Fritz Keller, president of the German Football Association (DFB). /CFP
Fritz Keller, president of the German Football Association (DFB), and Friedrich Curtius, general secretary of the organization, will step down on May 17, announced DFB in a statement on Tuesday.
"President Fritz Keller has made a personal decision under his responsibilities as president, that he is ready in principle to resign on Monday, 17 May, 2021 after the hearing at the DFB sports court. General Secretary Dr. Friedrich Curtius will follow him immediately after an agreement has been reached regarding the termination of his employment contract and the handover of his official duties," read the statement.
Previously regional and state associations of DFB already requested Keller to resign over his remarks comparing vice president Rainer Koch to Roland Freisler, an infamous Nazi judge during the 1940s. Last weekend, a vote of no-confidence took place against both Keller and Curtius.
A general view of the entrance at the German Football Association (DFB) Headquarter in Frankfurt, Germany, January 15, 2021. /CFP
Koch and another first vice president Peter Peters will remain in office and run DFB as interim presidents with equal responsibilities. Deputy General Secretary Heike Ullrich will take over from Curtius temporarily. However, Koch will not run for the first vice president at the next Ordinary Bundestag (general meeting), neither will treasurer Stephan Osnabrügge.
The next Ordinary Bundestag will provisionally happen at the beginning of 2022, according to DFB.
Keller will become the fourth straight DFB chief forced to leave his position owing to a scandal, after Reinhard Grindel, Wolfgang Niersbach, and Theo Zwanziger.
This year's UEFA European Championship will kick off on June 11. Germany are in Group F with Hungary, Portugal and France. They will first meet France at Allianz Arena, the home stadium to Bayern Munich on June 15.