In the midst of a sporting crisis, Schalke’s supervisory board chairman Axel Hefer gave an interview to Sport Bild. Here are the key points.

Schalke supervisory board chairman Axel Hefer does not often speak in public, but in the midst of the club’s latest sporting crisis and around two and a half weeks before he has to face the Schalke fanbase at the general meeting (November 16), the 47-year-old gave an interview to the newspaper Sport Bild. He defended those involved, but also expressed self-criticism.

Hefer has been at the helm of the club’s most important committee since July 2021, when Schalke had just been relegated to the 2nd Bundesliga and was struggling with the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. Hefer emphasized that in early summer 2021, Schalke was on the verge of playing in the regional league, and a “catastrophe” was looming. Thanks to the work of Peter Knäbel (then sporting director), Rouven Schröder (then sporting director), and CFO Christina Rühl-Hamers, this was prevented.

In the three years and three months since taking office, things only improved briefly: Schalke returned to the Bundesliga immediately (2022), but was relegated again straight away and has been in a constant relegation battle in the second division ever since. There have been numerous wrong decisions approved by the supervisory board, which must approve all transactions exceeding €500,000.

This applies to almost all player, coach, and sponsorship contracts. Hefer wanted to ensure continuity, but there have been five head coaches (Dimitrios Grammozis, Frank Kramer, Thomas Reis, Karel Geraerts, Kees van Wonderen), three interim coaches (Mike Büskens, Matthias Kreutzer, Jakob Fimpel), four sporting directors (Peter Knäbel, Rouven Schröder, André Hechelmann, Ben Manga), two CEOs (Bernd Schröder, Matthias Tillmann) and high turnover in the team. The financial situation is improving only slowly.

What we had imagined did not happen. You have to act when you are sure that you are not well positioned for the future. It did not work out as planned. This is also due to misjudgments on our part.

Axel Hefer

Hefer sees the current sporting concerns: “Our first duty is to collect points to increase the gap to the bottom and get back towards the middle of the table. This will allow the team to develop continuously. Only then can we achieve the long-term goals we have set ourselves with a normal second division budget.” Long-term goals include, first and foremost, a return to the Bundesliga.

Hefer backed the current club management. “We need someone who can create future prospects and make difficult decisions in the face of opposition. And that person is Matthias Tillmann,” said Hefer. The two have a long-standing relationship of trust, having formed the management duo at travel company Trivago for many years as CEO (Hefer) and CFO (Tillmann). They are also friends in private.

Sports director Manga, who was allowed to bring his entire scouting team with him, is not a lone ruler. Manga would fit perfectly into Schalke’s strategy. “We don’t have generous investors who finance ready-made players – we have to make players better. Ben can find talent, that’s what drives him,” said Hefer. “It’s clear that our squad still needs to develop and is nowhere near where we want it to be.”

Hefer was particularly self-critical when asked about Wilmots, who was sporting director for a short time. Wilmots took over as sporting director at the beginning of January 2024, but was dismissed just eight months later. “What we had imagined did not happen. You have to act when you are sure that you are not well positioned for the future. It didn’t work out as planned. That is also due to misjudgments on our part.”