Managing directors
Thomas E. Herrich was born in 1964 in Frankfurt am Main and grew up in the Allgäu region. After completing his Abitur (A-Levels), he embarked on an academic career in two fields, first studying Business Economics, with a focus on Marketing, at the University of Applied Sciences Kempten, before pursuing Law at the Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) in Munich. After finishing his law studies, he completed his legal training in Munich, Kempten and Augsburg which ended with sitting state legal exams.
Herrich joined the sports rights marketing company Sportfive in 2000 as a qualified business economist and lawyer. His work at Hertha’s partner company saw him responsible for the overall marketing strategy of Hertha BSC. This followed a period in which he worked at Bertelsmann, the RTL-Group and UFA Sports during the pioneering days of sponsorship, picking up valuable experience at each firm.
In 2005, Herrich switched to take on a direct position at Hertha, initially working as office manager before being promoted to senior management and authorised signatory of Hertha BSC GmbH und Co. KGaA in 2009. The former competitive athlete and passionate long-distance runner held this position until the summer of 2022, when the presidential board appointment him to a new, and for the time being solo, position of managing director. In March 2024, our capital city club extended the contract with the long-standing decision-maker. Since July 1, 2024, Herrich has acted as Managing Director together with Ralf Huschen and also acts as Spokesman of the Executive Board.
Thomas E. Herrich was a member of the Technical Committee for Marketing/Sponsoring of the German Football League (DFL) between 2007 and 2010 and was appointed to the newly installed Marketing/Sponsoring Committee position of the DFL in 2017, being reappointed in 2019. In addition to this, Herrich has been an assessor for the DFL in the highest DFB sports court, the DFB Federal Court, since 2019. He is also a permanent assessor for the DFB Federal Court in doping and betting matters. From 2014 to the beginning of 2023, Herrich was President of the Marketing Club Berlin, which he now accompanies as Honorary President.
Ralf Huschen, born in Paderborn in 1978, studied business administration at the Fachhochschule der Wirtschaft (FHDW) in his home town after graduating from high school. He graduated with a degree in business administration, followed by a degree specializing in finance and entrepreneurship at the University of Tampa in Florida. Huschen completed his academic training in the United States with a Master of Business Administration (MBA).
Our Managing Director gained his first professional experience at adidas AG in Herzogenaurach. From 2005, he worked as a Finance Manager/Financial Director at Siemens Nixdorf AG, followed by a position at Wincor-Nixdorf AG / Diebold Nixdorf AG in Paderborn. In fall of 2019, Huschen then joined SC Paderborn 07, where he worked as Managing Director Finance until June 2024.
The holder of the A-license has been a member of the Supervisory Board of DFL GmbH since the 2022 General Assembly. The manager is also a member of the DFB Executive Board and an active member of the Association of German Football Coaches.