According to a report by the FAZ, the German Football Association (DFB) has largely withdrawn politically ahead of the 2026 World Cup in the United States. DFB Bernd Neuendorf avoids public statements on the tournament’s particular political challenges. In the newspaper’s assessment, the association does not even attempt to oppose what is intolerable.
The DFB has settled comfortably in North Carolina, in a hotel styled like an English castle and a training ground on the campus of Wake Forest University. Julian Nagelsmann’s team has enough spirit and courage. Yet, according to the FAZ, the ambition to become world champion has not come closer than at the home European Championship in 2024, when they were eliminated in the quarterfinals.
At a sponsor event in Chicago a week ago, Neuendorf spoke about social responsibility and the 40th anniversary of the DFB’s Mexico aid. He did not utter a single word about the current political challenges of this World Cup. The FAZ assesses this as a denial of reality and accuses the president of making himself as small as he possibly could on the way to the World Cup.
Neuendorf has largely refused to address the big questions that this tournament brings, especially in the United States. Not once did he appear at a press conference that would have allowed a discussion of his positions. The DFB, the world’s largest sports association, remains silent before the World Cup – a sign of self-abandonment, according to the FAZ.
Source: www.faz.net
