At the same time, he did not rule out possible structural changes at a media event on Saturday in Windischgarsten. The earliest possible date for a new election would be the end of June or the beginning of July. Candidates have yet to come out of cover at a Bureau meeting on Friday.
“Some more homework”
The next meeting of the highest ÖFB committee is scheduled for April 28th. A Federal General Assembly required for the election must be convened two months in advance. But then you should already have agreed on a name that would ideally also carry possible new statutes. “I don’t think it’s realistic that we’ll be there in five weeks,” Gartner said. “I don’t want to push it through, whip it through or push it through either, because otherwise it’ll be a non-starter.”
You still have some “homework” to do, explained the Lower Austrian. “If Christmas and Easter coincide, I would like us to think about how we can imagine this internally with the structure, agree on a name at the same time and then make the adjustments to the statutes that that person can also support.” Only then should an invitation to tender be made by the Federal General Assembly. Gartner: “If I don’t have a name for her yet, everyone will tear me up.”
Lots of open questions
But we haven’t gotten that far yet. It has not even been decided who will head the election committee. As was the case before Gerhard Milletich’s free program in 2021, the head of the Styrian regional association, Wolfgang Bartosch, can take over this function again. The nine heads of state and three representatives of the Bundesliga are entitled to vote in the election. Gartner has two votes as the representative of the Lower Austrian Association (NÖFV) and as the current Executive President of the ÖFB. “My advantage is that I don’t want to become one,” emphasized the 71-year-old. “My goal is to make everything as clean as possible.”
The public calls for a president who comes from outside are getting louder. However, Gartner did not rule out a candidate from among the current presidency. “From my point of view it would be good if someone can get on board quickly.” The association structures with all the bodies are not easy to see through. “You have to get used to it quickly, that’s not insignificant.” Gartner recently conducted face-to-face talks with all other regional association heads. “I’ve heard the no from one or the other in such a way that it’s not absolute.”
“There is no taboo subject”
Gartner does not want a battle vote like 2021 between Milletich and Roland Schmid. In return, he can also imagine an end to the voluntary work of the ÖFB President in the medium term. “There is no taboo subject.” The first prerequisite for changes to the articles of association – such as developing the presidency from a board of directors more in the direction of a supervisory board – is the will to do so. “But I won’t make the mistake of taking them by surprise,” Gartner said of his fellow board members.
The NÖFV boss had taken over the chairmanship on an interim basis at the beginning of February after Milletich resigned as a result of allegations of squabbling. The trenches in the Presidium are still far from being filled in. Gartner: “It would be a lie if I said it’s all just bliss and bliss. The wounds aren’t even crusted over, let alone healed. It all takes time.” However, there is consensus that something needs to change – and not to act prematurely.
Handover with a clear conscience
Not much would be lost over the summer months, Gartner said. Whether you have a new president on July 1 or September 15 doesn’t make that much of a difference. “I want to hand everything over so that I can do it with a clear conscience,” said the interim boss. He described it as a “basic requirement that you don’t start again with a crash. Because then the scarcely healed wounds will immediately reopen.”
Gartner has had veritable meeting marathons over the past few weeks. “It’s important to me to get a feeling,” said the ex-mayor of Ziersdorf in the Weinviertel, explaining his tour of the federal states. He still enjoys working with people. “But I’m 72 years old and I know that at some point I have to get it done.”
On Friday he had to complete one-and-a-half-hour sessions in Linz before the start of the European Championship qualifier against Azerbaijan in the evening. “It was a perfect start,” said Gartner about the 4-1 victory of the ÖFB national team. “Hopefully we can confirm that on Monday.” Then expect Estonia as an opponent again in Linz.
