Oeri to step down as FC Basel chairwoman
One of the few women at the helm of a top-tier European football club says she will retire this year for health reasons.
FC Basel chairwoman Gisela Oeri, popularly known as "Gigi," is a philanthropist who has invested millions of Swiss francs in the club since joining the board of directors in 1999.
Oeri, 55, married into the family which part owns the Basel-based Roche Holding AG pharmaceuticals giant.
She has been Basel chairwoman for five years, during which time the club has won three Swiss league titles.
“I won’t just forget these 12 years of my life, when I was there 24 hours a day for the club,” Oeri told reporters. “They were 12 sensational years but now is the moment to step down.”
Oeri's chairmanship will end in December after the group stage of the Champions’ League in which Basel is once again competing. She will be succeeded by vice president Bernhard Heusler.
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