Profit again at last: DFB reorganizes itself "under its own steam"
After years of financial problems, the German Football Association (DFB) has recovered and made a profit again. The DFB has even surpassed its goal of a balanced budget and recorded a nearly 4.9 million Euro profit in the previous year.
DFB President Bernd Neuendorf told "Capital" magazine, which first reported the good news for the largest individual sports association in the world, "We managed to eliminate the structural deficit on our own." This, according to Neuendorf, was a "major achievement." He was particularly proud that the association achieved financial stabilization without the help of expensive consulting firms.
Previously, the DFB had to take losses for two consecutive years, with losses totaling 4.2 million Euro in 2022. This was due in part to high costs from tax proceedings, the cost of the new campus, and the poor performance of the A-National teams for men and women.
Three Reasons for Return to Profit
According to Treasurer Stephan Grunwald, there were three reasons for the return to profit: First, cost savings and revenue increases totaling around 15 million Euro were realized based on proposals from internal working groups. Second, significant improvements came from the new basic agreement with the German Football League (DFL). Grunwald cited the "good successes" in marketing the cup competitions, leagues, and national teams as the third factor: "We see light at the end of the tunnel."
The DFB announced in December of the previous year that it was on a good path to consolidation. The association announced a balanced budget for 2023 and also set this goal for the current year. To achieve these goals, measures were already taken in July 2023. Without naming specific measures, the DFB spoke of a breakthrough in dealing with its financial problems. The structural deficit was said to have decreased from an annual 19.5 million Euro to 4.5 million Euro.
Campus, Tax Disputes, Denial of Tax-Exempt Status
The responsible parties followed mostly the proposals of the ten internal working groups, without reducing funds for the 21 state associations. The income from the new basic agreement with the DFL alleviated financial concerns. The new contract provides an additional 26 million Euro instead of the previous six million per year for the DFB.
The money is desperately needed, as the financial issues were greater than anticipated. The cost overrun for the 2022 opened campus was 30 million Euro more than planned (180 instead of 150 million). Furthermore, tax discrepancies caused additional economic damage. The denial of tax-exempt status for the years 2006, 2014, and 2015, which amounts to 50 million Euro, is still not legally resolved.
At its latest step, the DFB took a concrete stance against it. In April, the association announced that it intended to sell a car park, rental apartments, and the old central administration building to generate funds. At that point, it was already clear that the future would look rosier. In fact, the DFB had announced a spectacular switch from Adidas to Nike a month earlier. This change is expected to increase annual revenues by at least double, reaching 100 million Euros from 2027 onwards.
Bernd Neuendorf, the DFB President, stated to "Capital" magazine that the "We managed to eliminate the structural deficit on our own," which he considered a "major achievement." The DFB's return to profit was due in part to Bernd Neuendorf's leadership and the success of the national soccer team, as the good performance of the A-National teams for men and women played a role in the financial stabilization of the association.
