It was not his intention “to criticize the DFB or the employees of Schiri GmbH,” assured Ittrich (45). He just wanted to point out the problem of the heavy burden. “I think it’s a shame what came out of it in the media.”
Ittrich said in an interview on “web.de” that the DFB had to think about measures outside of games when it came to managing the workload for referees. In contrast to the professionals, the referees would have to organize their own network of doctors and physiotherapists. The fact that the interview was released by the communications department of DFB Schiri GmbH “was a mistake made by an employee that is being discussed internally,” said Kircher.
Kircher’s speech to the referees
According to “Kicker”, the referee boss is said to have given an incendiary speech of around ten to 15 minutes at the base course at the DFB campus in Frankfurt/Main because of Ittrich’s alleged criticism. “In such a case, from my point of view, it can be a more emotional appearance, that’s part of my understanding of leadership,” said Kircher.
There was now a discussion between Kircher and Ittrich. “We have now talked to each other calmly. I have known and respected Knut for a long time. That’s precisely why our discussion was perhaps a little emotional at one point or another, but still factual in nature,” said Ittrich, who is currently taking a break due to a muscle injury.
