Dr. Ignaz H. Koerner, president and founder of the Hakoah who is leaving the United States with the Hakoah soccer team tomorrow, expressed his satisfaction with the results of the tour of the team in the United States, in an interview with the representative of the “Jewish Daily Bulletin.”
“The purpose of our journey was to promote a better appreciation of sport among the Jewish youth and I believe, without fear, that this purpose has been achieved. I believe that as a result of our tour here. Jewish sport clubs will be founded in the United States.
“The tour of the Hakoah team in the United States has done much to make soccer popular. I say this on the authority of many leading sportsmen and on the strength of the opinion of the American press. Newspapers all over the country have emphasized our achievements in popularizing this game. In this respect our tour has been a great success.
“The splendid qualities which the American teams have demonstrated cause me to believe that the American skill will finally lead to the championship of America over European teams,” Dr. Koerner declared.
“I cannot depart before expressing words of gratitude to the many prominent men who have given us their cooperation during our stay in the United States. I am very gratful to the Austrian embassy for its cooperation extended to us. We owe a special debt to the press which has done much to attract attention to the Hakoah and to make our tour a success.
“While our moral success has been great. I am sorry I cannot say the same of its financial aspect. The receipts have been in no way in proportion to the immense expenditures we have had. This is probably due to the fact that a first attempt cannot have immediate financial success, especially if attention is primarily directed to achieving a moral success.
“After all the games have been concluded, we will publish an official account of our income and expenditures. This will prove that the opinion of many who were optimistic of our financial gain has not been substantiated.
“I must admit that I thought our American trip would at least place us in a position where we could carry out our dream of building our own stadium, of at last owning our own swimming pool and other facilities which are so necessary to a sport club.
“The Jewish public probably does not realize that our activity is not only in the field of sport, but is also philanthropic. Thousands of children, among them many orphans and destitute children from Russia and Galicia, are not only taught swimming, physical training and brought up to be healthy and proud Jews, but we also supply them with meals, medical treatment in case of illness and with clothing. Our members, who number many thousands, have not been in a position to pay their membership dues because of the economic situation in Europe. This has led to the accumulation of a huge deficit which our American trip will not help us to liquidate, even in part.
“This deficit and our desire to build our own stadium led us to make the American trip. This circumstance will, I hope, induce Jewish organizations here, especially the Joint Distribution Committee, to allocate a certain sum to the Hakoah which will enable us to rid us of our deficit and to carry out our project of building our stadium.
“I am sure that leading Jewish circles in America, having become better acquainted with the Hakoah and its work, will feel sympathetic toward helping us extend our activities, especially as the Hakoah has not only been a sport organization but has, whenever danger threatened Jews from the Hakenkreuzfer and other anti-Semitic groups, been on the spot to defend the Jews against such attacks. Those who were in Vienna in the years following the Armistice, or at the last Zionist Congress, will recall the service the Hakoah rendered at that time.
The Hakoah will, as in the past, make it its aim to render honor to the Jewish name. It will continue to found sport associations in every part of the world and to contribute to the physical education of the young Jew, always carried out with the intention of being of service to our people.”
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
