Sports director Jörg Schmadtke from VfL Wolfsburg has no problem with the fact that he is seen as obstinate and unteachable in the football industry.
“I know that I polarize. It was never my concern to be the friendliest and most popular manager in the league. I always wanted to do the best possible job for my company,” said the 58-year-old in an interview with the newspaper “Die Welt”. . And he added: “It could be counterproductive if they think you’re the nicest guy on the planet – but incompetent.”
The former Bundesliga goalkeeper of Fortuna Düsseldorf and SC Freiburg and today’s official has accordingly never shied away from unpopular decisions: “At least I’ve never been afraid of making decisions against the mainstream.” Schmadtke also clearly represented his point of view. He calls it “ludicrous” to stage World Cup games like the one in Qatar “in air-conditioned stadiums. In stadiums that later rot or are dismantled – like in Brazil or South Africa.”
The manager, who is leaving VfL at the end of January, believes that this could also mean his departure from the football business. At the moment he “doesn’t have the idea of taking on another role in the industry,” he said. Schmadtke emphasized: “I don’t know what’s going to happen. My wife will decide. She walked around with me like a vagabond for 40 years without complaint and now she deserves to get her rights.”
Schmadtke expects that he can then really let go, even if he can’t answer this question “seriously”: “I’ve always had a critical distance. I’ve never been interested in publicity, popularity and the associated pseudo-importance.”