Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder will not run for the presidency of the German Football Association (DFB) at the extraordinary Bundestag in Frankfurt on Friday anymore. This marks an end to a career as a football functionary spanning 38 years, which had started in 1968 with the membership in the Executive Committee of the Württembergische Fußball-Verband. „MV“ was the leading man of DFB since 2001, having executed presidential duties since the summer of 2000, when President Egidius Braun went ill. Rainer Kalb, author at the Sport-Informations-Dienst (sid), retrospects the era Mayer-Vorfelder.
In comparison to his predecessors five years as President of the DFB are a quite short term, with Hermann Neuberger being in charge for 17 and Egidius Braun nine years after all. But even though Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder has reached the end of his hierarchy as the „number one“ in German football, he can look back on successful and eventful times. It was a turbulent period, in which a course had to be set several times with verve, ideas and self-assertion. Routine wasn’t there at all.
The innumerous innovations having been introduced in his era, had started before he had even been elected. On the extraordinary Bundestag on September 30, 2000 in Mainz the fundamental contract had passed. It included the association of the 36 professional clubs into the German Football League (DFL) founded as an independent group inside the DFB. The compromises, including mutual financial duties, and the detailed descriptions of responsibility made the contract an equally exemplary as sensitive work, which only with good will on sides of the amateurs and the professionals of the newly created DFL could be filled with live.
Considering this Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder was the ideal candidate for presidency of the DFB. As President of VfB Stuttgart he already got to know all the facets of club affairs between 1975 and 2000, had helped to enforce the needs of the professional clubs as chairman of the league committee since 1986 and had taken an interested view inside the situation of amateur football as Vice-President of the DFB. In Magdeburg “MV” finally was elected ninth President of the DFB on April 28, 2001 with only one dissenting vote. According to his motto: "I always fight with open visor" he accepted the new challenge with much energy.
One of the main points of focus of his work from the start was the support of the youth. Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder knew, that football wouldn’t stop after the World Cup 2006 and that during the times of anticipation important decisions for short- and medium-term developments had to be taken. In the meantime 17.000 children and teens at the age of eleven and 17 years train on a weekly basis all over Germany at altogether 390 bases, to be trained both technically and tactically in addition to their everyday training in the clubs. 1200 coaches overall are responsible for this project, which is financed by the DFB with eight million Euro per year.
For "MV", who always spoke his mind clearly, this program of youth support is a matter of heart to this day. Particularly since he had recognized very fast, that it must be embedded into a bundle of further measures, which he initiated to favour an effective and promising work with the youth. New activities in school football, support of sports schools in eastern parts of Germany or the introduction of the three-divisional Under 19-Bundesliga with 42 teams and including youth support centres at all pro clubs are just a few examples.
This fundamental work was a perfect task for Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder. Not everything went without saying, but when he is convinced of certain things, he pleads for it both courageous and diplomatic. The consequence of this politics rudimentary yielded fruits recently, as, resulting from the experiences made before, further reforms like the upcoming decision about the introduction of a Under 17-Bundesliga will follow soon. Right now there’s not a doubt, that after a temporary low, the upswing of the youth support in German football will always be closely connected to the name Mayer-Vorfelder.
Of course the money for the whole youth program, the twelve youth national teams as well as the multifaceted offers of formation for the honorary staff first of all has to be earned. But this too has been achieved by Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder and his fellow colleagues in the Executive Committee by securing the safe fundament of the DFB. The contract with the public television channels ARD and ZDF, including among others the right to broadcast all international matches of both Men’s and Women’s national teams, has been prolonged after the successful World Cup in 2002 prematurely until 2009, being a particular masterpiece regarding the uncertainties in the TV market at that time. The contract with official supplier adidas does not end until 2010 and during the eventful summer of the World Cup 2006 the agreement with general sponsor Mercedes-Benz also was prematurely prolonged until 2012.
„MV“ was always a permanent companion of the National teams, especially the Men’s National team. So it’s no surprise, that the World Cup 2006 was the heyday of his presidency. He experienced the festive days of the German team in Berlin and the other venues as Head of Delegation very closely. Just as he had done in 2002 in Korea and Japan.
As Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the World Cup Executive Committee 2006 he had his part in both the organisational and financial success of this unforgettable event in Germany. Particularly as it was Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, who presented the German bid for the World Cup 2006 to then FIFA President Joao Havelange on June 2, 1993. When the actual FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter pronounced the meanwhile historic sentence “And the winner is Deutschland” on July 6, 2000 den in front of an international host of guests at the Zurich fair, the DFB had reached its prime goal. But the World Cup would not only leave a mark in sports and organisation.
Themed „A time to make friends“ this mega-event was about to spread a picture of a modern, tolerant, cheerful and multicultural Germany all around the globe. Recently Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder has resumed full of pride, what he once started together with Egidius Braun, Horst R. Schmidt, Wolfgang Niersbach and Franz Beckenbauer: "It’s of an enormous importance, that many World Cup visitors have discovered a positive image of Germany, that they will take to the world. And it’s just as fantastic, that our people as a whole have declared their support to the national flag and national anthem in a natural and relaxed manner – in a form of patriotism, that in no way has been nationalistic."
The Extraordinary Bundestag on September 8 marks the end of the DFB Presidency for Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder. The former Württemberg minister of finance and education, who formed the head of the DFB together with Dr. Theo Zwanziger since October 2004, will stay close to football nevertheless. The vital „MV“, who was elected member of both the FIFA and UEFA Executive as first representative of the DFB, will most certainly be a interested guest in many stadiums. Particularly since he perfectly recovered from an inescapable heart surgery in February this year.
Even if not everything went as he planned or wished it to be: Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, wrongly a concept of the enemy for many, won’t look back in anger. He is and was convinced of the way he has taken as a man of action in sports and politics. That’s why Frank Sinatra’s song "I did it my way" is one of his favorites. He will feel constrained to this credo, whether he will sit back in silence or stay in the focus with striking declarations.
On the question, what will stay of his DFB presidency „MV“ gave a striking answer: "Traces in the sand, but no signs for eternity." For that time was too short and the past five years too eventful.
created by sid
[bild1]Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder will not run for the presidency of the German Football Association (DFB) at the extraordinary Bundestag in Frankfurt on Friday anymore. This marks an end to a career as a football functionary spanning 38 years, which had started in 1968 with the membership in the Executive Committee of the Württembergische Fußball-Verband. „MV“ was the leading man of DFB since 2001, having executed presidential duties since the summer of 2000, when President Egidius Braun went ill. Rainer Kalb, author at the Sport-Informations-Dienst (sid), retrospects the era Mayer-Vorfelder.
In comparison to his predecessors five years as President of the DFB are a quite short term, with Hermann Neuberger being in charge for 17 and Egidius Braun nine years after all. But even though Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder has reached the end of his hierarchy as the „number one“ in German football, he can look back on successful and eventful times. It was a turbulent period, in which a course had to be set several times with verve, ideas and self-assertion. Routine wasn’t there at all.
The innumerous innovations having been introduced in his era, had started before he had even been elected. On the extraordinary Bundestag on September 30, 2000 in Mainz the fundamental contract had passed. It included the association of the 36 professional clubs into the German Football League (DFL) founded as an independent group inside the DFB. The compromises, including mutual financial duties, and the detailed descriptions of responsibility made the contract an equally exemplary as sensitive work, which only with good will on sides of the amateurs and the professionals of the newly created DFL could be filled with live.
Considering this Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder was the ideal candidate for presidency of the DFB. As President of VfB Stuttgart he already got to know all the facets of club affairs between 1975 and 2000, had helped to enforce the needs of the professional clubs as chairman of the league committee since 1986 and had taken an interested view inside the situation of amateur football as Vice-President of the DFB. In Magdeburg “MV” finally was elected ninth President of the DFB on April 28, 2001 with only one dissenting vote. According to his motto: "I always fight with open visor" he accepted the new challenge with much energy.
One of the main points of focus of his work from the start was the support of the youth. Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder knew, that football wouldn’t stop after the World Cup 2006 and that during the times of anticipation important decisions for short- and medium-term developments had to be taken. In the meantime 17.000 children and teens at the age of eleven and 17 years train on a weekly basis all over Germany at altogether 390 bases, to be trained both technically and tactically in addition to their everyday training in the clubs. 1200 coaches overall are responsible for this project, which is financed by the DFB with eight million Euro per year.
For "MV", who always spoke his mind clearly, this program of youth support is a matter of heart to this day. Particularly since he had recognized very fast, that it must be embedded into a bundle of further measures, which he initiated to favour an effective and promising work with the youth. New activities in school football, support of sports schools in eastern parts of Germany or the introduction of the three-divisional Under 19-Bundesliga with 42 teams and including youth support centres at all pro clubs are just a few examples.
This fundamental work was a perfect task for Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder. Not everything went without saying, but when he is convinced of certain things, he pleads for it both courageous and diplomatic. The consequence of this politics rudimentary yielded fruits recently, as, resulting from the experiences made before, further reforms like the upcoming decision about the introduction of a Under 17-Bundesliga will follow soon. Right now there’s not a doubt, that after a temporary low, the upswing of the youth support in German football will always be closely connected to the name Mayer-Vorfelder.
Of course the money for the whole youth program, the twelve youth national teams as well as the multifaceted offers of formation for the honorary staff first of all has to be earned. But this too has been achieved by Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder and his fellow colleagues in the Executive Committee by securing the safe fundament of the DFB. The contract with the public television channels ARD and ZDF, including among others the right to broadcast all international matches of both Men’s and Women’s national teams, has been prolonged after the successful World Cup in 2002 prematurely until 2009, being a particular masterpiece regarding the uncertainties in the TV market at that time. The contract with official supplier adidas does not end until 2010 and during the eventful summer of the World Cup 2006 the agreement with general sponsor Mercedes-Benz also was prematurely prolonged until 2012.
[bild2]
„MV“ was always a permanent companion of the National teams, especially the Men’s National team. So it’s no surprise, that the World Cup 2006 was the heyday of his presidency. He experienced the festive days of the German team in Berlin and the other venues as Head of Delegation very closely. Just as he had done in 2002 in Korea and Japan.
As Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the World Cup Executive Committee 2006 he had his part in both the organisational and financial success of this unforgettable event in Germany. Particularly as it was Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, who presented the German bid for the World Cup 2006 to then FIFA President Joao Havelange on June 2, 1993. When the actual FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter pronounced the meanwhile historic sentence “And the winner is Deutschland” on July 6, 2000 den in front of an international host of guests at the Zurich fair, the DFB had reached its prime goal. But the World Cup would not only leave a mark in sports and organisation.
Themed „A time to make friends“ this mega-event was about to spread a picture of a modern, tolerant, cheerful and multicultural Germany all around the globe. Recently Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder has resumed full of pride, what he once started together with Egidius Braun, Horst R. Schmidt, Wolfgang Niersbach and Franz Beckenbauer: "It’s of an enormous importance, that many World Cup visitors have discovered a positive image of Germany, that they will take to the world. And it’s just as fantastic, that our people as a whole have declared their support to the national flag and national anthem in a natural and relaxed manner – in a form of patriotism, that in no way has been nationalistic."
The Extraordinary Bundestag on September 8 marks the end of the DFB Presidency for Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder. The former Württemberg minister of finance and education, who formed the head of the DFB together with Dr. Theo Zwanziger since October 2004, will stay close to football nevertheless. The vital „MV“, who was elected member of both the FIFA and UEFA Executive as first representative of the DFB, will most certainly be a interested guest in many stadiums. Particularly since he perfectly recovered from an inescapable heart surgery in February this year.
Even if not everything went as he planned or wished it to be: Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, wrongly a concept of the enemy for many, won’t look back in anger. He is and was convinced of the way he has taken as a man of action in sports and politics. That’s why Frank Sinatra’s song "I did it my way" is one of his favorites. He will feel constrained to this credo, whether he will sit back in silence or stay in the focus with striking declarations.
On the question, what will stay of his DFB presidency „MV“ gave a striking answer: "Traces in the sand, but no signs for eternity." For that time was too short and the past five years too eventful.
