Chairman of the supervisory board Sebastian Rudolph on his new role, the arrival of Peter Christiansen and the future of VfL.
In early August, Sebastian Rudolph took over from Frank Witter as chairman of the VfL Wolfsburg-Fußball GmbH supervisory board. At the Wolves’ training camp, Rudolph spoke about contact with the fans, the club’s aims for the season and new managing director for sport Peter Christiansen.
‘Open and honest’ exchange with VfL fans
Sunday saw the chairman of the supervisory board Sebastian Rudolph at VfL’s training camp in Schladming, engaging in intensive exchanges with the VfL fans who had made the trip to Austria. Rudolph settled into a table at the cafe in the Schladming stadium to field questions from VfL faithful. “Dialogue with the supporters is important to me. We had an in-depth discussion and dealt with a lot of subjects in an open and honest way,” he explained.
European football still the target
Reflecting on last season, Rudolph said: “I think in terms of opportunities. And when mistakes are made, we need to analyse them and do things better. We are starting afresh and heading into the coming season with European ambitions,” he said said, adding that the reasons why these targets were not met during the “previous turbulent campaign” have been “analysed in detail”. One of the stumbling blocks was that “we were lacking in pace up front, which is why we have signed a really quick forward in Mohammed Amoura”. Despite the Wolves having missed out on European football for the past three seasons, Rudolph is maintaining this as the club’s goal, while the She-Wolves are very much part of women’s football’s global elite. “We’re starting the season with clear aims,” he said. “For the women, we want to be fighting for the title, and for the men, we want to challenge for the European places.”
Teamwork makes the dream work
The fact that there are half-a-dozen Bundesliga clubs with more financial scope than the Green-and-Whites in what is already a cut-throat transfer market is something that has already been factored in. “It’s nice to measure up against the likes of Bayern Munich out on the pitch,” the supervisory board chairman explained. ”We need to be focused, awkward to play against and always stick together as a team. We’re concentrating on the positive aspects that we have.” It is widely accepted in sport that a healthy team environment and the right kind of mentality can help to compensate for any financial disparities, and this philosophy is one that is shared by Rudolph: “I’m all about team spirit, fair play and passion.”
“Peter won us over with his energy and his ideas”
With the acquisition of a new managing director for sport in Peter Christiansen, VfL have added an important piece of the jigsaw in terms of future success. Rudolph is expecting big things from the 49-year-old Dane, who was hired during his predecessor’s time in the chair. “Frank Witter led the search but the supervisory board committee was closely involved throughout,” he explained. “It was important for us to come to a decision as a board. Peter won us over with his energy and his ideas – he did excellent work in Copenhagen.”
“Bring my communications expertise to the fore”
Rudolph is very much looking forward to his new role and following in the footsteps of Witter: “There was a wish for an active member of VW management to be in the chair once again. VfL Wolfsburg is an incredible club and one that I have already had a close connection with over a number of years.” In his new position, Rudolph is looking to “bring my communications expertise to the fore and promote networking between the club and the company”.
