Status: 08/14/2021 11:30 a.m.
Christian Seifert’s successor in the DFL has been settled: Donata Hopfen will be the new chairman of the DFL management team at the beginning of next year.
Donata Hopfen will succeed Christian Seifert at the DFL.
Image: – / DFL / dpa
Donata Hopfen will succeed Christian Seifert as CEO of the German Football League at the beginning of the new year. As the DFL announced on Saturday (August 14th, 2021), Seifert will leave the league umbrella organization at the end of December, six months earlier than planned. However, he will still be available to advise his successor if necessary.
Her contract initially runs for three years until December 31, 2024. In October last year, Seifert announced his departure from the DFL, to which the 52-year-old had come in 2005.
“Developing a good reputation worldwide”
Donata Hopfen will succeed Christian Seifert at the DFL.
Image: – / DFL / dpa
Hopfen expressed his thanks for the trust in the DFL announcement. German professional football has a great tradition and is deeply anchored in society. “The Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 enjoy an excellent reputation around the world, just like the DFL. All of this must be preserved against the background of technological, social and media changes in the field of football – and at the same time innovatively developed,” she said.
14 years of Axel Springer
Hopfen started her career at the management consultancy Accenture. This was followed by 14 years at Axel Springer, most recently as chairwoman of the publishing management of the “BILD” group, before moving to Verimi, a digital joint project of large German companies, as CEO.
DFL supervisory board chairman Peter Peters described Hopfen as the right person for one of the most important positions in German football. “In a time of change, she has all the qualities and great assertiveness to lead the DFL into a continued successful future in the interests of the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 clubs,” said Peters.
This applies particularly to her extensive experience in the areas of media and digitization – with a clear commitment to social responsibility in all its facets. “We are convinced that we are about to start a successful cooperation,” said Peters, who, after Fritz Keller’s resignation, is currently also leading the German Football Association (DFB) on an interim basis with Rainer Koch.
Source: sportschau.de