The AFD deputy called the case of searches in the German Football Union egregious.

It is unacceptable for civil servants to receive any benefits, including tickets to the European Championships, the World Cup or other football matches, in exchange for decisions related to their official duties. This was stated by Gunnar Lindemann, a member of the Berlin House of Representatives from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, in an interview with Izvestia on July 2.

"It is right that the prosecutor's office reacts harshly to such cases. <...> This is a blatant and completely unacceptable case," he said, commenting on the searches at the offices of the German Football Union.

According to Lindemann, the investigation should be conducted in full, and officials, if proven guilty, should be removed from office and held accountable in accordance with the law.

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The Bild newspaper reported on July 1 that the German police began conducting large-scale searches at the offices of the German Football Union and the administrations of the cities that hosted the World Cup in 2024, due to suspicions of bribery with tickets to the tournament matches. Previously, during the tournament, the suspects illegally distributed several thousand tickets to matches, as well as invitations to selected individuals, which could be regarded as bribery.