Saxony's Court of Audit welcomes soccer ruling

Saxony's Court of Audit sees its own legal opinion confirmed by the Federal Constitutional Court's ruling on police costs for high-risk soccer matches. The Court of Audit had audited the expenses for securing soccer matches in Saxony in 2019 and later recommended that the Free State should follow the example of the state of Bremen and also create a corresponding legal basis.

"High-risk football matches cause additional costs of over seven million euros per year for the Saxon police. These are currently borne by the general public. Such costs should not be charged to the taxpayer," emphasized Court of Audit Director Gerold Böhmer. The ruling creates legal certainty for the creation of a corresponding regulation in Saxony as well.

Minister of the Interior wants to talk to soccer association

Saxony's Minister of the Interior Armin Schuster (CDU) also welcomed the decision from Karlsruhe. However, he left open what consequences Saxony will draw from the ruling. Schuster first wants to discuss this with the Saxon Football Association (SFV).

The German Football League had previously failed in its appeal to the Federal Constitutional Court against police fees for high-risk matches. The umbrella organization had objected to a Bremen regulation from 2014. This stipulates that the city can charge fees for additional police costs at certain events with a high risk of violence. From now on, soccer clubs could therefore be charged additional costs for such matches.