850 athletes supported, 616 medals – with ambitions for more: German professional football will maintain its support for talented young athletes from more than 50 sports in the years to come. DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga and the DFL Foundation will thus continue to champion young Olympic and Paralympic sportspeople and remain partners of German Sports Aid Foundation (Deutsche Sporthilfe) until at least 2025.

The extensive support helps young athletes to concentrate on their sporting career. The DFL and DFL Foundation supplement the financial assistance with various public activities, regularly calling attention to the performances of young athletes. For example, they develop and produce tv spots, which are broadcast by media partners of the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2, and carry out activities around the German Supercup, which has been held numerous times in line with the theme “Elite sport unifies”.

The extension builds on the partnership launched at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and professional football increases its contributions, which will now help young athletes at an even earlier stage. At the heart of the cooperation is German Sports Aid Foundation’s Youth Elite funding, financed entirely by the DFL Foundation, which has already helped around 850 talented athletes from various Olympic and Paralympic disciplines as well as deaf sports. Sports Aid’s “Junior Athlete of the Year” event, for example, also receives financial and practical assistance from the DFL Foundation. The athletes supported by professional football have already won 616 medals for Germany at the Olympic Games, the Paralympics and World and European Championships.

DFL CEO Christian Seifert says: “The partnership with German Sports Aid Foundation is a symbol of solidarity within German sport – which professional football sees as a given. Over the last twelve years, the cooperation has been a unique success story that we wish to continue together – in the interests of the athletes from more than 50 sports.”

Thomas Berlemann, CEO of German Sports Aid Foundation, explains: “As long-term partners, the DFL and DFL Foundation have made a key contribution to the development of the German Sports Aid Foundation over the past twelve and a half years. The extension of the cooperation until 2025, especially in these challenging times for everyone, is an extraordinary and deep commitment to the German sport family. It will allow even more young athletes to be supported in the future.”

Franziska Fey, CEO of the DFL Foundation, says: “Elite athletes are role models. They impart values such as solidarity, team spirit and confidence, which are vital for our society, especially right now. We want to remain a good and reliable partner for them on their ambitious path.”

(DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga)