![]() With Ralf Rangnick heading back upstairs to his position as sporting director, Leipzig were in search of a new coach. The insiduous spread of corporations into every facet of life is fuel for nightmares, although, separating off-field developments from on-field, Leipzeig are undeniably an impressive side – a youthful squad that have gained four promotions in six seasons and qualified for the Champions League in their debut campaign playing fast attacking football. Red Bull, on the other hand – from their red and white colours to their Die roten Bullen nickname – are the success story rather than simply a brand logo slapped over it. ![]() Wolfsburg and Leverkusen are owned by Volkswagen and Bayer but were intended as clubs for the companies’ workers, while Dietmar Hopp’s investment in Hoffenheim is mainly benevolent. Nevertheless, RB Leipzig is clearly a marketing campaign that goes far beyond sponsorship. Despite being home to the founding of the DFB and the first national champion, Leipzig hadn’t even had a professional team since 1998. East Germany having to pay war reparations while the West had investment pumped into it meant that when the Berlin wall fell the Western clubs had the economic might to lure players away. Leipzig’s promotion is the first time an East German club has played in the Bundesliga since Energie Cottbus were relegated in 2009 and it’s unlikely that would have been achieved had SSV Markranstadt not sold their playing right to Red Bull. Fans of clubs like Bayern may sneer at the business affiliations of Wolfsburg and Bayer Leverkusen, nevermind the nouveau riche of Hoffenheim and Leipzig, yet they sit at the head of the table – their success primarily built on out-muscling and poaching from their rivals. However with an average attendance of over 40,000, clearly not everyone hates them. When Bayern Munich have over 280,000 members at an annual fee of €60 whereas Leipzig have just 17 at €800, Germany’s 50+1 rule is being made a mockery of – the RB may technically stand for RasenBallsport but we all know what it really means. Red Bull skirted around this rule by having only a handful of employee or company-affiliated members, making its membership expensive and rejecting applications. ![]() ![]() And not just any league – the Bundesliga, where clubs were run as non-profits until 1998 and even today must be majority owned by members rather than a private company. Red Bull have had their fingers in the pie for a while in New York, Salzburg, Sao Paulo and Sogakope but Leipzig is the first time they have muddied the waters in a major league. Even faster than they climbed Germany’s footballing pyramid, RB Leipzig became the country’s most hated club. ![]()
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