University celebrates 282nd Dies academicus
On Friday November 4, the University will open the doors of Heinrich Lades Halle in Erlangen to welcome its members, friends and supporters from 4 pm to officially celebrate its founding day. The event is open to all and participation is free of charge.
Guests are requested to register below.
Click here to registerDuring the 282nd Dies academicus, FAU President Prof. Dr. Joachim Hornegger and the Students’ Representatives will take a look back at this year’s most important events. Bavarian Minister of the Interior, Joachim Herrmann, has agreed to attend and Bavarian Science Minister, Markus Blume, will send a video message.
One of the highlights of the event is honoring the FAU innovators of the year in the categories research, alumni, and students, who will be introduced during the evening. The musical accompaniment for the evening will be provided by the FAU Big Band.
The FAU Innovators:
The FAU InnovatorsKeynote: Sports in the context of power, image and geopolitics
In his presentation “Das Runde muss ins Eckige. Spielfelder der Legitimation im Nahen Osten” (The ball has to go in the net. Playing fields of legitimization in the Middle East), Prof. Dr. Thomas Demmelhuber illustrates the political and social dimensions of sport in the context of power, image and geopolitics. He demonstrates how sport is used, on the one hand, to maintain an image, to consolidate power relationships, as a window for a flourishing future and to exert influence on an international level. On the other, sport itself also changes: It becomes a stage, where states not only present themselves, but also renegotiate the rules and values of sport.
Prof. Dr. Thomas Demmelhuber was appointed Chair of Middle East Politics and Society at FAU in 2015. As a political scientist, he carries out comparative research on autocracies.
View recording on Franken Fernsehen TV channel
The event will be recorded and shown on Franken Fernsehen on Tuesday November 11, 2025 at 8.15pm and on Saturday November 15, 2025 at 10pm. The recording of the Dies academicus will be permanently available on fau.tv as of November 12, 2025.
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10/10Further information:
Christoph Loos
zuv-fauevents@fau.de