This Day in History: 2023-08-23

Nr. 504

THE GREAT BUNDESLIGA SCANDAL (1972)

On 6 June 1971 Kickers Offenbach president Horst Gregorio Canellas celebrated his 50th birthday with a party. Despite Kickers having been relegated the day before, Canellas was in buoyant mood, which made a number of his well-wishers feel a little uneasy. Their concerns would prove correct as with the press of the play button on a tape recorder he blew open The Bundesliga Scandal. The tape contained secret recordings revealing a litany of offers to be paid-off in return for assisting Kickers Offenbach with their league survival. The repercussions of Canellas’s expose would be far-reaching with two thirds of the league drawn into the corruption scandal.

The Bundesliga Scandal was far-reaching with all clubs either implicated or viewed with suspicion.