By once again directly qualifying for the UEFA Champions League, the club again has the opportunity to consolidate its standing as one of Europe’s top teams and to once more share in the profits distributed for participating in the lucrative competition.
Borussia Dortmund’s approach to its squad is one of continuity, but it also has an eye to creating new momentum and structures in its personnel choices. After an in-depth analysis of the season attended by Marco Rose as well as Hans-Joachim Watzke (Chairman of the Management), Michael Zorc (Sporting Director), Sebastian Kehl (Head of the Professional Squad) and Matthias Sammer (external advisor), Borussia Dortmund decided to part ways with Marco Rose and his assistant coaches early. Edin Terzić, who as caretaker coach led Borussia Dortmund to victory in the DFB Cup last year and most recently served as technical director, will coach the professional squad from the coming season on a contract that runs until 30 June 2025. Borussia Dortmund is convinced that Edin Terzić, who knows the club, the surroundings and most of the squad, will make exactly the right adjustments to be able to offer fans sporting success, to get back to projecting that “Borussia Dortmund feeling” and to make a fresh start on the pitch. Alongside Edin Terzić, the coaching staff is rounded out by Peter Hermann, a professional with a wealth of experience, and Sebastian Geppert, who was already one of Terzić’s assistants in the 2020/2021 season and has chalked up success in youth football.
After 44 years playing for and working at the club, Sporting Director Michael Zorc is leaving Borussia Dortmund. Sebastian Kehl will take over from Michael Zorc as sporting director from 1 July 2022. Sebastian Kehl was Borussia Dortmund’s Head of the Professional Squad from the beginning of the 2018/2019 season, gaining valuable experience and – working alongside Michael Zorc – gradually immersing himself in all things relevant to the role of sporting director. Going forward, he will bring his own ideas to bear. Sebastian Kehl’s contract (like that of Youth Academy director Lars Ricken) currently runs until June 2025. This long-term focus at level of sporting management offers Borussia Dortmund a solid basis for planning and gives those in positions of responsibility the opportunity to keep building on the strong and trusting relationships they already enjoy and to unlock the potential for improvement that is there to see.
Borussia Dortmund chalked up yet another more than solid season in the Bundesliga with 69 points and a second-place finish, and again secured automatic qualification for the UEFA Champions League. By contrast, the team’s performance in the cup competitions was anything but satisfactory. The team’s potential is nevertheless high. It now needs to be tapped over the entire season and across all tournaments. Borussia Dortmund has signed five international players (including three Germany internationals) to long-term contracts: centre backs Niklas Süle and Nico Schlotterbeck, who will shore up the defence, forward Karim Adeyemi, whose speed brings more variability to the team’s offensive play, seasoned striker Sébastien Haller, whose his physical presence and finishing ability are ideally suited for his intended role as a traditional centre forward, and defensive midfielder Salih Özcan, who is known for his exceptional tackling skills and high-quality headers. The healthy mix of grit, leadership and young ambition in the squad as well as consistency in its management is expected to help the team unlock its full potential and achieve the greatest possible success on the pitch. Borussia Dortmund has an excellent team, a fact that is not lost on other top European clubs. Accordingly, there is always the possibility of lucrative transfers.
Borussia Dortmund sees further potential in its youth setup, where it lays the foundation for its sporting success. To this end, the club added new offices for the sports management team at the Brackel training ground. This investment will help to further consolidate all the areas under the direction of the Sports department. Borussia Dortmund hopes the direct proximity to the training ground will help it work with greater efficiency and purpose and further optimise its pipeline of talented youngsters for the senior team. In the past season, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, Lion Semić and Tom Rothe, another three of the club’s youth standouts, made the jump to the senior side and celebrated making their professional débuts in the Bundesliga. Other talented youngsters are also set to make the senior team. Borussia Dortmund also strives for continuity in its youth football and agreed an early contract extension until 30 June 2026 with U19 coach Mike Tullberg, who won the league title with his team this season and has already proven his ability to nurture players individually.
Borussia Dortmund maintains close and longstanding partnerships with its sponsors. During times of crises, this continuity was also a reflection of the close and trusting relationships. This is also evident from the individual solutions that Borussia Dortmund has found with its partners to compensate for cancelled (hospitality) services. The majority of (hospitality) services that Borussia Dortmund was unable to render due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic were compensated for by means of other (advertising) services, meaning that Borussia Dortmund’s partners have asserted practically no compensation claims. These good relationships built on trust and the solidarity displayed during crises also provide planning security. In addition, Borussia Dortmund and the SIGNAL IDUNA Group have sent out a strong signal during the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, and have extended their partnership early until 30 June 2031. Borussia Dortmund also extended various other sponsorship relationships and entered into new contracts. Borussia Dortmund assumes that its advertising income will continue to grow in the coming financial year. The club has lost none of its appeal, despite the pandemic.
Borussia Dortmund could at least welcome back an average of approximately 38,000 spectators to matches at SIGNAL IDUNA PARK over the 2021/2022 season in line with the changing Corona Protection Regulations. The club hopes that developments in the pandemic during the coming season will permit a return to full stadium capacity throughout the entire season and sees this as a major opportunity to once again fully interact with its fans directly. Since personal contact has been at times restricted during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, communicating digitally with fans continues to be more important than ever. New digital formats were and will be created for this reason. This increased focus on digital communications affords us the opportunity to strengthen the bonds our fans have with the club despite there sometimes being restrictions on stadium attendance, and to grow Borussia Dortmund’s fan base. One example this financial year was the 2021 Virtual Summer Tour, with Borussia Dortmund making virtual stops in nine countries across three continents between 10 and 18 July 2021 to bring the club even closer to and connect with its international fan communities and partners and give all fans (not just) from the nine participating countries the chance to immerse themselves in the world of Borussia Dortmund.