Eintracht Frankfurt will continue to vigorously pursue their activities in the United Arab Emirates, further expanding their successful existing relationships with local institutions and businesses. The announcement was made by board member Axel Hellmann during a press conference at the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday along with Germany’s most capped player and Bundesliga legend Lothar Matthäus, Eintracht legend and record Bundesliga appearance maker Karl-Heinz ‘Charly’ Körbel, Robert Klein (CEO of Bundesliga International) and Eintracht’s representative in Abu Dhabi, Marcus Ulander.
“We have partnerships here that extend beyond the first team,” said Axel Hellmann, who first travelled to the UAE with Eintracht Frankfurt six years ago. Since then, the first team have come to Abu Dhabi for their winter training camp five years running, representing Bundesliga football internationally in doing so. “As a well-established Bundesliga club, we want to drive our commitment here forward with the help of Bundesliga International and our partner Al Maskari Holding, who support our football academy in working together with our partner Daman to combat childhood obesity. In a sporting sense, there’s a lot we can do here and a lot we can develop. The UAE is a country that holds lots of major sporting events and Abu Dhabi has many economic links to Frankfurt. Our interests here are long-term; we want to make a lasting impact.”
Axel Hellmann: “Charly Körbel and @LMatthaeus10 are sharing a stage together for the first time outside Germany. That underlines the importance of the @Bundesliga_EN here.” pic.twitter.com/Gahr3X1Ozd
— Eintracht Frankfurt (@eintracht_eng) January 23, 2018
Lothar Matthäus: “I feel at home in Abu Dhabi”
For the Bundesliga International, Abu Dhabi is also “one of the most important regions on earth,” (Hellmann) and an interesting territory. With Bundesliga legend Lothar Matthäus as their representative in the region, the Bundesliga’s interests have been impressively underlined and the benefits of German football explained. “We have full stadiums, very strong teams and international superstars,” said Matthäus. “We attract families to the stadiums and have a young audience. We also have very good youth academies, which are the basis of our success. This was borne out in our World Cup win four years ago, the Confederations Cup win and the Under-21 EURO title. We always produce strong national sides.” Matthäus went on to describe himself as a “proud ambassador” for German football: “I’ve been part of the Bundesliga since 1979. That gives me great pleasure.”
There were also words of praise for the Eagles’ exploits on the pitch this term: “Eintracht are having a great season, I’ve been really surprised. They’ve built a very good team. Maybe the training camps in Abu Dhabi in recent years have also had something to do with that.”
The Bundesliga’s record appearance maker meets Germany’s record appearance maker, the @Bundesliga_EN on tour in Abu Dhabi.