Longtime German television presenter and football commentator Ernst Huberty has died at the age of 96. His style was anything but excited.
Ernst Huberty was “the face” of the ARD sports show for almost two decades
“We sadly say goodbye to Ernst Huberty. As 'Mr. Sportschau', as the audience lovingly called him, he has as the first moderator to have a decisive influence on this program: pleasantly calm and with great seriousness,” said Tom Buhrow, director of West German Broadcasting (WDR). “Ernst Huberty will always be remembered not only as the presenter of the sports show, but also as a sports reporter legend.”
Man of the first hour
On June 4, 1961, Huberty moderated the first edition of the sports show. At that time, ARD was still the only German broadcaster that broadcast television, and ZDF only went on the air two years later. In the Bundesliga, too, the ball only started rolling in 1963. And so in the early days of the ARD sports show with moderator Huberty, the focus was on other sports such as equestrian sports or handball. Later, football, especially the Bundesliga, became the focus of the show.
Huberty not only moderated but also commented on important games, such as the semi-final of the 1970 World Cup between Germany and Italy, which went down in German football history as the “game of the century”, which the German national team lost 3:4 after extra time. Huberty's style was not comparable to that of today's TV reporters: he commented calmly, matter-of-factly and at a distance – even when emotions ran high on the pitch.
DFL: “Pioneer of Bundesliga reporting”< /h2>
Huberty worked for the sports show until 1982 and also headed the WDR sports department for a long time. In 1991 he switched to the pay-TV broadcaster Premiere. Huberty trained football commentators into old age. “We mourn a pioneer in Bundesliga reporting,” tweeted the German Football League DFL.
Many clubs also paid tribute to the deceased. Herbert Hainer, President of FC Bayern Munich, explained: “Ernst Huberty brought football into our living rooms in his very specific, sovereign way.”
sn/asz (dpa, sid)