June 26, 2022
The brief from today:
From the stands to the boardroom
Hertha Berlin held their general elections today to elect a new club president, after Werner Gegenbauer retired last month. The victor is 41-year-old Kay Bernstein, a club member since 2005, who also co-founded the Hertha ultras group: Harlekins Berlin ‘98. Bernstein collected 1670 votes out of a possible 3016, with the second placed nominee receiving 1280. While his day job is running a communications and marketing agency, on matchdays Bernstein was in the stands routinely leading the ultras as they sang in support of Hertha. He will now lead in a different capacity, and has called for more unity at the club saying, “A poison destroys our association, we have to detoxify it from within. We need an honest and real restart.” Hertha were almost relegated last season from the Bundesliga, but managed to gain safety after a 2-1 aggregate win against Hamburg in the relegation playoff.
Copa Libertadores returns
After a one month break, South America’s premier club competition, the Copa Libertadores, returns this week for the Round of 16 matches. The CONMEBOL equivalent to UEFA’s Champions League resumes with the pick of the round being the two-legged tie between Corinthians of Brazil, and Boca Juniors of Argentina, which was the 2012 final. The Brazilian and Argentinian sides have traditionally dominated this competition, and more of the same is expected with current champions Palmeiras still in the mix. The São Paulo side have been to the last two finals, winning last year’s, and will also be challenged by 2019 winners: River Plate of Argentina. Of the 16 teams remaining, 6 hail from Brazil, 6 from Argentina, 2 from Paraguay, and 1 each from Ecuador and Colombia.
Palmeiras will be looking to retain their 2021 Libertadores title this year