The Annual General Meeting of 1. FC Union Berlin e.V. took place this Sunday (08.10.2023) at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei.
In the report of the executive committee, Union President Dirk Zingler presented the club’s development in the 2022/23 season, which, thanks in particular to the sporting success of the men’s professional team, led to new records for many key figures: the best Bundesliga ranking in the club’s history, the highest number of club members, the highest group turnover and profit, and positive equity capital for the first time in the club’s history.
A farewell to Günter Mielis
Traditionally, the general meeting began with a minute’s silence for deceased Union members, including long-time Honorary President Günter Mielis. The club founder, an important advisor and contact person for many Unioner until the last, passed away on 29 September 2023 at the age of 98.
Honours for deserving Union members
Once again this year, several deserving Union members were honoured for their voluntary commitment to the club.
The Bronze “Ehrennadel” was awarded to:
Birgit Henke
Mario Wegner
Bianca Klenke
Petra Günther
Frank Hoffmann
Holger “Moppi” Röstel
Cordelia Nawroth
Thorsten Scharf
The silver “Ehreennadel” was awarded to:
Ingo Walter
While Joachim “Ajax” Müller was appointed an honorary member
Report of the Presidium
In front of 1,099 members present, Dirk Zingler thanked the club’s staff and teams for their achievements in the 2022/23 season in the Presium’s report. He said the performance of the men’s professional team was the driving force behind the once again significant growth of the entire club,
“We have been talking about the close link between sporting and economic success for many years and last season’s result confirms this once again. The extraordinary sporting results have consolidated our economic stability and facilitates the investments in football and our infrastructure that lie ahead of us. We want to create the best possible conditions to perpetuate the club’s successful development.”
Records in Turnover and Profit, Unbroken Growth in Membership
In line with the licensing requirements of the DFL, the key economic figures for 1. FC Union Berlin e.V. and its subsidiaries were reported in the consolidated financial statements.
In the 2022/23 season, the Union Group recorded revenues of 174.14 million – an increase of €52.01m. on the previous season. With the highest revenues in their history, Union achieved a record profit of €18.09m. For the first time in the club’s history, Union recorded positive equity of €1.79m. as of 30.06.2023
Union plan to continue this positive development in the current 2023/24 season. The planned income amounts to around €190m. while the expected consolidated surplus is calculated at €10.95m. This means that the positive equity capital will increase further and amount to around €12.74m as of 30 June 2024.
1. FC Union Berlin are also experiencing historic growth in terms of club membership. With currently 62,722 members, the Union family is stronger than ever before.
Executive Committee, Supervisory Board and Honorary Council discharged
In accordance with their statutory responsibilities, the Supervisory Board approved the annual financial statements and discharged the Executive Committee for the 2022/2023 financial year. The General Assembly voted by a clear majority to discharge the Supervisory Board and the Honorary Council.
New Honorary Council elected
Three candidates who were already members of the Honorary Council were elected with a large majority: Wolfgang Vallentin, Jörg Helmer and the previously co-opted Detlef Schneeweiß.
Hartmut Felsch did not stand for re-election for health reasons and was thanked by the old and new President of the Honorary Council.
“Hartmut worked for many years on the Honorary Council and was an important companion to us. Unfortunately, his strength is no longer sufficient for further regular participation, so that we bid him farewell from our body today with a heartfelt thank you for his commitment,” said Vallentin. “We thank the members present at today’s meeting for their trust. We are delighted with the clear result of the election and will continue to work with all our might for the good of 1. FC Union Berlin.”
Infrastructure measures
With the completion of the Oberspree training centre for the academy scheduled for early 2024, one of the club’s largest infrastructure projects to date is entering the home stretch. Partial commissioning of the grounds has already taken place, so that they can already be used for the training of numerous youth teams.
The technical renovation of the forester’s lodge will be completed by the end of the year. At the same time, the conversion of the Hämmerlingstraße training centre has also begun. The conversion of the previous artificial turf pitches into a heated grass pitch with official playing field dimensions is in full swing. Training operations on this pitch are also scheduled to start at the end of the year.
Construction of the new sports function building is scheduled to begin in spring 2024. Also in their final stages are the plans for the clubhouse and the multi-storey car park, which together with the stadium’s main stand will form an inner courtyard that can be used for a variety of cultural purposes and under which there will be an underground car park. The expansion of the stadium An der Alten Försterei is still scheduled to take place in the 2025/26 season.
“We spoke of a generation project at the last general meeting and are now in the process of making this project a reality step by step. We have several years of extensive construction activity ahead of us around our stadium and eventually in the stadium itself. I am looking forward to it, because in the end we will have a club ground that will allow us to experience football the way we like it and will offer people a place to go even when football is not being played,” said Dirk Zingler about the current status of the infrastructure measures and further planning.