As anticipated by Watson, Mark Streit announced his departure from the board during an extraordinary meeting of the SIHF, which was mainly focused on the structural changes required to welcome the new independent associations National League AG and Swiss League AG.
These two entities will be represented on the board, until the next general assembly in 2023, by Peter Zahner, CEO of the ZSC Lions, and respectively Gian Kämpf, president of SC Langenthal.
Michael Rindlisbacher, president of the SIHF, strongly believes in the importance of welcoming the two newest members: "In order to be able to act and make prudent decisions in the best interests of Swiss Ice Hockey, it is absolutely essential that we continue to work closely together in the new structures - the new composition of the board of directors is an important prerequisite for this."
During the extraordinary assembly, the National League AG, which will start its operational business on June 1, 2021, was officially accepted as a member of the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation: the delegates approved the required transitional provisions to the statutes for the 2021-22 season. The cooperation between Swiss Ice Hockey and the National League AG will be regulated by a cooperation agreement, which has already been negotiated and will be signed by both partners after this extraordinary general meeting.
As the Swiss League AG will only become operationally independent the season after next, the definitive changes to the statutes of the SIHF will be made in the 2022-23 financial year.
