SRF Sport puts together a new soccer team
After the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil, there will be changes in the SRF football team. Long-time figureheads Beni Thurnheer, Hanspeter Latour and Gilbert Gress are leaving the international SRF football stage.
New to SRF's team of experts is German football coach Volker Finke, formerly a coach in the German Bundesliga and currently national coach of Cameroon. Together with Benjamin Huggel and presenter Matthias Hüppi, Finke will form the trio for Wednesday's Champions League coverage. This was announced by SRF on Saturday.
The Tuesday games are presented by presenter Rainer Maria Salzgeber and pundit Alain Sutter. In future, Salzgeber will also cover the Swiss national team's matches, together with former national team player Raphaël Wicky. Alain Sutter will support the two of them until fall 2014 - in other words, during the transition phase between the Hitzfeld era and the start of the new national team coach Vladimir Petkovic. The new expert in the Super League will be Gürkan Sermeter.
Following the conclusion of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Hanspeter Latour is retiring from his role as co-commentator in the Super League and as radio commentator for the Swiss national team. Latour wants to devote himself to private projects in future. Gilbert Gress will also no longer be a regular football pundit for SRF from the new season. Beni Thurnheer will continue to commentate on national matches in future.
Urs Leutert, Head of SRF Sport, on the personnel change: "I am looking forward to the new constellation and am convinced that the new pairings will bring a breath of fresh air to our football coverage. On behalf of SRF, I would like to thank Gilbert Gress and Hanspeter Latour for their commitment and the many entertaining hours. Both are strong personalities who have left their unmistakable mark on SRF's football coverage in recent years."
According to SDA, Latour will retire from his activities as co-commentator in the Super League and as radio commentator for the Swiss national team after the World Cup in Brazil and devote himself to private projects. Gress, whose contract is due to expire, will no longer be a regular football pundit for SRF from the new season. Benard Thurnheer will continue to commentate on national matches in future.
