places are awarded for half term after Luis Rubiales from Spain (attacking behavior against the player Jennifer Hermoso) and Andrii Pavelko from Ukraine (allegations on corruption, embezzlement and fraud) had cleared their posts prematurely.

Potential successors come from Spain and Ukraine, including a real football star with Andrii Shevchenko. But officials from other countries also apply. Among them is Moshe Zuares from the football association Israel. Since Hamas’s terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, Israel has wage a war in the Gaza Strip that attracts a lot of international criticism.

The Palestinian Association Pfa criticized the candidacy of Zuares in a letter to the UEFA because it also had to go through an integrity test by the UEFA. In the letter, the association referred to a game operations of Israeli teams in settlers, which will take place against FIFA’s statutes.

This area is a territory of the Palestinian Association. For this reason, the PFA unsuccessfully demands the suspension of Israel at FIFA for this reason. The PFA is a member of the Asian Confederation AFC. The AFC excluded Israel in 1974, the Israeli association then came to UEFA via detours.

QUOTENPLAGE: This time the piano is increasing

For the first time, a second woman is elected to the UEFA Executive Committee in Belgrade. Since 2016 there has been a quota place, currently the UEFA Vice President Laura McAllister out of Wales holds. It was chosen in 2023. At that time, Norway’s association president also stood Lise Klaveness To choose from, but it applied for the general places that are still occupied exclusively by men. “I want to be elected as an association president, not as a woman”she said at the time.

In association policy, the piano repeatedly advocated transparency or compliance with human rights, it was a “stone in the shoe” of the infantino-led FIFA. At the UEFA, she was shown in 2023 that this role was probably not particularly desired, it failed with only 18 out of 55 votes. Now a second quota place is being awarded – this time the piano is accessing, there is no competitor.