Taxpayers' association after derby: clubs to share costs
Following the large-scale operation at the Lower Saxony derby between second-division soccer clubs Hannover 96 and Eintracht Braunschweig, the taxpayers' association has backed up its call for clubs to contribute to the costs of police operations. The BdSt for Lower Saxony and Bremen wrote in a letter to the State Ministry of the Interior on Monday "that an appropriate contribution from profit-oriented event organizers to the costs of increased police expenditure at high-risk major events is necessary".
Due to the use of pyrotechnics and the resulting thick clouds of smoke, the match was kicked off around five minutes later on Sunday. Referee Sascha Stegemann also interrupted the match twice more during the course of the game because Eintracht supporters threw red flares and fireworks towards the pitch. A police officer was seriously injured in a scuffle in the home area. More than 2000 police officers were on site.
The Taxpayers' Association called for a nationwide "police cost fund" into which German professional clubs should regularly make appropriate contributions to cover increased expenses at high-risk matches. If this solution is "further delayed", Lower Saxony's Interior Minister Daniela Behrens must take the initiative and create a separate legal basis for Lower Saxony, according to the taxpayers' association.
After the match, the SPD politician expressed her outrage at the violent atmosphere and said: "This high level of police deployment is certainly not sustainable in the long term without us having to talk to the clubs about reimbursing costs."
The issue has been a part of German professional soccer for several years. The federal state of Bremen always invoices the German Football League for the additional costs of so-called high-risk matches. The DFL then passes the fee notices on to Werder Bremen. After years of legal disputes, the Federal Administrative Court ruled in 2019 that this procedure is legal. The DFL lodged a constitutional complaint with the Federal Constitutional Court regarding the fee notices.
The Taxpayers' Association suggests that Hannover 96 and other Bundesliga 2 clubs, like Eintracht Braunschweig, should contribute to the costs of police operations following the derby, due to the use of pyrotechnics and the ensuing chaos. In a high-risk match between Hanover 96 and Eintracht Braunschweig, the Bundesliga 2 clubs faced significant police expenses, including over 2000 officers on duty.
Source: www.dpa.com
