CEO Thomas Hitzlsperger and President Claus Vogt are engaged in a unique power struggle at VfB Stuttgart that is increasingly turning into a mud battle. Even the traditional Swabian club has never experienced such a feud in its turbulent history. One thing is already certain: there can only be losers.
VfB Stuttgart
After Hitzlsperger’s frontal attack: President Claus Vogt shoots back
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In the midst of the sporting boom, VfB threatens to dismantle itself at the highest level. In an unprecedented way, AG boss Hitzlsperger and eV president Vogt attack each other in public and go into the next round in a bitter power struggle.
Vogt defends himself against Hitzlsperger’s allegations
After the sharp attack by Hitzlsperger, supervisory board boss Vogt countered on Thursday and defended himself against the allegations of the ex-national player.
VfB Stuttgart
Thomas Hitzlsperger vs. Claus Vogt: Why the power struggle at VfB Stuttgart is escalating
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“I, no we, all of us had certainly not thought it possible that a member of the board of a club publicly attacked the chairman of the supervisory board in such a way,” wrote the 51-year-old in a personal statement. “Yesterday I was attacked publicly in a kind of way (and the public was confronted with partly untrue statements), I can’t leave it like that.”
Typical VfB, some might say. Although things haven’t been going so well for the newcomer in the Bundesliga for a long time, things are simmering behind the scenes. Instead of talking to each other, Vogt and Hitzlsperger only talk about each other.
VfB Stuttgart
Why it’s crunching again behind the VfB scenes
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Escalation on Wednesday
On Wednesday, the situation escalated when Hitzlsperger announced that he would also be running for president at the general meeting on March 18, 2021.
In a one-off pursuit of power, the 38-year-old Vogt would like to push out of office in order to hold the chairmanship and presidential posts in personal union.
opinion
Comment on the conflict at VfB: Hitzlsperger is reaching for absolute power in the red clubhouse
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The reason for this step? Vogt alone. Says Hitzlsperger. “A deep crack goes through our club,” wrote the ex-professional. This crack runs between Vogt on the one hand “and the entire management board of the AG and numerous committee members from the executive committee, supervisory board and association advisory board as well as employees on the other hand”.
Vogt’s desire to profile threatens “the existence of the whole association”. From Vogt’s goals and ideas, with which he started a year ago, “almost nothing” has been implemented. It was an attack like no other.
The investigation of the data scandal moves into focus
Only after long deliberations did Vogt defend himself. Dem four-page letter from Hitzlsperger followed a four-page letter from the President. And the entrepreneur from Böblingen made it clear what, in his opinion, is the main reason for the escalation of the power struggle: “The investigation of the data scandal.”
In the run-up to the general meeting in summer 2017, employees of the club are said to have repeatedly passed on member data to third parties. A few months ago Vogt finally commissioned an external law firm to clarify who and what was behind it. Now he is making serious allegations against VfB and Hitzlsperger.
VfB Stuttgart
Data affair at VfB Stuttgart: a chronology of events
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“Several attempts have been made in the past few weeks to torpedo the work of the Esecon law firm,” writes Vogt. “One can get the impression that there are people in and around VfB who do not want this information.”
Great damage to the image of the traditional club
Hitzlsperger, on the other hand, had claimed that Vogt had pushed through the contract “without a tender, without a cost estimate and without a project plan”. The resulting “escalating costs” would have meant that the outsourced professional football club now had to support the club “to save it from insolvency”.
Not true, says Vogt. “The costs of clearing up the law firm were regularly checked by me and communicated to the colleagues in the presidium. In addition, these costs are largely covered by insurance! “
Whatever is now true: The image damage for the traditional Swabian club is already immense – and the mud battle between the VfB bosses is far from over.
