Max Eberl: “I don’t have the strength anymore”

In an unscheduled press conference on Friday afternoon, club president Rolf Königs, vice president Rainer Bonhof, chief executive Stephan Schippers and Max Eberl spoke about the Borussia sporting director’s decision to leave the club with immediate effect.

Max Eberl on…

…the reasoning behind his resignation: I don’t have the strength to do this job anymore. It doesn’t have anything to do with damaged pride, with frustration or with love – I am quite simply drained and exhausted. That is why I have spoken with the club and requested to leave my position. I’m calling time on something that has been my life for so long, something that has given me so much pleasure and joy. The club has done all it can and opened every possible door in order for me to get the time and space that I needed. But I have to draw a line. I need to get out, I need to focus on me, the person, and I am incredibly grateful that the club has given me the opportunity to be able to draw that line.

…his plans for the future: I haven’t made this decision in order to change clubs. I don’t want anything to do with football right now. I want to see the world, to have fun and to have no responsibilities. I just want to be Max Eberl. That is the reason why I have come to this incredibly difficult decision at what is an unbelievably unfortunate moment in time. But for once in my life, I’m only thinking about myself. There are great people at this club and they will do a fine job. I will take some time to just get away from things and then we’ll see what the future holds.

…a possible reaction from the club: The club couldn’t have known how I was really feeling, because I just carried on doing my job as normal and never gave any indication that there was something wrong. I have always been here just getting on with my work, so there was no opportunity for the club to react. They did react though when I asked for some time off.

…discussion and conversation culture nowadays: Football is my life and something that gives me joy. There are a lot of things that come with it though that are no longer fun. The things that have been said and thrown around in the last hours is exactly the thing that’s making me sick. The conclusion we came to last night was immediately commented on, judged and condemned. You’re already being abused for going to another club and you’ve not even said a single word yourself yet. I know that I can’t stop that hastiness and the restlessness that you get these days, but I can do something about it for myself. My wish is for the football to be the focus rather than making a circus of everything surrounding it.

President Rolf Königs on…

…Max Eberl’s time at the club: Today is a sad say. Our good friend Hans Meyer has given us many mantras to live by over the years. One of them is that you can change your coach, but hold on to your sporting director. That is how we have worked here for many years. Unfortunately, that is not longer the case. We’re very sad. Max Eberl was a player here between 1999 and 2004, he then became the youth coordinator for four years and did a fine job. He then became sporting director from 2008 and in 2010, we made him and Stephan Schippers both managing directors. We put value on having them both running the show at the same level, Max Eberl on the sporting side and Stephan Schippers for the rest. Both of them have done a fantastic job.

…Max Eberl’s decision: Max Eberl raised the issue with us last October. We were shocked that he wanted to leave as he had only extended his contract with us through until June 2026 back in late 2020. We tried to get him to change his mind over the past weeks and months, but it wasn’t to be. Then came the decisive conversation yesterday afternoon. It wasn’t a case of accepting his decision, but respecting it. Nevertheless, a sponsor wrote to me today saying, when one door closes, another one opens. That is the situation we have now been dealt. We know that we have great people here and a clear structure. We will carry on in that same fashion in order to fill that hole and reach our goals in the future.

…the search for a successor: Even though we had spoken initially back in October, the decision came yesterday rather all of a sudden. We explored our internal options and our first port of call was Steffen Korell, who has worked alongside Max Eberl for many years. He doesn’t consider himself a candidate for the position though, so we will look at people from outside the club. 

Vice president Rainer Bonhof on…

…his personal reaction to Max Eberl’s decision: We have known each other since 1991. When someone that has built so many foundations leaves, it hurts. We believed that we would be able to convince Max to see out the season, but it became clear in yesterday’s talks that that wouldn’t be possible because of Max’s mental health. We will now do everything we can to move things in the right direction and take Borussia forward. We won’t dwell on any speculation about what’s next. We of course wish Max Eberl all the best and good health.

…covering responsibilities: We have cleared everything up and are in the fortunate position of having Steffen Korell on board, who can maintain those contacts and help us make any future decisions.

…potential January transfer business: Things are fairly quiet at the moment. There is nothing to announce right now. 

Chief executive Stephan Schippers on…

…Max Eberl’s departure: To keep it short, I’m losing a friend and a partner. I have been here for 23 years and a good 13 of those have been spent alongside Max. He has always been someone you can rely on and trust; in this profession, with its ever-increasing demands and problems, that is by no means a given. However, life goes on. We have to accept it. Football is the beautiful game, but it doesn’t come above health. Everything else falls by the wayside when it comes to that.