Freiburg´s Keller nominated to become DFB president

Freiburg president Fritz Keller has been nominated to become the new president of the German Football Association (DFB), the governing body has confirmed.

Keller was a unanimous choice from the selection committee, who are seeking a successor to Reinhard Grindel after he stepped down in April.

Grindel quit the post following allegations of corruption and Bayern Munich and Germany great Philipp Lahm had been linked with the role.

But the DFB revealed on Thursday it is Keller who has been put forward to take over, with the election set to be held next month.

DFB vice-presidents Rainer Koch and Reinhard Rauball have shared the post of president since Grindel’s departure.

Rauball said: “As the president of Freiburg, Fritz Keller has convinced himself in the Bundesliga and 2.Bundesliga with all his technical and character skills, equipped with a clear canon of values ​​and great down-to-earthness is known both in his club and, for example, within the DFL Foundation for the social responsibility of football.

“In view of the great challenges facing the DFB currently, Fritz Keller is the right candidate to lead the largest sports association in the world into the future.”

Koch added: “Fritz Keller is undoubtedly an extraordinary personality with all the qualities for the office of the DFB president. [He has] decades of experience with close links to professional and amateur football, including women’s football.

“We are convinced that Fritz Keller is the right man for the future of the German Football Association. He can bring people together, represent the entire spectrum of German football and, in particular, equally for the interests of professional and amateur football.”