Hannover 96: the German League rejects the club's request for exemption from the "50 + 1" rule

"The German Professional Football League rejects the request for exemption from the '50+1' rule by Hannover 96 (Bundesliga) and Martin Kind (club president since 26/09/1997)," announced the DFL on 18/07/2018.

Established in 1998 and registered in the statutes of the German League, the so-called "50+1" rule reserves to the association the majority of voting rights (50% + 1 vote) on the board of directors of the commercial entity of a professional club. It is one of the criteria for awarding a professional license to play in the Bundesliga or 2.Bundesliga. An exemption however, is possible: a shareholder can thus acquire a majority share of capital and greater voting rights if he has demonstrated "substantial support" for the club, namely "a level of financial commitment that on average corresponds to the most significant individual sponsorship amount of each season, for a period of 20 years," indicates the regulations of the German League.

The association Hannover 96 eV wanted to sell 51% of its shares in the commercial entity H96 Management GmbH to Martin Kind, president of the…