Hubert Claessen

Hubert Claessen (born July 9, 1913 in Bonn ; † June 14, 2005 ibid), lawyer from Bonn, was a football official from the start after the war and one of the fathers of the Bundesliga .

In 1950 he became chairman of the Bonn FV, an office he held until 1965 when his association merged with Tura Bonn. In the successor association created by the merger, the Bonner SC , he took over the office of 2nd chairman.

In addition to the club work, Claessen soon took on functions in various association bodies: He was elected to the board of the German Football Association (DFB) (1962 to 1977) through the office of chairman of the association court in the former West German Football Association (1953 to 1965 ). In the DFB he played a key role in founding the Bundesliga.

Claessen's time as chairman of the DFB control committee (1963 to 1970) saw the first scandal of the still young Bundesliga, which led to the forced relegation of the Bundesliga club Hertha BSC in the 1964/1965 season . Hubert Claessen had discovered that the Berliners paid unauthorized high hand money (at that time a maximum of DM 10,000 was allowed) in order to lure well-known players ( Carl-Heinz Rühl , Wolfgang Fahrian , Uwe Klimaschefski and Hans-Jürgen Sundermann ) to the divided city. The club, which had managed to stay in the league, was transferred to the regional league as a punishment for violating the DFB's contractual statutes.

Claessen later also became a member of the DFB Federal Court. In the DFB service, he last held the office of treasurer (1970 to 1977). After leaving the board of the German Football Association, he was awarded honorary membership of the DFB in 1977 in recognition of his significant achievements in football.

Between 1970 and 1978 Claessen was also a member of the Appeals Committee of the European Football Union (UEFA) , and in the meantime he was also Vice President of the German Sports Association .

Hubert Claessen died on June 14, 2005 in his hometown of Bonn.