Oliver Bierhoff is the first domino to fall after Germany’s embarrassing performance at the World Cup. The head of the national team and the German and DFB academies announced on Monday that they would part-out. Bierhoff submitted his resignation on Monday, which he temporarily accepted through DFB president Bernd Neuendorf.
“I have informed German FA chairman Bernd Neuendorf of my resolution today,” Bierhoff wrote in an unpublic statement published via The Athletic. “I’m clearing the way to set a new course. “
Bierhoff has been part of the DFB since 2004 and helped Germany win the World Cup in 2014 and the Confederation Cup in 2017. With Bierhoff in the lead, Germany reached the final of the European Championship in 2008 and 3 more semi-finals in primary competitions. . , completing third place in the World Cup in 2006 and 2010. Bierhoff also oversaw the structure of a $150 million educational facility for the national team.
Along with former Bundestrainer Joachim Löw, Bierhoff was undoubtedly one of the faces of Germany’s restart in the early 2000s that ultimately led to Brazil’s triumph in 2014. Another semi-final at Euro 2016 and the victory of the Confederations followed. However, since then, Die Nationalmannschaft has experienced a steady decline that has resulted in consecutive historic outings at the organisational level at the World Cup.
“Oliver Bierhoff has done a magnificent job in the DFB,” DFB President Bernd Neuendorf said in a message on the DFB homepage. times, [Bierhoff] always tried to achieve his goals and visions and left his mark on the DFB.
World Cup triumph aside, there is a sense in Germany that the national team has been under expectations for some time. The marketing of the team through Bierhoff and the Die Mannschaft logo were just two aspects. It was the feeling that the German golden generation deserves to have gained more than one top name.
With the effects deteriorating over the past five years, calls for Bierhoff’s resignation have multiplied in German football. Bierhoff approached the DFB to terminate his contract is a preventative move welcomed by decision-makers.
The question is, what happens next in the DFB?Bierhoff is probably just the first domino to fall. All control over President Neuendorf is also criticized, and head coach Hansi Flick, who was appointed only a year ago, has also been criticized.
Flick’s job, for now, is certain, but with the arrival of a new director (Hertha’s sporting director, Fredi Bobic, is a candidate), there is a possibility of more radical adjustments to the world’s largest football federation. It remains to be seen whether those changes will have an immediate effect on Germany’s fate on the ground.
After all, German football is no stranger to revolutions. The federation completely restructured its program in the early 2000s, but real good fortune didn’t come until ten years later. However, time is running out, as Germany will host the European Championship in 2024. .
Manuel Veth is the host of the Bundesliga Gegenpressing podcast and the US Regional Manager. UU. de Transfermarkt. He has also been in The Guardian, Newsweek, Howler, Pro Soccer USA and several other media outlets. Follow him on Twitter: @ManuelVeth