Hertha-Ultra about protest: "Glad it's over"

The Ultras of second-division soccer club Hertha BSC will cease their protests after the failure of the investors' entry into the German Football League (DFL), according to their lead singer. "We're glad it's over and we don't have to carry out any more protests on the back of sport," "Kreisel" from the ultra group "Harlekins Berlin '98" told rbb. "Nothing similar to a protest will happen in Braunschweig," he said. The Berliners play at Eintracht Braunschweig on Saturday (13:00/Sky).

However, he could only speak for the Hertha fans. "Because we don't go to the stadium to throw tennis balls either. That bothers us too. There's an interruption for us too, and we know that it's not good for the team," said the pre-game singer. "It was a means to an end - and nothing else." Other, less disruptive forms of protest had previously not been taken seriously.

After weeks of fan protests, the DFL Executive Committee decided on Wednesday to end negotiations with the last remaining bidder, CVC. Hertha had voted against the deal. "Kreisel" praised the cooperation of the fan scenes in the matter: "Without the strength of all locations and pursuing the same goal together, we would not have made progress. It is therefore a whole movement that has achieved this."

In future, he hopes for a better exchange between the two sides. "We need to smell the danger earlier and enter into dialog with the club. And vice versa: the club must proactively approach the active fan scene, actually every member - preferably at an annual general meeting or members' meeting," he said.