Bundesliga 1965 and 1971 Scandal to Best League in Football

Bundesliga Scandals

The Bundesliga, one of the world's most respected football leagues today, it was always been like this. In the early years, the Bundesliga faced many scandals that cost the league public trust also lost its integrity and reputation. After being exposed to corruption and forced deep structural reforms Bundesliga, a newly introduced league, was at stake. Then the table turns and now the Bundesliga is the world's most respected league and most appearances of fans in all over the world in football leagues. The two biggest scandals the Bundesliga faced were the 1965 Illegal Payments Scandal and the 1971 Match-Fixing Scandal left a long-lasting mark on German Football.

The 1965 Illegal Payments Scandal

The Bundesliga scandal of 1965 began due to the German Football Association (DFB)'s reluctance to fully accept professionalism in football, a hesitation linked to Germany’s traditional amateur sports culture. At that time, strict financial limits were placed on clubs, but many teams secretly broke these rules by making illegal payments to players and agents in order to gain an advantage. Some clubs even went as far as paying opposing players to underperform in crucial matches.

The scandal was uncovered in February 1965, when auditors found suspicious entries in Hertha Berlin's financial records. These turned out to be illegal payments to players. Hertha’s situation was worsened by Berlin’s political isolation during the Cold War, as the city was surrounded by Soviet-controlled East Germany. Because many players refused to live and play in Berlin, the club had to pay extra incentives—often illegally—to attract talent. Although many other clubs were engaged in similar activities, only Hertha Berlin was punished, resulting in their relegation from the Bundesliga to the Regionalliga Berlin.

The DFB, however, wanted to keep a Berlin club in the Bundesliga for political reasons. The logical candidates for promotion were Tennis Borussia Berlin, Spandauer SV, and Tasmania 1900 Berlin. Tennis Borussia had performed poorly in the promotion playoffs, and Spandauer SV refused the offer. The DFB then approached Tasmania Berlin, the third-placed team, who accepted promotion.

This decision angered Karlsruher SC and FC Schalke 04, who argued they deserved to remain in the Bundesliga instead of promoting a lower-tier Berlin team. To resolve the dispute, the DFB expanded the Bundesliga from 16 to 18 clubs, allowing both Karlsruher and Schalke to stay in the top division.

Tasmania Berlin’s lone Bundesliga season turned out to be disastrous. The club set several unwanted records for poor performance, many of which still stand today.

Following the scandal, the DFB finally relaxed the restrictions on player wages and transfer fees, though still not to the same level as other European leagues. These partial reforms failed to solve all financial issues, eventually leading to another major Bundesliga scandal about six years later, in 1971.

The 1971 Match-Fixing Scandal

The Bundesliga scandal of 1971 was one of the biggest match-fixing incidents in German football history. The scandal became headlines when Horst-Gregorio Canellas, the president of Kickers Offenbach, publicly exposed the corruption. On his 50th birthday, during a garden party attended by DFB officials and several journalists, Canellas played an audio recording in which several players, including German internationals Bernd Patzke and Manfred Manglitz, could be heard discussing and agreeing to take bribes to help Offenbach avoid relegation.

The DFB’s chief prosecutor, Hans Kindermann, led the investigation and uncovered widespread corruption. It was revealed that several matches, including the 17 April 1971 game between FC Schalke 04 and Arminia Bielefeld (which ended 0–1), had been deliberately fixed. Schalke’s players and officials were found guilty of accepting money to lose the match. As a result, many players received long-term bans, while others were banned for life from professional football.

Despite their punishment, several Schalke players denied and even swore an oath declaring their innocence. However, it was later proven that their oath was false. Because of this, Schalke’s rivals mockingly began calling the club “FC Meineid”, meaning “FC Perjury” in German.

In total, 52 players, two managers, and six club officials were punished for their involvement in the scandal. Both Arminia Bielefeld and Kickers Offenbach had their Bundesliga licenses revoked. Offenbach had already been relegated due to poor performance, but Bielefeld initially remained in the Bundesliga for the 1971–72 season. After completing the season, the DFB officially relegated Bielefeld, giving them zero points for every match as part of their punishment.

The 1971 scandal deeply damaged the reputation of German football but also led to the decline of financial and ethical regulations, as the DFB handled corruption and match-fixing in the Bundesliga, marking a turning point.

Journey to Best League in Football

The 1965 and 1971 Bundesliga scandals remain painful but important reminders of football’s susceptibility to corruption. They highlight how greed, pressure, and poor governance can undermine the sport’s spirit but also how accountability and reform can restore it. The Bundesliga’s long history of allegations may have begun in scandal, but it also forged the foundations of the fair and respected competition we see today.

The lessons of the scandals shaped the Bundesliga’s economic model.Unlike Italy or Spain, where clubs could be privately owned by rich individuals, Germany developed a member-owned structure.
This system later evolved into the famous 50+1 rule , ensuring that club members (fans) always retained majority voting rights. This prevented external investors from buying full control and, crucially, reduced the risk of corruption and reckless spending — the very problems that had led to the scandals.

By the 1980s, the Bundesliga became known for:

• Sound financial governance
• Stable club ownership
• Ethical transparency

The Youth Revolution (2000s Reforms)

After Germany’s poor showing at Euro 2000, the DFB once again reflected on its foundations.They realized that although the league was clean, it lacked homegrown talent.Thus began the “Youth Academy Reform” (Nachwuchsleistungszentren) requiring every Bundesliga club to have their own academy system for youth development. Which ready paid German football in future in result of 2014 FIFA World Cup trophy.