“It’s important that we learn from the past”

In retrospect, we can say clearly: This would no longer happen in this form and at such a time. We have to say this self-critically and admit: That was a mistake. The automatism created between this trip and the subsequent defeat in Fürth is, in our opinion, untenable in this form, but with this trip we opened the window for these opinions and theses and thereby brought unrest into the club. In addition, it is generally questionable whether such a trip before the end of the season corresponds to the basic principles of fairness. At this point the message is: Mallorca will no longer take place here in this form.

I have to take this issue on my own. This sentence, uttered in the exuberance of emotions and euphoria after the promotion, was not right from me. At this point I was too euphoric. Of course, that didn’t mean that we were taking the difference between first and second place in TV revenue lightly. But my sentence could definitely be misunderstood in this direction. I have to take responsibility for that. What I wanted to say: „After the Fürth game, let’s not be sad about missing out on the second division championship, but let’s be happy about having achieved something really big.“ A big apology to everyone who took it that way, however one could understand it.

Ticket prices are not determined on the last day of the game, but rather this is a process that begins weeks before the end of the season. Based on this timing alone, I can assure you that the ticket prices were in no way increased due to the missed second division championship. Basically, ticket prices are an important part of our financing concept and an important source of revenue. Especially because we finance ourselves through our own resources and our own operational business. However, a lot went wrong in communication back then. We then explained everything again afterwards and apologised for the way we communicated. I think we have found a good solution to this issue with a view to the new season.

It has become clear that the saying “The truth is on the pitch” is true. Because a club lives from what the results are. And these were definitely not good for us. It is important that we learn from the past. And we have already done that. We looked at the topics and worked through them. Starting with the squad composition, the quality of the players and the composition. We discussed whether we should have based the team’s structure more heavily on players with Bundesliga experience; squad size was also an issue again. The coaching team worked on its plans and tactical orientations, everything was worked on with an open mind. We also failed to develop a David versus Goliath attitude. We also talked about the injury rate and also about processes in the medical field. Nobody was and is of the opinion that it was all just bad luck and that things will work themselves out again in the second division. We have an absolutely challenging season ahead of us, which we are very much looking forward to, but for which we also have to prepare to the highest degree professionally.

Despite all the topics we had to discuss, Darmstadt 98 had the big advantage that nothing was broken. It was a very difficult season with a lot of discussions that we had to face. But we don’t have a pile of rubble here and we don’t have to do a complete rebuild because nothing has collapsed. We are stable on all issues and the game in Dortmund showed how realistically our fans are dealing with the situation. Relegation was always imaginable for everyone, but the ‚how‘ was the decisive factor. Despite the ‚how‘, we remained a unit that continues to pull together. This is the foundation of our club. We cannot buy success, we can only achieve it through solidarity.

The majority of people understood what we had already built with Torsten and what we want to continue to build. This is an important aspect when it comes to the topics of cohesion, continuity and stability. These football reflexes are far too easy for me to immediately dismiss the coach if they fail. Within two years we developed a comprehensive sporting concept with Torsten that extends to the NLZ. There are a lot of issues related to this coaching team that we would all upset with a dismissal. The inner cogs between the coaching team, sports management and team must mesh. And that is absolutely the case with us. We deliberately gave the coaching team contracts until 2027 because we want to be on the road for the long term.

There are many great aspects to look forward to. In Paul Fernie we have a sports director who has brought a lot of fresh air here and who has already developed a very good working relationship with the head coach. All the people are absolutely motivated and willing to work hard. Our “Miracle of Bielefeld” was just 10 years ago, the awakening of Darmstadt 98 in professional football. And in these past 10 years we have experienced so many beautiful things that we don’t want to sweep the experience of this season under the carpet, but we shouldn’t and shouldn’t carry this season around with us forever. Now we are moving forward and want to play a good role in the second division.