Beckenbauer, “Nazi era” and AfD
ntv program painfully upsets Uli Hoeneß
In the evenings, Uli Hoeneß watches “a lot of ntv”. In an interview, the FC Bayern icon reported how the television program encouraged him to show a clear stance against the AfD at the memorial service for Franz Beckenbauer.
His emotional speech at the memorial service for Franz Beckenbauer earned Uli Hoeneß a lot of respect and recognition. The former manager and president of FC Bayern shared personal anecdotes from his time with the “Kaiser”, who died on January 7th at the age of 78, on the podium in front of an audience of millions. In the speech, which ended with the words “To be honest, I miss you a lot,” Hoeneß also recalled Beckenbauer's “masterpiece”: the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
Hoeneß said he would like to have the atmosphere from back then, of the “summer fairy tale,” again today, and then qualified: “I would like to emphasize very clearly that I do not want the AfD to be part of this process.” A surprising demarcation, especially in a eulogy, for which the 72-year-old was praised just as often. In an interview with the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”, Hoeneß now explains how this sentence came about. He thought “for a very, very long time whether I would say that” while he was thinking up his words. Hoeneß actually uses the word “think up” because he “never writes anything down, I develop it bit by bit over several days” and does so “all in my head”.
He wanted to talk about the 2006 World Cup, “about the German fans who were proud, about the black, red and gold flags in the streets” – but realized that the longing for such images could also be misunderstood. Because “someone might get the idea that I’m thinking in the direction of the AfD,” said Hoeneß. He wanted to avoid that at all costs; that was important to him. “And you know what: I would say that again tomorrow.”
When asked by the FAZ whether he was worried about the AfD's popularity, Hoeneß replied: “I watch a lot of ntv in the evenings. Then there are documentaries, now and then about the Nazi era: about Auschwitz, about Birkenau,” i.e. the concentration ones – and German extermination camps. “I'm so upset every time,” says Hoeneß and then takes a clear stance again: “If our country goes anywhere near that direction again – that must never happen!” When it comes to such “elementary issues,” even sport, which otherwise likes to claim its apolitical nature, “cannot remain silent.”
