Eintracht Frankfurt’s Europa League win appears to have gone to Peter Feldmann’s head. The Mayor of Frankfurt then made a double fool of himself – and has now lost all support.
The whole of Frankfurt is out of control: Eintracht’s Europa League victory has caused huge enthusiasm in the Main metropolis. The euphoria after beating Glasgow Rangers on penalties in the final has not only gripped football fans. For Frankfurt Mayor Peter Feldmann (SPD), however, the success of the footballers could become a stumbling block – because the politician put his foot in it one after the other.
Many viewers were able to watch a misstep live on television. When the Eintracht team showed up to the fans at the Römer in Frankfurt after winning the final and wanted to celebrate the European Cup victory with them, the mayor quickly put himself in the limelight. On the way to the town hall balcony, Feldmann took the trophy from the puzzled captain Sebastian Rode to present it to the crowd.
Peter Feldmann: Sexist statements by the mayor
A politician who pushes himself to the fore and steals the show from the players who are actually responsible for winning the title – that went down very badly with many citizens. Eintracht captain Rode also criticized Feldmann’s narcissistic appearance in the “Bild” newspaper: “I didn’t quite understand it. It’s great that he invited us, but it might have been better if he had taken a step back. “
Feldmann apologized that he was “more of a Eintracht fan than mayor for a moment”. However, only a few videos appeared online that showed the politician’s suggestive statements to stewardesses. The mayor is standing on the on-board microphone on a return flight from the final in Seville, apparently in front of hundreds of Eintracht fans, and reports that the attractive flight attendants have “hormonally knocked him out”.
Own party calls for the resignation of the Frankfurt mayor
The next faux pas by a politician who seems to have gone to his head after Frankfurt’s first European Cup win since 1980. Although Feldmann was meek again and assured the “Frankfurter Neue Presse” that he was “infinitely sorry” for the statement: “It was a stupid saying that I took back on the spot. That was not okay, no ifs and But.” At the same time, he promised that such a macho saying would never happen again.
But the repentance could come too late, Feldmann must fear tangible consequences for his political career. Not only the Greens, CDU, FDP and the Volt party in the Main metropolis have called for his resignation – the local SPD has also withdrawn their confidence in Feldmann. The dignity of the office, the reputation of the city and the ability of the magistrate to act require that the mayor resign, explained the deputy party chairman Kolja Müller.
Feldmann was first elected mayor in 2012, and his term would last until 2024. In addition to his behavior in the context of the Eintracht game, Feldmann has been criticized for a long time anyway. In March, the Frankfurt public prosecutor’s office brought charges based on reasonable suspicion of accepting an advantage. Now it seems that the resignation of the 63-year-old, who no longer wanted to run in 2024 due to corruption allegations, is only a matter of time. After all, Feldmann has now lost all political support.
Feldmann no longer welcome at Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt has already reacted to Feldmann’s behavior and effectively banned him from the stadium. “There will be no basis between Eintracht Frankfurt and him in the future,” said Eintracht board spokesman Axel Hellmann of the “Bild” newspaper. “I can’t imagine that Peter Feldmann is still welcome at our games in the stadium.” Hellmann threw Feldmann “Vanity and Narcissism”.
Sources: “Image” (1) / “Image” (2) / “Frankfurter Neue Presse” / DPA
