According to media reports, the critical statements of 1. FC Köln's member council, 1. FC Köln, Stefan Müller-Römer, about cooperation with China have aroused the unwillingness of the German Football League. According to the "Kölner Express", DFL boss Christian Seifert clearly criticized Müller-Römer's statements in a conversation with FC President Werner Wolf. The DFL has not yet officially commented on the criticism from Cologne.
The head of the member council had previously told the "Kölner Stadtanzeiger" that in China "human rights are being massively disregarded". There, "a total surveillance state is being built that George Orwell could not have imagined worse," said Müller-Römer. "That's why I think that a club like 1. FC Köln shouldn't be active there." In sport "we don't need China".
The FC had previously declared the cooperation with China to be ended, but this was only due to "pooling resources and setting priorities". The association had also distanced itself from Müller-Römer's statements and called them "private opinions".
The end of the cooperation between 1. FC and Chinese football has no consequences for the German Football Association (DFB). The association referred to a basic agreement at the state level as well as agreements between the DFB and the German Football League (DFL) with the Chinese Ministry of Education and the Chinese Football Association (CFA).
"The cooperation is aimed at the exchange between the two countries," wrote the DFB. "That means the partnership continues. The DFB is in constant contact with the Federal Foreign Office. This year, the cooperation was limited to formal and informal exchange." At the end of 2016, representatives of the German and Chinese governments had reached a far-reaching agreement between the two countries on cooperation in football.
