THE 'GERMAN MODEL' EXPLAINED: SUPPORTER INVOLVEMENT
Really good overview of how Germany’s fan-owned club model actually works from Supporters Direct.
As discussed yesterday, the presence of the ‘50 + 1’ rule in DFB and DFL statutes means that supporter ownership (or majority control) is enshrined in German football. This is supporter involvement at its most clear-cut: the opportunity for meaningful involvement in every aspect of the club - from electing board members to organising community projects - is guaranteed.
A dark day in Köln history. They were relegated for the 5th time in 14 years after losing 4-1 to Bayern on the final matchday. It was also local favorite Lukas Podolski’s final match for the club. Supporters’ frustration showed as several smoke bombs were lit towards the end, forcing the referee to suspend the match before the final whistle.
(via beneaththepool)
Bayern’s biggest ever win against Dortmund came on November 27, 1971, beating them by an incredible score of 11-1. Gerd Müller scored four goals that day.
1860 München’s Friedhelm “Timo” Konietzka gets his marching orders from the referee on Matchday 8 of the 1966/67 season in a game against his former club Borussia Dortmund. The striker was subsequently banned for 6 months for assault on the referee. It still stands as the longest ever suspension for a red card in league history. Konietzka is still famously known for scoring the very first Bundesliga goal after the league was put together in 1963 when playing for Dortmund.
"The supporters are our main partners, our center of operations – everything we do stems from the fact that they are the main pillar of our operations. Without them there are no operations."
- Christian Seifert, the Chief Executive Officer of the Deutsche Fußball Liga, via this excellent article astutely entitled “A supporter is not a customer.”
"I can do without flares very easily, I don’t even find them particularly “atmospheric”. However, many people obviously feel different about this and they will continue to get them into the ground. Judging from what I saw in Bochum all those years ago, there is no way to stop them, no matter how many stewards search how many people. If we accept this as fact, we should be pragmatic, not pig-headed, and look for a way to make attending a match safer for all of us."
- Uli Hesse, ESPN Soccernet. From a very fair piece on the pragmatism needed to deal with ultras’ flares/pyro based on the Bundesliga, give it a read.
Nice show by fans of Borussia Dortmund on away trip to Freiburg yesterday! Great pyro action!
