Andreas Rettig calls Rummenigge's Summit "inappropriate saber-rattling"
Long-time German football administrator Andreas Rettig struck back at Bayern CEO Karl Heinz Rummenigge one day after the FCB executive convened an exclusive summit of 15 Bundesliga clubs.
One-time DFL secretary Andreas Rettig didn't mince words when discussing the controversial Wednesday meeting of 15 German professional bodies that some domestic footballing journalists referred to as the "G-15". In an interview with SkyGermany, the veteran managing director of four separate Bundesliga clubs labelled the gathering "inappropriate saber-rattling."
"If it becomes apparent that you can become persona non-grata simply because you have differing views from FC Bayern or their colleagues, we might as well close up shop soon," the 57-year-old told the broadcaster, "It's astonishing that one disregards others in such a fashion and plays these muscle-flexing games."
Across the Bundesrepulik on the Thursday, most all of the sports editorial pages in the country's major publications weighed in on a potentially momentous split among the DFL clubs. Opinions on the realistic possibility of such a fracture vary, but the general consensus holds that Rummenigge did wish to exert a show of strength and saber-rattle against a proposed revenue reform. The Bavarian boss's own words confirm this.
Rettig, who worked as a front office man for Freiburg, Augsburg, FC Köln, and (most recently) 1 FC. Pauli, attacked the power-play by expressing direct criticism of the man who formulated it.
"Of course I have to laugh when Rummenigge claims that he's upset about secret meetings or secret [positional] papers," Rettig told the broadcaster, "There's a certain salaciousness to someone who holds secret talks all the time taking up this position."