MUNICH (AP) — Just one day after Germany’s defeat, selected as host In the 2029 European Women’s Football Championship, top clubs have disagreed with the national football federation over how the women’s league should be run.
In a surprise announcement, the 14 clubs in the Women’s Bundesliga announced that they will proceed with the creation of an association to “ensure the modern, professional and sustainable development of the Women’s Bundesliga and strengthen the commercial potential of women’s professional football”.
They are doing it without the federation known as the DFB, which currently runs the league. This came despite lengthy negotiations aimed at establishing a joint venture between the DFB and the clubs. Last month, the DFB announced it would invest around 100 million euros ($117 million) in the league over eight years.
Club officials accused the DFB of trying to go back on already agreed points.
“It was even more surprising for us at the club that the basis agreed upon in the negotiations is now being called into question, even though the club will be investing significantly more than in the Women’s Bundesliga,” Bayern Munich CEO Jan Christian Dresen said in a statement.
Dresen added that the club is proceeding without a DFB “in order not to waste any more time”.
Eintracht Frankfurt board spokesman Axel Herrmann said he was “disappointed” to learn that some points he believed had been agreed with the DFB were not included in the contract at the time.
The clubs said it was “still open at this point” as to whether the DFB could become involved in the future.
The DFB expressed “bewilderment” at the development and said it would continue discussions with clubs over the coming weeks.
Germany has been a pioneer in the development of women’s soccer in Europe, but in recent years German clubs have struggled to compete with wealthier, faster-growing teams in other parts of the continent. Since 2015, the Women’s Champions League has been dominated by teams from France, Spain and England, with no German team having won.
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