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Ralf Ranginick as coach at FC Schalke (2011): Now he could return
Photo:
Rolf Vennenbernd / dpa
The Schalke 04 football club has been in an uproar since a group of men, initially not named, went public on Friday with an attempt to persuade former coach Ralf Rangnick to return.
The Bundesliga club, which is seriously threatened by relegation, is falling apart in terms of sport and economy.
And if someone is trusted to put this club back together in the second division, it will be the former RB Leipzig makers.
The group, which calls itself “FC Schalke 04 - Tradition and Future”, however, drew the anger of the supervisory board because it approached Rangnick without any consultation with the club's most powerful control body.
In the Süddeutsche Zeitung, supervisory board chief Jens Buchta spoke of “behavior that is harmful to the association”.
Perhaps the rushing ahead with the name Rangnick also chased away Markus Krösche, who was actually favored by Buchta and who was to be won over as the new sports director.
Krösche, currently sports director of RB Leipzig, canceled anyhow.
But whoever belongs to this group, who messes up Schalke, has so far been officially hidden.
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Ulrich Paetzel, Frank Habericket, both spokesmen for the “FC Schalke 04 - Tradition and Future” initiative, at a press conference on Wednesday
Photo: Roland Weihrauch / dpa
On Wednesday lunchtime, the Rangnick interest group revealed itself, not with its complete list of members and, above all, not with concrete plans.
But two group spokespeople gave a press conference, tried to promote their own cause and once again proliferate with their biggest pound: "We are firmly convinced that Ralf Rangnick still has a great interest in working for Schalke over the long term," said Frank Habericket , one of the speakers.
Rangnick has "great desire for this project".
Schalke or national coach
It is guaranteed that Rangnick can basically imagine a return to FC Schalke.
This was confirmed by his advisor, Marc Kosicke, in an interview with Sport1 on Tuesday.
However, Kosicke also said that Rangnick was interested in the post of national coach, which became vacant in the summer.
This position has long been considered Rangnick's dream job.
At the DFB, however, he does not seem to be number one to succeed Joachim Löw.
Ulrich Paetzel, the group's second spokesman, said with a view to Rangnick: "I think that a quick decision is the best thing for Schalke," which could well be understood as slight pressure on the supervisory board.
But Paetzel and Habericket stressed several times that they were "not an opposition" and that they would only undertake everything in the interests of the association.
After the initial trouble, Schalke and the Rangnick Group are trying to smooth things over a bit.
Buchta wanted to talk to some group members on Wednesday evening, after the club is said to have contacted Rangnicks advisor.
But who is behind the group?
And can it be that even the former Schalke patron Clemens Tönnies has his fingers in the game to influence the fortunes of FC Schalke?
Tönnies came under fire after a racist statement and a scandal in his meat company and then resigned in June 2020 after 26 years in the club.
Connections to Tönnies
In some cases, the names of the group members have already become public.
And they coincide with information from SPIEGEL.
In addition to Paetzel, chairman of the board of the Emschergenossenschaft water management association, who was once mayor of the town of Herten, which borders Gelsenkirchen, the list also includes Helmut Sandrock, former general secretary of the German Football Association (DFB).
He left the association voluntarily in 2016 after coming under considerable pressure in the course of the affair surrounding the awarding of the 2006 World Cup.
His name comes as a surprise on the list, as a connection between the functionary and Schalke was not yet known.
However, Sandrock lived in Herten for many years, where Paetzel was mayor.
Ingo Anderbrügge has had a connection with Schalke for a long time.
As a »Eurofighter« he won the Uefa Cup in 1997 with the club.
Anderbrügge appeared at the press conference on Wednesday and said on behalf of the group that he wanted "not a new Schalke, but a strong Schalke".
Anderbrügge did not say what a program for a strong Schalke should look like either.
There was a clear statement on the subject of Clemens Tönnies: "He is not part of the group," said spokesman Paetzel.
Some of the names that, according to information from SPIEGEL, belong to the group, however, have clear connections to Tönnies.
Take Michael Bücker, for example: On March 31, Bücker will leave the Board of Management of BayernLB at his own request.
The bank is considered the house bank of Clemens Tönnies' huge meat company.
The Tönnies Group obtained 350 million euros through a borrower's note loan placed with BayernLB in 2017.
Like the building contractor Harfid Hadrovic, whose company name is emblazoned on the Schalke shirt sleeve, Hans Mosbacher is also represented in the group as a representative of a sponsor.
Mosbacher is the head of the Stölting Group, which sponsors the association but also works for it.
In January 2020, when Tönnies was still the powerful chairman of the supervisory board, Stölting received the order for the security service after the order for the cleaning work in the arena.
The staff working in the arena will therefore be increased from 200 to 1,200, the company announced at the time.
At the request of SPIEGEL, the meat company confirmed direct business relationships between Stölting and the Tönnies group of companies.
At its 29 locations in Europe, Tönnies works with various service providers in the area of security and cleaning: "This also includes the Stölting Group at some locations."
"If the support is not wanted, we would have to accept it."
Ulrich Paetzel, spokesman for the Rangnick Group
The former Schalke professional Olaf Thon, who is also said to have at least a close relationship with the group, and Josef Schnusenberg, who was on the board of FC Schalke 04 from 1994 to 2010, have served as chairman for the last three years on the Stölting advisory board.
He is the tax advisor and a close confidante of Tönnies.
Rüdiger Mengede, another member of the group, was managing director of FC Schalke 04 Arena Management GmbH from 2007 to 2013, shortly afterwards managing director of the Stölting Service Group for a few months.
His successor in arena management was Moritz Beckers-Schwarz.
He too belongs to the Rangnick group.
The connections to Tönnies can be proven.
However, it is unclear whether the former strong man of FC Schalke also has an influence.
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Clemens Tönnies was with FC Schalke for 26 years
Photo: Neundorf / Kirchner-Media / imago images
The private initiative was described by various media on Friday as a "secret group of influential Schalke players from politics and business".
Now the heads of the all-male group are largely known, as is their pledge, Ralf Rangnick.
They would have promised Rangnick a budget "in the upper range of the current second division" - without consulting the club.
Would you bring in your own money, would you like to recall the two existing board members Christina Rühl-Hamers and Alexander Jobst, and what happens if your at least three own candidates are not elected to the board in the summer?
The answers to these questions remained vague.
Should their gift from Rangnick be accepted, the group would be celebrated, gaining posts and influence.
And if not?
Ulrich Paetzel said: "If the support is not wanted, we would have to accept it."
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