In 17 years, a lot can accumulate on a desk. Christian Seifert is in the process of clearing his out. In an interview on his farewell as managing director of the DFL, he not only looked back on the eventful time. The 52-year-old also spoke about his successor, the social role of football and why he is not planning a hike through Nepal during his time off.
On 26 October 2020, Seifert had announced his departure. Ten months later, Donata Hopfen was found as his successor at the helm of the German Football League. 14 months later, the time has come: A last general meeting, a last press conference – and also once again an extensive conversation with the media who accompanied Seifert’s era. On Wednesday, the outgoing DFL boss spoke in a good mood about …
.. his total of 17 years at the helm of the DFL: “De facto, I have spent almost a third of my life in the Bundesliga, which is a remarkable time. That’s also when you can’t separate yourself from your job. You can’t separate the work-life balance with something as mundane as football anyway. They are rather two sides of the same coin. The time flew by. It was exciting, inspiring, creative and fulfilling in the truest sense of the word. Sometimes also sobering, but regularly also euphoric. The bottom line is that it has given me significantly more than it has taken from me. ”
.. his conclusion: “I always saw it as my employer was all 36 clubs. That is, 36 very individual organisations with different legal forms whose greatest commonality is to play more or less the same game. When I look back, the DFL has always managed quite well to actually reconcile the balance between the most diverse positions. Today, in a European comparison of the top leagues, we have the lowest number of different kick-off times, the most spectators and, across all 36 clubs, the best stadium infrastructure. And also the lowest wage costs and the best financial stability within the league, even after the Corona crisis. In that respect, I think I can draw a pretty good conclusion for myself. But I could only solve all the challenges with many people around me. I certainly have some not so good qualities, but one thing I am very good at is being extremely grateful – and I am very, very grateful to many people. Without the people in my immediate working environment, I would actually never have been able to achieve many things in the last few years. ”
.. the role of football in society: “I believe that what we do is important for Germany. It is now, if not the last, but one of the last common points of reference that many people in Germany can agree on. Whether it’s social classes, age, origin, religion, gender or whatever. At the end of the day, the Bundesliga simply gives a lot of people reason to talk, gives them the impetus in everyday life to talk to other people about something that accompanies their everyday life in a relatively low-threshold way. And there are not too many of those things any more. Half of Germany is interested in football. And with that comes a great responsibility.”
.. the level of social responsibility that football can take on: “These debates are important, no question. But in my deep understanding, and this is what brought me some critical remarks a few years ago, such debates must not obscure the view of what is really important: Namely, that millions of people look forward to the Bundesliga every week. We have been doing market research for 15 years, we have been asking people for 15 years: What do you expect from the Bundesliga? For 15 years, the first three answers have always been the same. Good football, excitement and entertainment. I wish the DFL and those responsible in the Bundesliga that they have the courage to stand by exactly that. They are part of the entertainment industry. It is first and foremost about entertaining people, giving them joy and arousing positive emotions. If they don’t reach people’s hearts with the competition, they won’t reach their heads with socially relevant messages either. I simply wish the Bundesliga, whether in the DFL or in the clubs, that they have the courage to take this perspective in the future and instead of a permanent debate with less than five percent of the viewers, come to a real social dialogue. ”
.. how the reputation of the football associations in society can be explained: “What exactly the DFB does and what exactly the DFL does, many people don’t even know in case of doubt. Whether the Bundesliga is organised by the DFL, the FAZ or the SID, as long as it has three letters, no one really notices. People are interested in football as a product and that is a very important point. The acceptance of the national team did not start to suffer because of expense accounts at the DFB, but because of poor performances on the field. And then the DFB suddenly feels the same way as a Bundesliga team. So playing better football is one thing. The other component is that a lot of people in Germany don’t even realise what the DFB and DFL are arguing about at times. This is also an opportunity at a time when we are noticing that different social discourses emanate from very small groups, while social media amplify niche opinions through an echo chamber. You can imagine the power that football could actually unleash. ”
.. his leadership style: “When I read I was a strong leader, it always also means there were committees that allowed strength. You report often enough on the Bundesliga and know what it’s like behind the scenes at some clubs when the supervisory board, executive committee and management are constantly at war, putting obstacles in each other’s way and preferring to stick one more stick in each other’s spokes than one too few. Then at some point the old wisdom of football kicks in: At some point, everyone plays where they belong. We have also been able to develop in this way because I had these committees that went along with every single company foundation and every strategic step. The people have changed over the years, what hasn’t changed is the extremely trusting cooperation. I appreciate that.”
.. the “new” DFL: “In 2007, I stood here in the shell of the DFL building in Frankfurt with Werner Hackmann, shortly before he died. The barrier tape was still fluttering and the walls hadn’t been put up yet. He asked me: “This will be the new DFL? I said ‘yes’. And last Tuesday I was at the point where I said to the clubs: It’s time again for a new DFL. With new people, new perspectives, new energies and new project ideas. ”
.. the development of the DFL: “I am full of pride in what the DFL has become, from a company with 24 employees in an annex of the DFB – where Horst R. Schmidt was very careful to ensure that the DFL logo was not much bigger than that of the DFB travel agency (laughs). Today we are a very innovative and international company. That fills me with pride.”
.. the arrangement of his succession: “I must actually say that I am very pleased that the Supervisory Board has accommodated my wish to arrange my succession professionally and quickly. The handover with Donata Hopfen is going very smoothly. We have known each other for a while. Of course, I wish her only the very best for the job. I hope that the clubs will go along with the new path, even if it might be a bit bumpy at the beginning. But that was also the case in the last 17 years. A lot of what shines today wasn’t always golden.”
.. Some prevailing scepticism about hops: “New things are often met with scepticism in football. In 2005, in my first meeting, I was introduced to the DFL as the 36-year-old who comes from Karstadt-Quelle. During a coffee break, Christian Heidel came up to me and asked: At Karstadt, were you in the trousers department? Christian Heidel just did (laughs). Seriously, scepticism is completely misplaced in this case. One should be happy to have got a very well-connected manager who is very well-versed and experienced in digital issues. I am extremely satisfied with the choice of my successor. You also have to give people some space and time. ”
.. the coming period after his departure from the DFL: “It has been a very intense few months lately. We took many more decisions on Tuesday. That’s why there was no time yet for a big void to set in. But I don’t expect that either. To be honest, I’m looking forward to next week being the last working day. Then I will take some time off. But I’m not someone who wanders around Nepal alone now, thinking about life. I am a family man, my children go to school, my wife works. I will certainly take a little time out or two for myself personally, pack good books, find inner peace and enjoy the emptiness, which for now is only an emptiness of schedule. I’m working on another idea for the future. I expect they will get a hint in the first half of 2022.”
.. the debate that has arisen about compulsory vaccination for professional footballers: “Calling for compulsory vaccination because of 86 unvaccinated Bundesliga players is at best unwise, at worst outrageous in a situation where 70,000 people in Germany are infected every day. It’s better to do without populism. And it doesn’t matter whether you’re going through a sporting crisis as a football club or a pandemic as a country. The more you focus on the facts and try to consider them, the sooner you might find a way.”
.. his parting words: “I want to thank everyone for their cooperation, trust and loyalty. Finally, I want to finish with the great Horst Hrubesch, I may use that, we know and like each other. He said: ‘In conclusion, just one word: Goodbye’. “