Thread by @matt_4d

RB Leipzig CEO Oliver Mintzlaff has addressed the criticism of his club, as he does from time to time.

Now, I'm going to go through some of his comments and those of some others because a) they're entitled to their views and b) it's very much a standard script.

Long thread 😬

This is a script we've been hearing from the club, its fans and the uncritical Leipzig media bubble for the past decade.

Much of it misses, or willingly ignores, the point. Having said that, some of it also a response to criticism which also misses the point.

1. The Frankfurt comparison or "you've got no fans."

This is a response to the mockery of RB for not having the huge numbers of fans that other big German clubs do. But both arguments (the mockery and the defence) miss the point.

The problem with RB Leipzig is not that they "have no fans;" they do. They regularly attract 40,000 and have sold their cup allocation. But those fans are not voting members. Because the reason for RB's existence is not participation; it's to market a brand. That's the issue.

2. Family-friendly fanbase
This does carry some weight in a local context, where Leipzig's traditional sides (Lokomotive & Chemie) must shoulder some blame for not always getting on top of violent elements (although both have made huge strides in recent years).

However, the insinuation that families cannot attend professional football games safely anywhere else in Germany is evidently ludicrous.

3. RB represents eastern Germany
Striker Yussuf Poulsen has also trotted this line out this week, telling Spiegel: "I believe most people in eastern Germany support us."

spiegel.de/sport/fussball…

Firstly, it's simply untrue. RB Leipzig might be the highest-placed team in eastern Germany, and fans are well within their rights to enjoy watching them but, in terms of membership, Union Berlin, Dynamo Dresden, Hansa Rostock, 1. FC Magdeburg and others are all much bigger.

Secondly, and this is more problematic, this plays on the idea that eastern DE is victimised by the rest of the country, that criticism of RB is actually just anti-East sentiment, that RB are not the embodiment of modern capitalism (in sport), but actually the victims of it.

Not that RB Leipzig as a club have anything to do with them, but the far-right AfD plays on similar inverted populist tropes politically and socially.

And anyway, the same anti-east sentiment isn't directed at other eastern clubs, not seriously anyway.

There are other frequent arguments from the RB Leipzig bubble which Mintzlaff doesn't address here but a local Leipzig pop star does (it could be anyone, tbh, I just happened to read his interview this week, but it's the usual stuff).

rblive.de/news/-alles-an…

Pop star: "The vilification with the 'commercialisation' argument has no effect on me. Football is a commercial business. You see that at Hoffenheim, Leverkusen and Wolfsburg – but even at St. Pauli and Union Berlin. They all have to think commercially in order to compete."

Firstly, it's whataboutism (which I think should be called "Wasistabermitismus" in German 😅).

Secondly, Hoffenheim, Leverkusen and Wolfsburg are also subject to frequent criticism, for slightly different reasons. This isn't just an anti-RB grudge.

Thirdly, as for the others, strange examples to use but of course modern football is commercial. For most clubs however, commerce is a necessary means to be able to compete. Red Bull do the exact inverse: they field football teams in order boost commercial performance.

4. "We're different and I'm happy about that"

Which brings us to the original point no.4 and the fact that Herr Mintzlaff and his colleagues are more than happy with all this. That's their aim. That's the point. And that's why it's a problem.

Finally, in the same interview, the website ("rblive.de" – a rather uncritical outlet operated by the Mitteldeutsche Zeitung based in Halle, Sachsen-Anhalt), refers to the "hate of some ultras."

The idea that RB criticism only comes from "hateful ultras" is a common trope in the RB bubble, passing it off as coming from some sort of extreme minority. In fact, criticism of RB is less football-based "hatred" but rather reasoned rejection from a broad spectrum of fans.

Anyway, thanks for reading if you made it this far.

Hope it's not overly picky but I wanted to offer an insight into some of the "pro-RB" arguments we often hear in Germany and why they generally miss the point.

Now I'm off to the match.

#dfbpokal #scfrbl