ÖFB: Presidium meeting before the start of qualification should set the course

Among other things, it is necessary to set a timeline for the election of a new President. It remains to be seen whether this will take place before the summer. Gartner took over the business after Gerhard Milletich resigned at the beginning of February and will also play a role in the search for a successor. Before attending the FIFA Congress in Rwanda last week, the Lower Austrian was on a tour of the federal states and sought personal talks with all the other heads of the state associations. Gartner announced to the APA that he would present his findings and considerations in the executive committee meeting. “And we will determine how to proceed.”

“Lessons learned from the past few months”

Gartner explained that he had “intensive discussions with everyone”. The 71-year-old sees himself as a bridge builder, as a mediator in a deeply divided executive committee. The committee, which also includes three representatives of the Bundesliga, will probably not yet agree on a presidential candidate in Linz. A major issue is likely to be the time horizon for an extraordinary federal general assembly, which is necessary for the election of a new association leader. According to the statutes, the invitations for this must be issued at least two months in advance.

“In the last executive committee meeting, we clearly agreed to design and initiate the next steps and processes internally. That was also very important to me personally,” stressed Gartner. The head of the Lower Austrian Football Association (NÖFV) therefore did not want to give water level reports. “We would like to learn the lessons from the past few months and make it better together. We will provide transparent information about the intermediate status and the timeline in due course.”

topic of refereeing

According to Gartner, refereeing will also be a topic at the meeting. In the past few weeks, the chairman of the ÖFB referee commission, the head of the Viennese association Robert Sedlacek, had to contend with media criticism. “Everyone involved basically has the same interest: to make football fairer,” said Gartner. “We are currently taking a close look at the structure and the situation outside of day-to-day business and will take appropriate steps.”

The schedule is tight, but the interim president is also looking forward to the start of the international match. The big common goal is to take part in the 2024 European Championships in Germany. “Everyone will do their best in their field for this,” Gartner assured. “My job is to create the framework and ensure an orderly handover to the new president.” He prefers to leave sporting previews and analyzes to those responsible for sport.

The former ÖVP mayor of Ziersdorf has already taken a liking to the new Raiffeisen Arena in Linz. “It is of course very important for the ÖFB to have such an attractive location for international matches,” said Gartner. “Linz will certainly play a major role in future planning.”