Conflicts within the management of FC St. Gallen became apparent during the celebrations after the cup final. A power struggle between the board of directors and shareholders has now become public. The St. Gallen government is concerned.
26.05.2026, 14:15
26.05.2026, 21:19
SDA
There seemed to be a discord in the exuberant celebratory mood after FC St. Gallen's cup victory in Bern on Whit Sunday. On the artificial turf, President Matthias Hüppi declared that there were tendencies within the club "that we will not accept in this form". For him, it is inconceivable "that in the best phase of the club's history, not everyone is united behind us".
Hüppi was asked by the SRF presenters about a banner from the fan curve. "The right people are behind the triumph," it read. "Thank you Beni, Patrick G., Christoph, Peter and Matthias!" One was missing from this list of the first names of the members of the Board of Directors: Patrick Thoma was only elected to the Board of Directors last fall as a representative of the shareholders. Before that, the largest shareholders were not represented on the Board.
Many unanswered questions
On Monday evening, various reports on the online platform of the St. Galler Tagblatt provided more background information on the conflict between the shareholders and the previous Board of Directors. The main points of the information were confirmed in an interview on Tuesday morning by St. Gallen National Councillor Benedikt Würth (center). He is one of the current members of the FCSG Board of Directors.
A takeover of power by shareholder representatives is then planned. Four current members of the Board of Directors - including Würth - are to be replaced by four new members. According to various media reports, these include Marwin Hitz, until recently FC Basel goalkeeper, and former St. Gallen SVP government councillor Stefan Kölliker. Kölliker is set to replace Hüppi as president in the short or medium term.
Kölliker told SRF that he was contacted by the shareholders around six weeks ago. He had been informed that there would be resignations from the Board of Directors and that the contract with Chairman Hüppi would expire at the end of the year. He then signaled his willingness to take over the position.
The change of power could be implemented at an Extraordinary General Meeting on June 30. The shareholders would be able to push through the personnel changes thanks to their shares. Whether this will happen is still open at this early stage.
There are still no answers to various questions. For example, it is not known what points of criticism the current Board of Directors under Chairman Hüppi has been accused of to force such a short-term change.
The potential new members of the Board of Directors have not yet presented themselves and their plans to the public. For the time being, they could not be reached by the Keystone-SDA news agency for further information. FC St. Gallen stated on request that no inquiries would be answered due to "a currently urgent situation". They are working at full speed to find a solution.
Government expresses concern
On Tuesday morning, the St. Gallen government issued a statement saying that it was following the reports of internal tensions "with considerable concern". An enforced replacement of the Board of Directors at this point in time would call into question the unifying momentum of the Cup victory. The trust in the club management that has been built up over the years could be shaken and the support of fans, the public and sponsors could be jeopardized.
No statements on the conflict have yet been made by important financial supporters, such as the St. Galler Kantonalbank as the main sponsor or Berit Klinik AG, which will own the naming rights for the stadium from the summer.
In a statement on the "einefueralli.ch" website, the fan curve has backed the current management and announced its opposition. It remains to be seen what impact the reactions from the surrounding area will have on the dispute.
