Many clubs, one owner: Bayern and BVB in favor of strict rules

Bayern CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen and Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke have warned against the growing influence of so-called multi-club ownerships. "German soccer has to be very vigilant about this, we have a more watchful eye on this than is the case in many other countries," Watzke said after the European Club Association (ECA) general assembly in Berlin on Thursday. For Dreesen, consortiums that own several clubs in different countries could develop into a danger.

"Certainly you have to look at when players move back and forth between clubs that belong to one owner, that will be interesting how to counter that," the Munich CEO said. One has a "clear stance" against multi-club ownership.

The stance of Bayern and BVB is piquant in that Bundesliga rival RB Leipzig, under the umbrella of the Red Bull Group, has also already been controlled by UEFA in competition matters in the past. With Red Bull Salzburg it came also already on European level to a direct duel of two teams from the portfolio of the beverage company - in the end with permission of the continental association.

Oliver Mintzlaff, supervisory board boss with RB Leipzig and member of the board in the Red Bull GmbH, moved on Thursday like Dreesen and as successor of Watzke in the ECA board. "Conflicts of interest" due to other personal duties, such as at Austrian broadcaster Servus-TV, which also has soccer rights, are not seen by the top manager. By his "expertise in recent years, which I have collected, it was a desire that I contribute here," said Mintzlaff.

In Joshua Wander from the investor of the second-division club Hertha BSC, 777 Partners, moved another prominent player of a multi-club player at least as an observer in the ECA Board. Namely, as a representative of the Belgian first division club Standard Liege.

This summer, UEFA had ruled in three cases, including the connection of AC Milan and FC Toulouse, that despite the economic ties of the clubs, there were no objections to participate in the European Cup. "We should strive and bring in to develop regulations here that multi-club ownership does not distort competition," Dreesen urged.