Council Members Faced Disciplinary Action
In an unexpected turn of events, the attendance of six city councilors from VfB Stuttgart's DFB-Pokal final opponents will be affected, as the government presidency (Regierungspräsidium, RP) of an unspecified region has prohibited their trip to the final at the expense of taxpayers.
The DFB-Pokal final, scheduled for this Saturday in Berlin, will see VfB Stuttgart go head-to-head with an unnamed opponent. The city councilors' absence from the event was due to a decision by the RP, which criticised the process of Stuttgart's Mayor, Frank Nopper (CDU), in purchasing tickets for the final, stating it as a duty-law violation.
Mayor Nopper, following the long-standing practice of his predecessors, had invited city councilors to the DFB-Pokal final. However, the RP's decision was confirmed by the supervisory authority, and the city's municipal lawyers have checked the procedure and raised no objections. In light of the RP's decision, the city spokesman has confirmed that the mayor will withdraw the invitation.
The RP believes that the city councilors do not have a "sufficient representative function" to represent the state capital at the cup final. Meanwhile, CDU faction leader Manuel Hagel will travel to Berlin privately and as a fan.
Interestingly, Minister President Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) of the state of Baden-Württemberg, like Nopper, was invited by the DFB to the DFB-Pokal final. Previous reports from "Stuttgarter Zeitung" and "Stuttgarter Nachrichten" have mentioned similar incidents where the government presidency of another region had prohibited city councilors' trips to finals at the expense of taxpayers.
With the city councilors unable to attend the final in person, they will instead watch the game on television or privately at their locations. The trip with the city councilors was planned to be financed with unspent money from the 2024 European Football Championship, according to information from the town hall.
The DFB-Pokal final, a sports event featuring football, will see VfB Stuttgart play against an undisclosed opponent this Saturday in Berlin. Due to a duty-law violation in the process of acquiring tickets for the final by Stuttgart's Mayor, the government presidency (RP) has prohibited city councilors from attending the event, citing that they do not have a "sufficient representative function."
