According to information from the FAZ, the supervisory board of the German Football League (DFL) will discuss and decide on the future of full-time DFL boss Donata Hopfen on Wednesday evening.

Anno Hecker

Responsible editor for sports.

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It is said that the chair of the DFL management has lost the trust of major professional clubs in Germany.

A vote will be taken at the meeting.

Insiders speak of a majority of the six members of the supervisory board wanting to vote against continuing to work together.

According to paragraph 7 paragraph 4 of the DFL statutes, the supervisory board is responsible for appointing and dismissing the management.

High severance pay threatened

On January 1, 2022, Donata Hopfen succeeded Christian Seifert, who had headed the DFL full-time for over 17 years and led to great economic success before he gave up his position of his own free will.

The "kicker" had first reported on an impending replacement of hops.

The contract of the 46-year-old digital expert runs until the end of 2024. If the employment relationship is terminated, the DFL would have to pay a high severance payment.

In the past few months, increasing dissatisfaction with Donata Hopfen's work had leaked out from DFL committees and leading professional football clubs.

Critics complain that there is not enough progress in dealing with core issues, such as dealing with the 50+1 problem, after the Federal Cartel Office has confirmed the principle, but solutions for the exceptions such as Bayer Leverkusen, VfL Wolfsburg, TSG Hoffenheim and RB Leipzig had demanded.

These clubs are majority owned by corporations, although the 50+1 rule allows investors only 49 percent ownership.

The DFL management is also accused of insufficient development when it comes to the digitization of football, the tendering of media rights and especially the involvement of an investor.

According to the critics, foreign marketing lags far behind.

While the English Premier League takes in two billion euros, the DFL calculates this season with 190 million euros.

The discussion about the leadership of the DFL coincides with the future planning of the German Football Association (DFB) after the elimination of the men's national team in the preliminary round of the World Cup in Qatar.

This will also be discussed in Frankfurt this Wednesday.

The focus is on Hans-Joachim Watzke, the managing director of Borussia Dortmund.

He is head of the DFL supervisory board and the most powerful vice president in the DFB.

Apparently he has a huge task ahead of him, just over a year and a half before the men's European Championship in Germany: saving German football.