Just a few days after the end of the 2023/2024 Oberliga Niederrhein season, news has come that hardly anyone would have expected: TVD Velbert is considering withdrawing.
TVD Velbert played an appalling second half of the season with just seven points. But in the end, the team led by captain Timo Brauer was still able to stay in the Oberliga Niederrhein. TVD had one more point than Adler Union Frintrop.
In addition to Essen, Sportfreunde Hamborn and SV Straelen were also relegated. Straelen had already withdrawn during the season. SVS is facing a fresh start in the Kreisliga A.
And that could now also apply to TVD Velbert. Forecasting has learned that the Bergisch club is considering withdrawing from the Oberliga.
“That is correct. But a final decision has not yet been made. We will discuss it all now,” Andre Grimmert, long-time TVD boss and main financial backer, confirmed to this editorial team.
The businessman, who has launched new hotel projects, also revealed: “Our head of sport Michael Kirschner and I will no longer be available for the new season. We simply don’t have the time or the man power in the club. I will continue to support the club financially, but I will no longer be actively involved.” What this means for TVD Velbert, which has been in the top division since 2019/2020, is not yet clear
One thing is that we’ve been relegated in sporting terms. That’s all that counts. But, of course, if Velbert ultimately withdraw, they won’t receive a thank-you card from us
Marcel Cornelissen
The fact is, however, that Adler Union Frintrop would not benefit even if Velbert were to be relegated to a lower division. Essen’s relegation is sealed. “Velbert would have had until midnight on the last matchday to notify the association of their withdrawal. Only then would we have been the winners. But we don’t want to complain. The first point is that we were relegated in sporting terms. That’s all that counts. But, of course, if Velbert ultimately withdraw, they won’t receive a thank-you card from us,” Marcel Cornelissen, coach of Frintrop, told Forecasting.
Should this happen, Grimmert would also feel sorry for the Frintropers: “This is such a great club that I didn’t even know before. We had a great away game in Essen-Frintrop. They have a great facility and great people work there. We also liked the fans. It was just a great atmosphere. I hope they get back into the Oberliga quickly.” A league that will soon be a thing of the past for TVD Velbert. A number of TVD players are already being offered to various clubs. The sell-out has begun.
“We will not put obstacles in the way of any player. All of them can leave the club on a free transfer. I will help the boys to find new clubs if they want to. They are all clean characters,” explained manager Kirschner.
