Dietmar Hopp
Encyclopedia
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
. He was one of the founders of SAP AG
SAP AG
SAP AG is a German software corporation that makes enterprise software to manage business operations and customer relations. Headquartered in Walldorf, Baden-Württemberg, with regional offices around the world, SAP is the market leader in enterprise application software...
in 1972 with other former IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
employees Hans Werner Hector, Klaus Tschira
Klaus Tschira
Klaus Tschira is a german entrepreneur. After gaining his physics diploma and working at IBM, he co-founded the German software giant SAP AG in 1972 in Walldorf, Germany together with Hans-Werner Hector, Dietmar Hopp, Hasso Plattner and Claus Wellenreuther...
, Claus Wellenreuther and Hasso Plattner
Hasso Plattner
Hasso Plattner is a cofounder of software giant SAP AG. Today he is Chairman of the Supervisory Board of SAP AG.- Biography :Hasso Plattner is a German entrepreneur...
. At one point he was the 698th richest person in the world (according to Forbes Magazine).
Dietmar Hopp was the CEO of SAP AG from 1988 until 1998, Chairman of its supervisory board from 1998 until 2003 and member of the board from 2003 until 2005. He kept about 10% of the company's shares after leaving the board. After Hopp left in 2005, the street on which the SAP AG headquarters are located was renamed from Neurottstraße to Dietmar-Hopp-Allee, in honor of Mr. Hopp.
In 2006, Hopp transferred 70% of his wealth (about €4 billion) to a charitable foundation, Dietmar-Hopp-Stiftung, creating one of the largest foundations in Europe. The foundation supports sports, medicine, education and social programs.
Recently, Hopp is also notable as the chief financial backer of the German football club TSG 1899 Hoffenheim. When Hopp, who had played in the club's youth setup, started supporting the club in 2000, Hoffenheim were playing in the eighth division of German football. Today, Hoffenheim are in the First Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
, and in their first season in the top flight in 2008–09, they led the league at its winter break. Hopp also spent €
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
100 million to build a new 30,000-seat stadium called Rhein-Neckar-Arena
Rhein-Neckar-Arena
The Rhein-Neckar Arena is a multi-purpose stadium in Sinsheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is used mostly for football matches and hosts the home matches of 1899 Hoffenheim. The stadium has a capacity of 30,150 people...
near Sinsheim
Sinsheim
Sinsheim is a town in southwestern Germany, in the Rhine Neckar Area of the state Baden-Württemberg about 22 kilometers southeast of Heidelberg and about 28 kilometers northwest of Heilbronn in the district Rhein-Neckar. It consists of a city center and 11 suburbs with a total population of 35,605...
for the club. He currently owns a home in Naples, Florida
Naples, Florida
Naples is a city in Collier County, Florida, United States. As of July 1, 2007, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 21,653. Naples is a principal city of the Naples–Marco Island Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated total population of 315,839 on July 1, 2007...
.
Hopp is the owner of the Domaine de Terre Blanche
Domaine de Terre Blanche
The Domaine de Terre Blanche is located at Tourrettes, Var just southeast of Fayence in the Provence region of France. Sean Connery owned the property for 20 years before he sold the Chateau and its surrounding 266 hectares to Dietmar Hopp in 1999...
- an exclusive resort in the South of France, which he bought from actor Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
.