After the death of Egidius Braun, President Thomas Bach of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) paid tribute to the social commitment of the former President of the German Football Association (DFB).
“Egidius Braun was the social conscience of German football. He recognized and lived the social responsibility of sport,” said Bach: “He was a far-sighted designer who always had future challenges and structures in mind. Personally, I have the encounters always appreciated with him and his friendly, honest advice.”
Braun died on Wednesday night at the age of 97. From 1992 to 2001, the man from Aachen headed the largest individual sports association in the world.
More voices on the death of Egidius Braun:
Thomas Bach (IOC President): “Egidius Braun was the social conscience of German football. He recognized the social responsibility of sport and lived it. He was a far-sighted designer who always had future challenges and structures in mind. Personally, I I always appreciated meeting him and his friendly, honest advice.”
Bernd Neuendorf (DFB President): “Egidius Braun has firmly anchored social commitment in the DNA and the statutes of our association. It is and remains his merit that the DFB has been involved in a variety of social programs for decades, especially with the DFB Foundation dedicated to Egidius Braun, which, among other things, has been supporting aid projects in the Ukraine since 2001.”
Heike Ullrich (designated DFB general secretary): “All of us in the DFB, its subsidiaries and foundations are in mourning. As an expression of gratitude and respect, we will suggest that there is a minute’s silence before all football matches in Germany next weekend. Football Germany bows to a great president in the history of our association, to whom we all owe a huge debt of gratitude.”
Nancy Faeser (Federal Minister of the Interior): “We mourn the loss of Egidius Braun, an outstanding personality in football and a great sportsman. Egidius Braun – as the then Federal President Johannes Rau said about him 20 years ago – always tried to give football his humanity preserved, even when football became a million-dollar business. He loved and strengthened amateur football. Egidius Braun stood for volunteer work and for the integrative power of sport. Not only at the head of the DFB, but also with his commitment to children in He set standards in need. Egidius Braun embodied the true values of sport like no other. His achievements and commitment will remain in our memories.”
Stephan Grunwald (DFB Treasurer): “As DFB Treasurer, Egidius Braun was responsible for our association’s finances for a total of 15 years.
Hans-Joachim Watzke (Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the German Football League): “Egidius Braun was the grand seigneur of German football. A nationally and internationally respected, cosmopolitan man, who always stood up for the weaker ones and has earned a reputation over many years that his word can always be relied on.”
Reinhard Rauball (former DFL President): “I had a personal friendship with Egidius Braun for many years. It was always very impressive to see the dedication with which he was socially involved. I was once allowed to visit a project that he was involved with of the Egidius Braun Foundation in Mexico and knows very well that people at home and abroad still speak highly of what he has achieved.”
Herbert Hainer (President Bayern Munich): “With Egidius Braun, the German Football Association has lost one of the most influential personalities in its history. Always aware of his roots, Egidius Braun always had social responsibility at heart.”
Rudi Völler (1990 world champion and sporting director of Bayer Leverkusen): “Egidius Braun always impressed me, even when I first visited an orphanage in Mexico with him in 1985 during a trip to an international match. Back then it was the Mexico Aid, today it is the Egidius Braun Foundation – his life’s work – in which I have been a member of the board of trustees for many years. As a result, we had a very close relationship. Egidius Braun will not be forgotten as a person and because of his social achievements. My deepest sympathy goes out to his bereaved family.”