The discussions about investors joining the German Football League (DFL) do not stop. Now 1. FC Cologne has spoken out critically.

1. FC Cologne is apparently also campaigning for a new vote in the investor issue at the DFL. The decision taken by the DFL board to negotiate and conclude a mandate is “based on very shaky foundations,” wrote the FC management in a letter to the DFL board, which was quoted by the ARD sports show on Thursday. A copy of the letter is also said to have been sent to all clubs in the DFL.

Accordingly, the Cologne club promptly announced a formal request “to release the DFL executive committee from the mandate granted by the general meeting”. The decision on an investor’s entry should fall back to the 36 clubs of the Bundesliga and 2nd Bundesliga. If an extraordinary general meeting is required for this, 1. FC Cologne will also request this. Other clubs, such as 1. FC Union Berlin, had also called for a new vote before the Cologne club.

According to Sportschau, the letter goes on to say that there is a suspicion that “the 50+1 rule has been violated” due to the controversial role of managing director Martin Kind of second division club Hannover 96. The Cologne club, which had voted against a strategic marketing partnership at the general meeting on December 11, according to its own statements, emphasized “that one of the most historically far-reaching decisions for German professional soccer, with a commitment period of up to 20 years, must be legitimized not with the help of legal expert opinions and reports, but on the basis of an undisputed decision.”

Hannover’s club management had instructed Kind to vote against the investors’ entry. However, the voting result and the public statements of opponents suggest that Kind voted in favor and thus helped the DFL plan achieve the necessary majority.

“Only I know how I voted,” the 79-year-old told NDR Info on Thursday. In view of the ongoing and sometimes escalating protests by the fan scene, Kind expressed understanding for the withdrawal of the potential investor Blackstone. ‘What then happened in the active fan scene has certainly made those in charge think,’ said Kind.

DFL executive committee member Axel Hellmann had recently rejected the demand for a new vote. “We had a valid proxy from Martin Kind. We can’t just say we’re voting again because the decision has become legally valid as a result. That would give all the other clubs that were involved a legal opportunity to take action against a possible new vote,” Hellmann said on the ‘Bild Sport’ program on Welt TV.