Third division club Rot-Weiss Essen is not only working on a successful future on the pitch, but also off it.
Forecasting reported on Monday that Marcus Uhlig will vacate his post as Rot-Weiss Essen board boss by the end of the season at the latest. A successor, Marc-Nicolai Pfeifer (most recently 1860 Munich), has already been found and officially introduced in a press release.
Just three days after this announcement, the still-boss appeared in public – at a press conference. The topic was the presentation of a study that analyzed the “regional economic effects” of Rot-Weiss Essen on the city of Essen and the region. This has resulted in a transparent picture of the relationship between the club and the city as well as the club’s services for the city.
In addition to Uhlig, Lord Mayor Thomas Kufen, Prof. Dr. Alfons Madeja, responsible for the study and Professor of Business Administration and Sports Management, Jens Jaschinski (SLC Management, graduate economist) and Alexander Rang (RWE Board Member for Sales) were also available as discussion partners.
Marcus Uhlig took the floor first: “Behind the scenes, we are working feverishly and constantly on how we can create more revenue potential for the club in the long term. Looking to the future, we are convinced that our potential – emotionally and economically – is far from exhausted. On the contrary, we assume that a continuation of the positive development in both the sporting and infrastructural areas will result in a further increase in the economic effects for the city of Essen. The question we are dealing with is: How much is Rot-Weiss Essen actually worth? “
Prof. Dr. Alfons Madeja explicitly addressed this question in his speech. With the following result: Rot-Weiss Essen generated regional economic effects for the city of Essen amounting to 48 million euros in the first third division season 2022/23. This value results from the effects that could be recorded and documented. The effects presented are undisputed and the accuracy of the calculations was determined based on the facts available.
This added value is primarily created off the pitch: RWE is of course primarily an organizer of soccer matches, but also an employer, tenant, client and retailer. The effects in the areas of “awareness and image” (€ 14.869 million), “gastronomy” (€ 12.062 million) and “turnover” (€ 9.994 million) in particular are key drivers of the result.
The calculation of the regional economic effects that Rot-Weiss Essen generates for the city of Essen clearly shows that the club is a major economic factor that benefits the city and the surrounding area in many ways.
Prof. Dr. Alfons Madeja
The regional economic added value for the city of Essen and the region would also increase further if the team were promoted to Bundesliga 2 and the stadium on Hafenstrasse were expanded. A total of 5,240 people, consisting of RWE fans and supporters of other clubs, were surveyed for support.
“This is not our first study. That’s why it’s important to interpret the figures correctly and see what they could mean for the future. Is Rot-Weiss Essen a club with potential or with declining numbers? The answer: We have potential here, which will even be strengthened if the decision is made to expand the stadium. The calculation of the regional economic effects that the Rot-Weiss Essen club generates for the city of Essen shows very clearly that the club is a major economic factor that benefits the city and the surrounding area in many ways,” explained Madeja.
Mayor Thomas Kufen also had his say: “The study on the regional economic effects of Rot-Weiss Essen on the city of Essen impressively shows the economic and therefore also social importance of Rot-Weiss Essen for the city of Essen and the people of Essen. This club has an emotional significance for the city. That is a good argument for continuing to invest. Which we are doing, for example at the Seumannstrasse youth training center. But there are also other joint tasks. “