On the Spanish island of Tenerife, a lifetime of ice hockey stewardship found its culmination as Franz Reindl, a 71-year-old German veteran of rink and boardroom alike, was elected president of the International Ice Hockey Federation by the narrowest of margins. His victory — reversing an early deficit to win a runoff 60-57 — places him at the helm of a sport navigating geopolitical turbulence and institutional renewal. Only the second German to hold the office, Reindl inherits both the prestige and the unresolved tensions of a global federation still reckoning with war, exclusion, and the pol
German ice hockey veteran Franz Reindl elected IIHF president
Reindl prevailed by three votes in a runoff that reversed his initial deficit.
Mark
So Reindl came from behind—he was down twelve votes after the first round. What changed between that vote and the runoff?
Mimi
When Omorkanov was eliminated, his supporters had to vote again. Reindl picked up enough of those votes to overtake Briza. It was close—just three votes separated them in the end.
Luke
We don't actually know where Omorkanov's votes went or why. The reporting tells us the outcome, not the mechanics of how delegates shifted.
Mark
Reindl's been around ice hockey his whole life. Does that background actually prepare you to run a global federation?
Mimi
He's done almost every job in the sport—player, coach, league executive, tournament organizer, national federation president. He oversaw Germany's rise to an Olympic silver medal. That's real operational experience.
Luke
True, but those are mostly domestic or regional roles. The IIHF is different—it's managing geopolitical tensions, Olympic politics, professional league interests. We don't know yet whether his track record translates.
Mark
What's waiting for him when he takes office?
Mimi
Russia is still excluded from international competition because of the Ukraine war. That's a massive ongoing issue. And he's inheriting decisions about Olympic participation, professional player eligibility—complex stuff.
Luke
The reporting mentions those challenges but doesn't say what Reindl's position is on any of them, or what his priorities will be. We know what he's walking into, not what he plans to do about it.
Der Puls
- Reindl entered the runoff trailing by twelve votes, making his eventual three-vote victory a dramatic reversal that few in the room had anticipated.
- The elimination of a third candidate, Kyrgyzstan's Aivaz Omorkanov, proved decisive — his redistributed support tipped the balance just enough.
- Six of nine original candidates had withdrawn before voting even began, signaling deep uncertainty and backroom maneuvering within the federation.
- Reindl now inherits the unresolved question of Russia's exclusion from international play, a politically charged issue with no clear resolution in sight.
- His mandate runs to 2030, giving him time to shape the federation's direction — but the margin of his win suggests a divided constituency he must work to unite.
On the Spanish island of Tenerife, a lifetime of ice hockey stewardship found its culmination as Franz Reindl, a 71-year-old German veteran of rink and boardroom alike, was elected president of the International Ice Hockey Federation by the narrowest of margins. His victory — reversing an early deficit to win a runoff 60-57 — places him at the helm of a sport navigating geopolitical turbulence and institutional renewal. Only the second German to hold the office, Reindl inherits both the prestige and the unresolved tensions of a global federation still reckoning with war, exclusion, and the politics of belonging.
Franz Reindl, 71, was elected president of the International Ice Hockey Federation on Friday following a tense runoff vote in Tenerife that reversed the night's early momentum. After trailing Czech candidate Petr Briza 48-36 in the first round, Reindl secured the presidency 60-57 once Kyrgyzstan's Aivaz Omorkoman was eliminated and his supporters shifted allegiances. The margin — three votes — underscored just how contested the succession had become, particularly after six of nine original candidates withdrew before balloting began.
Reindl's credentials span the full arc of German ice hockey. He played 669 games across two decades, scoring 423 goals, and was part of the West German team that won bronze at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck — a distinction he shares, across different eras, with his runoff opponent Briza. After retiring as a player, he became the DEL's first CEO, organized three World Championships, and served as president of the German Ice Hockey Association from 2014 to 2022, a tenure that included the men's national team's silver medal at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.
His election comes five years after he lost the same race to outgoing president Luc Tardif, who announced in March he would not seek another term. Reindl now inherits the federation's most pressing unresolved challenges: Russia's ongoing exclusion from international competition following its invasion of Ukraine, and the delicate politics surrounding NHL players' return to Olympic ice. As only the second German to hold the IIHF presidency — after Günter Sabetzki, who served from 1975 to 1994 — Reindl brings both institutional familiarity and historical weight to a role he will hold until 2030.
Franz Reindl, a 71-year-old German ice hockey veteran, has been elected president of the International Ice Hockey Federation after a tense runoff vote held Friday on the Spanish island of Tenerife. The election capped a dramatic reversal: Reindl had trailed Czech candidate Petr Briza by twelve votes in the initial round, 48-36, but secured enough support after a third candidate, Aivaz Omorkanov of Kyrgyzstan, was eliminated. In the runoff, Reindl prevailed 60-57, a margin of just three votes. Six of the nine original candidates had already withdrawn before the election took place.
Reindl's path to the IIHF presidency is rooted in a lifetime spent building German ice hockey from multiple angles. As a player in the 1970s and 1980s, he appeared in 669 games across two decades for SC Riessersee and SB Rosenheim, scoring 423 goals in what was then called the Eishockey-Bundesliga, the top domestic league before it became the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. He was part of West Germany's bronze medal team at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, a credential he shares with his runoff opponent—Briza was a goalie for Czechoslovakia's bronze medal squad in 1992.
After his playing career ended, Reindl moved into administration and leadership roles that would define German ice hockey's modern era. He served as the first CEO of the DEL when it launched in 1994, a position he held through 1996. He then took on the responsibility of organizing three separate World Championships—in 2001, 2010, and 2017. From 2014 to 2022, he served as president of the German Ice Hockey Association, the DEB, a tenure marked by a notable achievement: the men's national team won silver at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. Frank Lutz, the current DEB chairman, called Reindl's election "a great tribute to his work," noting that he had "shaped German ice hockey for decades."
Reindl's election comes five years after he finished as runner-up to Luc Tardif, the Canadian-born Frenchman who is now stepping down. Tardif announced in March that he would not seek another term. During Tardif's tenure, the IIHF navigated two defining moments: the return of National Hockey League players to Olympic ice hockey competition at Milan Cortina earlier this year, and the exclusion of Russia from international play in 2022 following the country's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. These remain live issues that Reindl will inherit.
Reindl's election to the IIHF presidency makes him only the second German to hold the position. Günter Sabetzki preceded him, serving from 1975 to 1994. Reindl's term runs until 2030. He had been a member of the IIHF Council since 2016, giving him institutional familiarity with the federation's operations and politics before his ascent to the top post.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
Franz Reindl has shaped German ice hockey for decades—as a player, but above all through the various key roles he has held within our federation. The fact that the international ice hockey family is now entrusting him with the leadership of the IIHF is a great tribute to his work.— Frank Lutz, current DEB chairman
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