With renovation work in the Stadion Rote Erde taking much longer than originally planned, fixture clashes at Signal Iduna Park in the next few weeks will see Borussia Dortmund II on the move again - this time to Wuppertal's Stadion am Zoo. Home to Regionalliga side Wuppertaler SV, the Stadion am Zoo was where BVB II secured their promotion to the 3.Liga in June 2021 and will make a return to the ground for home games against MSV Duisburg (16 October), SC Verl (29 October) and Viktoria Köln (8 November) before returning to Signal Iduna Park for the last home game of the year against Erzgebirge Aue on 11 November. The Stadion am Zoo doesn't meet 3.Liga criteria and so a special permit has been granted by the DFB (German FA).
BVB II were expected to be back in their Stadion Rote Erde home for the start of the season after work to fill old coal mines shafts under the pitch with concrete had began last April. However, because there are significantly more cavities and the mining damage is much greater than expected, the backfilling is taking significantly more time. Only when this work has been done can the rest of the renovation - including installation of undersoil heating at the Rote Erde for the first time - be carried out. According to the current schedule, BVB II should be back in their home in time to play SpVgg Bayreuth (mid-January).
In addition to the 'Zoo', venues in Duisburg, Paderborn, Essen, Münster, Osnabrück and Lotte had also been considered as alternative stadiums before being ruled out for various reasons.

It looks like Borussia Dortmund II are going to have to move next door into Signal Iduna Park for a while after work at their Stadion Rot Erde home was hit with delays. Work to fill in abandoned coal shafts beneath the pitch with concrete has been underway since April but the fact that they are much larger than anticipated has pushed the schedule back. According to the local paper " Ruhr Nachrichten", it will take significantly more time to fill the shafts with concrete, and only then can work to install undersoil heating and lay a new pitch be carried out.

Amatuere will therefore definitely play their first two 3.Liga home games against FC Ingolstadt (7th August) and Rot Weiß Essen (13th August) at Signal Iduna Park. According to the newspaper though, BVB II aren't expected to be back at the Stadion Rote Erde until October at least - meaning home matches against Freiburg II (28th August) and VfB Oldenburg (10th September) will need to be moved 'next door'. Fortunately, the only fixture 'clash' will be on the 7th August when BVB II are in action against Ingolstadt in the afternoon before Bellingham, Hummels and Co take on Bayer 04 Leverkusen that evening.

Fresh from their Europa League triumph, Eintracht Frankfurt have 11,000 more reasons to celebrate after plans to expand their Deutsche Bank Park stadium was approved by city authorities. Eintracht first spoke about the expansion back in 2017 and the idea is add 11,000 standing places by transforming the north-western end of the stadium into a large standing terrace like Dortmund's iconic 'Südtribüne'.

Only five German stadiums are capable of holding more than 60,000 fans - six if you include the old Olympiastadion in Munich. Of course UEFA will get involved and make sure that all their VIPs and sponsors are taken care of but the revamped Deutsche Bank Park will still have a capacity of at least 54,000 in time for Euro 2024.

Deutsche Bank Park continues the tradition of Waldstadion (Forest Stadium), which stood on the same site since 1925. It has been modernised several times since then, and prior to the 2006 World Cup the old facility was demolished. The Germans built a modern arena in its place, characterised by a retractable roof and a 7 tonne video screen over the centre circle.

Borussia Dortmund have announced an extension of their stadium naming-rights deal with insurance giants Signal Iduna which will see the Westfalenstadion continue to be known as 'Signal Iduna Park' until June 30, 2031. Signal Iduna have been a sponsor of Dortmund since 1974 and held naming rights to the club’s stadium since 2005. Financial terms of the new deal were not disclosed but German newspaper Bild reports that the agreement will be worth €100m (£83.7m) in total.
Dortmund chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke said: “ Signal Iduna is not only the largest private employer in Dortmund, but also a very reliable partner for us that stands by BVB in good times and bad. When our club feared for its existence at the beginning of the millennium, Signal Iduna was one of the first companies to unconditionally side with us and thus helped to ensure BVB’s survival. We won’t forget that .”
Ulrich Leitermann, chief executive of Signal Iduna, added: “ We grew up together in Dortmund, celebrated successes together and also got through difficult times. Our partnership with BVB underscores our claim, which we also have for our customer relationships: We want to be a long-term and reliable partner. We are there for each other. That’s why we’re proud to be able to continue on our common path for at least another nine years. We are looking forward to exciting games at Signal Iduna Park and wish the team and all fans successful times in the most beautiful stadium in the world .”

It seems that the long running dispute between SC Freiburg and residents living near the new Europa Park Stadion has finally been resolved ! The Bundesliga club played its first game in the 34,700 capacity stadium, a friendly against St.Pauli, back on 7th October but have since been unable to stage matches in the evening or on Sunday afternoons because local residents fought a successful legal campaign against the stadium operator Stadion Freiburg Objektträger and the City of Freiburg over concerns about noise pollution.

In response to the ruling, Freiburg's mayor Martin Horn approached the vexed homeowners and negotiated an out-of-court settlement that ends the dispute that began with a referendum of the stadium plan back in 2015. Horn said: “ We have mutually found a common and good way into the future. Both sides can live well with the fair agreement. I would like to thank everyone involved, especially the plaintiffs. I am pleased that a long-standing conflict is now being resolved in this way .” Part of the settlement includes a commitment from the city of Freiburg not to build on a 10 hectare forest that surrounds the stadium over the next 30 years and instead use it to create a bird sanctuary. Furthermore, the City is stumping up €100,000 (£84,322) to renovate playgrounds and meeting places in the local Mooswald district. Further restrictions on use over the next 10 years were also guaranteed and as a result the Europa Park Stadion can't be converted into a multi-functional venue and it can't host any concerts or open-air cinema events with more than 5,000 spectators. Measures aimed at reducing traffic congestion on matchdays was also discussed.

The settlement has yet to be approved by the City Council, but it's expected to be given the green light.
Horn said: “ There are neither winners nor losers here – both sides have approached each other. We know about the special situation of the residents of the Mooswald and have found reasonable solutions for it .” Oliver Leki, SC Freiburg board member, added: “ I am delighted with the settlement that we have found, which gives us important planning security. “Good neighbourly relations in the entire district are very important to us. Our thanks go to the mediating initiative of the Lord Mayor and to everyone involved who contributed to this result. ”

SC Karlsruher's Bundesliga.2 clash against SV Darmstadt 98 last weekend saw fans welcomed into their planned new stadium after the East and South stands were completed; and even though only half of the ground is now complete, extensive use of terracing means nearly 20,000 fans can theoretically attend matches. However, due to local pandemic restrictions, the club will welcome half this number on a matchday and have made the decision to only sell season-tickets for the 2021-22 season. 500 day tickets are limited to away fans only until COVID restrictions allow. Meanwhile, work at the stadium continues with the emphasis being on enabling matches to be played in what is still 50% a building site.

The South stand recently received its main access route, while kiosks and toilets have been fitted out along the public concourse. The East stand also saw installation of its turnstile system which, rather than the large heavy steel gates seen at grounds elsewhere, resembles those found in subway stations which many people find are more comfortable to operate. The biggest job however remains on the west side of the stadium where the new main stand is being built and will be home to the press, players and obligatory VIP facilities - the result of which should be seen in about 12 months time.

On the 22nd June, the city council also approved the renaming of the Wildparkstadion to the BBBank Wildpark in a five year sponsorship deal.

Image: Karlsruhe: New stadium construction

Despite having been relegated to 3.Liga this season, Würzburger Kickers are pushing on with plans to build a new 15,000-capacity stadium on the site of their current Flyeralarm Arena home. However, the proposals haven't gone down well with local residents who are not only unimpressed with the prospect of a new stadium, but still have objections about the existing one having fought a six year legal battle against what they call 'excessive noise and light pollution' in the area when the Kickers are at home. The club hope the new stadium's design will appease residents by having four fully covered stands (as oppose to only the main stand at the moment) to keep crowd noise inside the ground and reduce light pollution by building a little nearer the B19 motorway.

Support for the plans is there with the Würzburg city authorities giving their approval for the proposal which will also see a three-level car park for approximately 1,600 vehicles built. The current ground will also be included in the plans with the pitch becoming a playground and the main stand being converted into a garden area. The construction costs are expected to be in the region of €40 million and whilst there's no word yet on how the development will be funded, the Kickers are currently in talks with a number of potential investors.

All change in Leipzig with a major revamp of the city's Red Bull Arena underway. Last summer the club removed all seating from the south stand (Sektor B) as works to turn it into a convertible seating/standing area were carried out. Initially the old seats (mockingly referred to as 'swimming pool' seats thanks to their blue and turquoise colour) were supposed to be put back once the work had been completed but a change of plan midway through the job saw Leipzig decide to retain the standing area and leave only Hertha Berlin's Olympiastadion as the only all-seater stadium in the Bundesliga. Sektor B will only be converted into a seated layout for UEFA games.

To widespread approval from the fanbase, Leipzig have also begun work on replacing all seating in the Red Bull Arena with new red ones. Interestingly, the seats frames will remain in place and only the plastic seat and backrest will be changed; and while creative uses for the old seats are being looked into, the new seats are being made with 80% recycled plastic to reduce negative impact on the environment.

Local clubs are also benefitting from the refit with amateur sides SV Tapfer and SV Fortschritt Lunzenau both having received 200 of the old 'swimming pool' seats from the stadium. The seating is just one aspect of the revamp however with the upgrade programme underway since 2019. As part of the changes, the entire stadium is receiving its first ever opaque cladding. Hung on steel frames, glass will cover both the north and south sides of the Red Bull Arena with a total of 3,600 square metres being installed. It’s not about just about aesthetics either, as the glass is also designed to protect fans from the wind and rain that blow through the open concourses. For surrounding residents, the glass will also act as noise insulation as the stadium aims to meet noise level restrictions of 70 decibels by day and 55 decibels in the evening. Central to the works is the demolition of the historical landfill which remains a legacy of the stadium having been built within the bowl of its grand predecessor - the Zentralstadion. Retaining the historical embankments was the iconic feature but they have proved problematic in terms of fan comfort. In practical terms, the layout means supporters have to first climb the old embankment and then descend into the stadium, a major issue for visitors with any physical impairments. That’s why in the south stand, just behind the famous Werner Seelenbinder Tower, a cutting has been made and a new entry gate created. Between the gate and stadium bowl, two levels of public concourses are being created with a variety of shops, food and drink kiosks, toilets etc which are accessible both from the ground and the embankment through additional pedestrian bridges.
In total, by 2022, RB will have spent €60 million (£52 million) on all these upgrades and the stadium will also meet UEFA’s highest stadium criteria and although international capacity won’t change significantly, the Red Bull Arena should soon be able to hold 48,000 for Bundesliga fixtures.

Images © RB Leipzig

The Black Forest's Bundesliga representatives SC Freiburg were hoping to move into their new SC-Stadion in time for the start of next season but as we reported last August - like so many other things - COVID-19 has thrown a significant spanner in the works and further delayed the stadium's completion date. The 'Breisgau-Brazilians' played would should have been their final home match in the Schwarzwald-Stadion against Rekordmeisters Bayern München on Saturday but issued a statement ahead of the game confirming that the pandemic has affected the progress of the stadium construction. The release went on to say that all parties are doing " everything in their power " to ensure the new stadium is completed as quickly as possible but although the intention is to kick-off next season at their new stadium, the first few home games of the 2021-22 campaign may have to be played at the Schwarzwald-Stadion if progress continues to be delayed.

Structurally, the 34,700-capacity stadium in Wolfswinkel is ready with the vast majority of installation work completed. However, interior design and 'technical' issues stand out, sadly with no further detail at the time of writing. The project was contracted to cost €76 million, which might be subject to change as the delay keeps growing. The club stressed that “ every day will count", but if Freiburg do have to play matches at the Schwarzwald-Stadion next season, depending on the COVID-19 situation at the time, it's likely tickets will be allocated on a lottery basis to decide who gets the opportunity to experience one of the Bundesliga's few remaining old-school grounds one last time.
Freiburg were dealt a left-field blow back in September when after complaints from local residents, the Baden-Württemberg Administrative Court ruled that any Bundesliga matches played at the new stadium after 8pm or between 1-3pm on Sundays would be banned. An exemption was made however for evening and Sunday matches on the proviso that these are cup games in either domestic or European competition. Freiburg said at the time that they were confident the ruling would be overturned.

Image: SC Freiburg

Perennial Bundesliga champions Bayern München have announced that they will show paper tickets the red card and go green with digital ticketing in the Allianz Arena for the 2021-22 season (assuming fans are let back in of course!) - an innovation that will come as a bitter blow to football romantics and printed ticket collectors. Bayern's vice-chairman, Jan-Christian Dreesen, is less sentimental about the changes than traditional matchday fans however and has been quick to outline the need to develop a new way of managing resources. " Sustainability, conservation of resources and reduction of CO2 emissions are crucial aspects in ticketing at FC Bayern and in ticketing, we have decided not to offer printed tickets such as the annual chip card or paper tickets for any future games in the Allianz Arena. As well as reducing the production of plastic and paper tickets, communication by e-mail eliminates around 350,000 printed letters that were previously sent by post. That is a valuable contribution to climate protection and resource conservation ."

In addition to the benefits regarding sustainability, Bayern say the new format will make it simpler for fans to manage their tickets and parking passes with everything stored in a password-protected online 'ticketing centre' immediately after booking. It will also eliminate shipping costs and losses as event admissions can be recalled by the registered ticket holder 24/7.

With only 29 points and 9 matches to go, 1.FC Kaiserslautern are battling to avoid a drop into the Regionalliga and facing the very real prospect of having to move from The Fritz Walter Stadion (also known as 'The Betzenberg' or 'The Betze').
A real classic of German football, the huge concrete cube overlooking the city of Kaiserslautern below was for a long time one of the most feared away grounds in the Bundesliga - not just for the famous Hölle Betzenberg roar from the partisan home crowd but also for the breathless hike up to the stadium. However, with the club struggling at the wrong end of the 3.Liga table and only just avoiding insolvency a few months ago, the dire financial reality of operating a 50,000-capacity stadium in the fourth tier is already being discussed in meetings between the city council and the club. " Everyone knows the problems the club has with the stadium since they have stopped playing in the Bundesliga. As beautiful and atmospheric the Betzenberg is, it is difficult to maintain this scenario after a descent " said managing director Soeren Oliver Voigt.

According to German broadcaster SWR, one of the suggestions is to waive the annual €650,000 rent the city currently charge the club to use the ground - part of an agreement drawn up the last time they bailed FCK out of financial mess back in 2001. This is unlikely to gain backing however as the amount is already a fifth of the €3.2 million the city authorities would have stood to receive each year had the club not gone into a tailspin and stayed in the Bundesliga. As it is, the city council are already subsidising the shortfall just to ensure the stadium management company operating the Fritz Walter Stadion don't run at a loss. SWR have therefore looked at possible alternative venues should one of Germany's most legendary clubs be forced out of Kaiserslautern with stadiums at SV Alsenborn, FK Pirmasens, FC 08 Homburg, Borussia Neunkirchen and ABC Ludwigshafen all being considered.

What to do with the Max Morlock Stadion? That's the question facing planners in Nuremburg as a feasibility study into the distinctive, octagonal-shaped stadium's future is commissioned. It's become apparent that the former World Cup venue is becoming too expensive to maintain with costs now topping €4 million a year, and a plan about what to do about it is needed. One option on the table is to completely demolish the stadium and start again - although, given it's iconic status, this is unlikely.
1.FC Nürnberg's Commercial Director Niels Rossow believes a renovation is more likely, suggesting an "holistic upgrade" is a better way forward and his vision includes a major sports centre built within the current main stand to provide facilities for a number of clubs in the city - not just the Bundesliga.2 side. At the end of the day however, Herr Rossow's opinion won't count for much as the Max Morlock Stadion is owned by the city of Nuremburg and it's they who have commissioned the report to establish the options going forward. 1.FC Nürnburg, as the stadium's current tenants, will only be consulted after the findings are published in the autumn.

Going into the 23rd round of matches in Bundesliga 2, Hamburg were in top spot, albeit only on goal difference. Greuther Furth’s win over Holstein Kiel the previous weekend saw four teams level on 42 points atop the division. Bochum and Kiel both won on Saturday, moving them onto 45 points, whilst Furth could only draw away at Hanover 96. HSV therefore went into last night’s Hamburg derby at St Pauli needing to at least pick up a point to move back into the promotion places. After a first half that was high on endeavour but short on genuine chances, the score was 0-0. St Pauli were awarded a penalty early in the second period, but the referee overturned his original decision having checked it on pitch side monitor. Both sides largely cancelled eachother out for the remainder of the match. At times the most colourful things to observe were the political slogans painted onto the St Pauli stands. As a draw began to seem the only possible outcome the home team suddenly broke forwards as Zalazar, tireless all evening, chipped to Zander cutting in from the right wing. His cut back into the penalty area found Daniel Kofi Kyereh in space, allowing him to hammer the ball past Sven Ulreich in the Hamburg goal. To add insult to injury a dead ball foul committed by Tim Leibold as time ran out saw him receive a red card and what should be a three match ban. The loss left HSV looking up at their competitors in the scramble for promotion back to the Bundesliga. After missing out twice already, the club is desperate to return to the big time. However this is the second time already this season that they have dropped out of the top three. With 15 games to go there is plenty of time to recover their form and move up in the table but they cannot afford too many more lapses of concentration as happened in the last five minutes at the Millerntor.

After a 3-1 defeat away at Greuther Furth on 27th February 2001, FSV Mainz were on a run of seven games without a win and their place in Bundesliga 2 was under threat. At a hastily convened team meeting shortly afterwards the leading players met with the club management, which had decided to dispense with the services of coach Eckhard Krautzun. A new coach would need to be found who could take the team into the following week’s game against Duisburg. The senior players were unanimous in their suggestion for Krautzun’s replacement. “Give it to Kloppo!” they urged. Delender Jürgen Klopp had been with the team for over a decade and knew the club inside out. The next day he took charge at training for the first time. Immediately the mood improved. Although only appointed for one game, Mainz never looked back. They beat Duisburg 1-0 and went on a run of six wins and a draw in his first seven games in charge. Thus began one of the great managerial careers in football. At the third time of asking Klopp steered Mainz into the Bundesliga, having narrowly missed out twice, for the first time in club history. Not only did they confound expectations and stay up, but they finished 11th, comfortably clear of the relegation zone. Eventually being the smallest club in the league caught up with them and they were relegated at the end of the 2006-7 season. Klopp remained in charge, but was unable to steer them back into the Bundesliga and resigned, to take charge at Borussia Dortmund. Under the guidance of his successor, Thomas Tuchel, Mainz were promoted the following season and remained there ever since. However their place looks more precarious at this stage of the season than at any time in the last decade. Firmly ensconced in the bottom two since September, they will need a strong finish to the season to avoid returning back to Bundesliga 2.

After reports surfaced on Saturday morning that a number of leading players had publicly called for Coach Christian Gross to be sacked, citing concerns at the training methods he was employing, it was clear that his spell in charge in Schalke was coming to an end. The team’s lacklustre performance in the 5-1 defeat at VfB Stuttgart yesterday afternoon made his dismissal merely a matter of time. On Sunday morning the club leadership duly announced his departure, along with those of a number of his back room staff and the team manager. Gross was already the fourth coach to lead Schalke this season and had only been in charge since December. It draws yet another period of woeful underachievement to a close for the team who, lest we forget, were in the European qualifying places in January 2020. The last twelve months have been an utter disaster and there is no sense at all this is coming to an end. Jochen Schneider, the club’s head of sport, was due to leave at the end of the season, but he was included in the raft of departures announced this morning. He had staked everything on the appointment of Gross , but this proved as ill-fated as his selection of the previous incumbents of the position. The rot at Schalke goes beyond this though. There now appears a total vacuum at every level of the club. Facing financial chaos ever since matches had to be played in empty stadiums, the situation has only deteriorated with Schneider’s recruitment policy failing to have any impact on the performances on the pitch. Cut adrift at the bottom of the Bundesliga, relegation appears inevitable, as it has ever since that first game of the season, when they lost 8-0 at Bayern Munich. Nothing has been able to reverse their fortunes and planning has now begun for life in Bundesliga 2. With the constraints in which they are forced to operate, it would be a very brave pundit who would predict Schalke’s fortunes improving next season. Indeed it looks likely that the club’s decline has some way to go yet.

The Americans have a saying to describe the NFL, where games largely take place on a Sunday, that is supposed to indicate the competitiveness within that league. “On any given Sunday” any team can beat whoever their opponent happens to be that day. Well in Bundesliga 2 today, the same saying was applicable in Germany. League leading Hamburger SV travelled to Würzburg to play the home town Kickers, firmly nestled at the foot of the division. HSV have recovered from their wobble in November, which saw them go five without a win and drop out of the promotion places. They seemed to have recovered their form and, at the third time of asking, looked likely to be heading back to the Bundesliga. Meanwhile Kickers, on their third manager of the season, have struggled to adapt to the second flight, having been promoted on the last kick of the last match in July. Both teams proceeded to throw the form book out of the window this afternoon. Two goals in the first half hour saw the home team deservedly in control of the match. They added to their lead in the 54th minute, which proved sufficient to secure all three points, despite a rally by HSV which saw them pull two goals back in the last twenty minutes, the last of which came shortly before the final whistle. Würzburg can continue to dream of avoiding relegation. They are now only five points adrift of Eintracht Braunschweig who currently occupy the playoff place in 16th. Meanwhile Hamburg fortuitously cling on to top spot on 42 points. They were fortunate that Bochum, who they lead on goal difference, lost at Aue on Friday. However Holstein Kiel, also on 42 points travel to Greuter Fürth tomorrow night knowing a win or draw will see them past their neighbours.. Their opponents, currently lying fourth with 39 points, could also go top if they were able to win by four goals. As someone commented this afternoon. “How do you know its Springtime..? It gets warmer, the days get longer and HSV begin to balls up their promotion campaign”. The race to be competing in the Bundesliga in 2021-22 has a few more twist and turns in it yet.

After Amin Younis scored Eintracht Frankfurt’s second goal in yesterday’s 2-1 victory over table topping Bayern Munich he ran over to the sideline and grabbed a T shirt bearing the name and image of Fatih Saracoglu, who was one of the nine killed on 19th February 2020 by a gunman in Hanau. On a day when Eintracht put in their best performance of the season, it was more than about just sport at the Deutsche Post Arena. Before the match the Frankfurt players warmed up in T shirts similar to Younis’, all bearing the names of the victim of the shootings last year. After the match Younis said that they had done it “so that we simply don‘t forget, but think about the people it impacted upon. It might not bring the victims back, but it shows their families that we are thinking about them“. It was classy move by an Eintracht team that has been playing well all season, Hanau is a town a little over ten miles east of Frankfurt and the racist nature of the attack shocked the entire region. Frankfurt is the only city in Germany which has a majority of its residents come from an immigrant backrund and has embraced this diversity with open arms. On a sporting level, the win has blown open a title race, which a fortnight ago appeared to be inexorably heading Bayern Munich’s way. If RB Leipzig can win at Hertha BSC this afternoon, the gap between themselves and FCB will be down to only two points. Eintracht and Wolfsburg, themselves 3-0 winners away at Bielefeld on Friday night, are in contention, both now seven points behind the leaders. There may yet be more twists and turns in the race to secure this season’s Bundesliga crown.

Newly crowned as World Club Champions, Bayern Munich were brought to earth somewhat by lowly Arminia Bielefeld last night on theIr return to the Allianz Arena. it may have been the exertions last week in Qatar that meant the league leaders were sluggish in the first half, or it may just have been the snow showers which were falling out of the Bavarian sky, but Bielefeld looked the most lively and were good value for their 2-0 halftime lead. Munich looked a bit more invigorated early in the second half and Lewandowski scored a superb goal to bring them within one of the team from Westphalia. There were shades of their 5-2 victory over Mainz last month, when they had effortlessly overcome a similar half time deficit. However less than a minute later Bielefeld scored to restore their two goal advantage. Goals from Tolisso and Davies brought the scores level, but the expected onslaught on the Bielefeld goal failed to materialise and the champions had to settle for a draw. The main beneficiaries of the outcome may prove to be RB Leipzig who now only trail Munich by four points at the top of the table. At the other end, the point secured by Bielefeld lifts them out of the bottom three and leaves Hertha Berlin in 16th place and looking increasingly at risk of relegation to Bundesliga 2. It has certainly been a busy week for the defending champions. Aside from the victory in Qatar, which was their sixth title in the last 12 months, they have been busy making preparations for the future as well. With David Alaba almost certain to leave at the end of the season and his fellow central defender Junior Boateng also likely to depart, Bayern have secured the signature of RB Leipzig’s 22 year old French defender Dayot Upemecano, who will switch clubs at the end of this season. In doing so they beat off competition from several Premier League clubs who were thought to be interested in signing him. They are also hopeful of securing promising midfielder Jamal Musiala, who also qualifies to play for England, to a long term contract when he passes his 18th birthday later this month. Despite their current run of success, FCB have more than one eye on the future.

Over the weekend it emerged that Marco Rose will be leaving his position as coach of Borussia Mönchengladbach at the end of this season and take up the vacant position at Borussia Dortmund, a move that has looked increasingly likely since BVB sacked Lucien Favre last December. The 44 year old has a release clause in hs contract with Mönchengladbach that states he can go a year before it runs out in June 2022. Dortmund will have to pay his current employers five million Euros to activate the clause. Rose‘s tenure at Borussia Park has been a success although their league form this season has been a little underwhelming. Prior to arriving in 2019, he had lead RB Salzburg, Austria’s equivalent of RB Leipzig, to back to back titles and a league and cup double in his final year there. Originally from Leipzig, It was thought he may end up at RBL once Julian Nagelsmann moves on, but Dortmund have got there first and ensured that he will be coaching in the Ruhr next season. Both Mönchengladbach and Dortmund are in direct competition in trying to quality for next season’s Champions League. Neither club is currently in a Top Four spot however and will have to show marked improvement to achieve their goal. Even more interesting will be a DFB Pokal quarter final tie between the two sides on 2nd March. Such games are not unknown in Germany. In 2017/18 Niko Kovacs lead his Eintracht Frankfurt side to an upset of Bayern Munich in that year’s final, knowing full well that he was taking the reigns at FCB the following season.

After a period of uncertainty which saw them enter administration and evicted from their temporary home in Düsseldorf, 3.Liga club KFC Uerdingen 05 have been sold to Armenian businessman Roman Gevorkyan - whose 'Noah Company' also has stakes in Armenian club FC Noah Jerevan and the Italian third division outfit AC Noah Siena. Last month, KFC entered administration, and only this week filed for insolvency, after coming under fire for its inability to address rent arrears of €174,000 in a very public war of words which ended with the 1985 DFB-Pokal winners being booted out of the Merkur Spiel Arena they'd been using whilst their own Grotenburg Stadion undergoes renovation.
Main shareholder Mikhail Ponomarev had already announced his retirement and recently stated in an interview with SportBild that he would also sell the Traditionsverien (historic club) for " one euro ". Now a solution seems to have been found for the shaky club, where several players were recently refused permission to leave during the winter transfer window. According to the Westdeutscher Zeitung , the stadium issue has also been resolved and Stefan Krämer's side will now play at the 10,000 capacity Sportpark am Lotter Kreuz in Lotte. The move certainly makes good financial sense. KFC were due to pay €1.2 million for one season (around €63,000 per game) in Düsseldorf - but for the nine remaining home games of the season they now only need to find €200,000.

" We are incredibly pleased and also proud to welcome a traditional club like KFC Uerdingen to our Noah family " said Roman Gevorkyan following his takeover. " However, we all know that the club is currently in a difficult situation. We will do everything we can to keep the Third League and secure the future of KFC Uerdingen. If we can do that, we can talk about concrete goals. "

More science and tech for football fans to get their head around we're afraid. Bundesliga giants Eintracht Frankfurt have partnered up with global payment services provider Mastercard to enable fans to use contactless services at Deutsche Bank Park. Along with stadium sponsor Deutsche Bank, Eintracht and Mastercard have developed a new mobile payment system which will be implemented into a new app over the coming months. Once the new system has been rolled out, fans and other visitors to Deutsche Bank Park can use their smartphone to make mobile and contactless payments anywhere in the stadium. The app will work independently of banks and enable users to enter a free, virtual debit Mastercard from Deutsche Bank, which is automatically linked to the respective current account of their own bank. The cards won't need to be topped up and will be securely stored in visitors’ smartphone wallets. The app will also allow users to make purchases elsewhere in the Rhine-Main area.
Eintracht said the service built by EintrachtTech is a “ smart region application ” that is designed to promote digital payments and strengthen retail in the Rhine-Main area. Users of the app will benefit from the usual sports-related features, along with other services such as tickets for public transport.
Timm Jäger, managing director of EintrachtTech, said: “ Thanks to our new app, which will be launched soon, and the interaction between EintrachtTech, Deutsche Bank and Mastercard, we are opening up new possibilities for cashless, contactless payment for ourselves, our followers and regional retailers. This will simplify many processes when visiting the stadium and in everyday private life .”
Peter Bakenecker, division president in Germany and Switzerland for Mastercard, added: “ Today, consumers expect digital solutions that enable simple, convenient and secure payment anywhere. This also applies to the stadium and other public areas such as public transport. We are all the more pleased that we as a technology company, together with our long-term partner Deutsche Bank, are able to cater to the needs of every individual in the Rhine-Main region by providing such a smart payment system for Eintracht Frankfurt. ”
Eintracht will also work with Mastercard on further EintrachtTech’s ‘Arena of IoT’ digital centre led initiatives, with Mastercard also supporting the promotion of Eintracht’s women’s team as part of its agreement with the club.

With the Covid inspired general travel ban on flights from England to Germany, both Champions League ties between clubs from the two countries have had to be re-arranged. Neither Liverpool’s game at RB Leipzig on Tuesday 16th February or Manchester City’s at Borussia Mönchengladbach on Wednesday 24th February could take place at the Red Bull Arena or Borussia Park respectively as the English teams were not granted permission to travel into Germany. After a day or two looking at potential alternatives, both games will now be played at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, the capital of Hungary. Despite the existence of a travel ban in that country, certain exceptions can be made and professional sport is one of them. Mönchengladbach’s sport director Max Ebert said “UEFA regulations state that in such a case, as the home team we have to find an alternative venue. For various reasons wwe have finally decided on the Puskas Arena in Budapest and would like to thank UEFA and the Hungarian FA for their support.” RBL will be looking to replicate last season’s run deep into the tournament and may be able to profit from Liverpool’s poor run of recent form. Mönchengladbach’s hopes of advancing further will depend on them reproducing the kind of performances from the group stage, because their Bundesliga form is a patchy right now. They will need to be at their best to have any chance against a rampant Manchester City .

Sixteen times Christian Streich had lead his SC Freiburg team into a games against Borussia Dortmund and each time they had failed to win. Until yesterday, when his team finally prevailed against the club from the Ruhr. BVB are not having a season to remember and entered the match in sixth place, league form which had already cost Lucien Favre his job in December. Under interim coach Edin Terzic there hasn’t been a noticable upturn in performances. On the other hand Freiburg have had a solid season thus far, performing well enough to ensure their Bundesliga status is assured for another year. Head coach Christian Streich is the longest serving coach in the Bundesliga, having been appointed to the job in 2012, a veritable lifetime for a head coach in German football. During his tenure they have played every season but one in the top flight and can be seen as massive over-achievers given the size of their stadium and budget. Streich though had yet to beat BVB throughout his period in charge at the Schwarzwaldstadion. Yesterday he was finally able to get that monkey off his back as Freiburg scored twice shortly after halftime and then held on for the last 15 minutes as their opponents tried to mount a comeback. In the end the team from the Black Forest held on and recorded a win that takes them up to 8th place, only two points behind Dortmund who occupy the final qualifying place for teh Europa League. Freiburg can realistically aspire to European football next season if they continue ti show the determination that saw them collect three points yesterday. Meanwhile it is still unclear where they will be playing next season. Their new stadium is almost ready but the ongoing uncertainty with regard to Covid and fans means they have not yet committed to relocating to the SC Stadion just yet. Nearby residents of the new development have also raised objections with regard to noise levels on Sundays and evenings, which have yet to be resolved. The plan had been to move there by the start for this season but the ageing Schwarzwaldstadion was given a temporary reprieve. It is not beyond the realms of possibility that it will still be in use next season as well.

1. FC Kaiserslautern, the crisis ridden Traditionsverein battling to stay in the 3. Liga, sacked their coach Jeff Sabenne immediately after losing 1-0 at home to Wehen Wiesbaden last weekend. He had only been in the position since October 2020 having been brought in after the second game of the season. Despite some early signs of improvement, FCK could not move clear of the relegation zone. His record of only three wins in twenty games was not deemed good enough by the club hierarchy, even though his ledger also included a remarkable twelve draws. Within 48 hours the third manager to take the reins at the Betzenberg this season was announced. Marco Antwerpen already has experience of being on the managerial merry-go-round this season, having been taken on by Bundesliga.2 side Würzburger Kickers in September after the newly promoted side sacked their coach after two games. His reign was improbably brief when he was dismissed after only four games in charge, with club supremo Felix Magath being particularly scathing at the time. Now Antwerpen gets his opportunity to rehabilitate a reputation that was very high at the close of the 2019-2020 season. He steered Eintracht Braunschweig to promotion from the 3. Liga to Bundesliga.2, reversing the decline of a once proud stalwart of German football. He will certainly be given every opportunity at Kaiserslautern, who are desperate to evade the drop into non league football for the first time in club history. The odds are not stacked in his favour. In an online poll in Kicker only 40% of respondents rated his chances of turning the team’s fortunes around. FCK remains a club with huge off the pitch financial concerns and a squad that appears to lack the quality to be competitive at this level. His first challenge is a trip to arch rivals SV Waldhof Mannheim. If he can secure a win at the Carl Benz Arena, he will go a long way to convincing the club’s long suffering fans that he is the man to bring back better times to the Pfalz.

The final half of the third round of the DFB-Pokal took place last night and clubs who were knocked out of the competition are already counting the cost. On Tuesday night SC Paderborn, currently in the Bundesliga.2 having been relegated last season, were beaten by Borussia Dortmund after a controversial extra time winner by Erling Haaland. Although standing in an offside position when the ball was played through to him, a Paderborn defender made an attempt at the ball, thereby playing him onside. BVB saw out the rest of the game and won 3-2, leaving Paderborn’s manager Stefan Baumgart furious at both the decision not to rule out the goal, but also that the referee did not review the incident on the pitch side monitor, The DFB later clarified that both the ruling was correct, that it was a valid goal, and that the referee was right to be guided in the matter by the VAR official rather than review it himself. Aside from the sporting frustration at the loss though, Baumgart’s post match interview, in which he heavily criticised the referee, also alluded to the cost of what he perceived had been a failure on the part of the official. “ We are talking about two million Euros here. We aren’t a big company, every single Mark is important to us. And when someone comes across like that, then I find it very arrogant. ” Whilst fans remain unable to attend matches, clubs are coming under increasing financial strain and cup runs, which may previously been a “ nice to have ” represent a means of considerably shoring up cash flow. This is particularly applicable to clubs in the lower divisions who do not benefit from the Bundesliga TV broadcasting deal. The draw for the quarter finals will feature two Bundesliga.2 clubs, both of whom advanced on penalties. SSV Jahn Regensburg came from 2-0 down against 1.FC Köln to level the tie and take it to extra time, before going on to win it 4-3 in the shoot out. Holstein Kiel, conquerors of Bayern München in the previous round, drew 1-1 with SV Darmstadt, then held their nerve to secure a 7-6 victory on penalties. Both these teams, as well as Regionalliga side RW Essen, will see the massive benefit of the additional €2 million prize money for winning this week’s matches.

When Holstein Kiel knocked Bayern Munich out in the second round of the DFB-Pokal last month the feeling was that nothing could top that in terms of cup upsets. Yet only three weeks later Rot Weiss Essen, playing in the fourth tier Regionalliga West, decided to put the achievement of second division Kiel in the shade by knocking out Bayer Leverkusen, last season’s losing finalists and one of the heavyweights of German football, last night. They did it in dramatic fashion too. After a scoreless 90 minutes, Leverkusen finally converted one of their many chances and went into the lead in the 105th minute of the tie. That should have allowed the team currently fifth in the Bundesliga to see the game out but Essen, who have already dispatched Arminia Bielefeld and Fortuna Düsseldorf from this season’s competition, had other ideas. Oguzhan Kefkir equalised shortly after the restart and the match appeared heading to penalties when Simon Engelmann fired the winner into the Leverkusen goal from inside the six yard box with only three minutes remaining. Even then there was drama in the final minute as the referee checked the pitch side monitor to see if Leverkusen’s striker Frimpfrong had been fouled in RWE’s penalty area. He remained unconvinced, leaving Essen’s players and manager to celebrate a famous victory. Essen’s goalkeeper Daniel Davari, whose saves had kept his team in the game all evening, said immediately afterwards “Unbelievable what we have achieved as a team there. Luck was on our side tonight but we fought like lions.” He continued “What are we talking about here? We play in the Regionalliga and we’ve just beaten one of the best teams in Germany. That is unbelievable!” RWE is a club with real pedigree and history, whose status in the Regionalliga belies the size of their support. In normal times they have the biggest crowds in the whole of the regionalised fourth tier. So illustrious is their history that they were national champions in 1955 and as a consequence were the first German team to compete in the European Cup the following season. They also have a triumph in the very competition they are excelling in this season, having won it in 1953, as well making a losing appearance in the 1994 final. Another improbable run to the Berlin final is on this season, but for now they need to consolidate their lead at the top of the Regionalliga West against Borussia Dortmund II on Saturday.

Whilst their Grotenburg Stadion undergoes renovations, KFC Uerdingen 05 had been playing their home games at the Merkur Spiel Arena in Düsseldorf. However, after months of financial problems, things seem to have reached a nadir with the club being effectively locked out for alleged non-payment of rent. Last weekend's match against FC Ingolstadt 04 had been postponed (along with the upcoming visit of Hansa Rostock on the 30th January) after it was reported that several players from both teams had tested positive for Coronavirus. Uerdingen assumed therefore that under the terms of their tenancy agreement no rent was due. However, stadium operators D.Live didn't see it that way and have kicked the club out of the Merkur-Spiel Arena after losing patience with Uerdingen who they claim owe €174,000 in rent. In a statement D.Live said " KFC Uerdingen has not paid the outstanding rental payments for the use of the Merkur Spiel Arena and has therefore not fulfilled the payment agreement with D.Live. For this reason, we cannot provide the arena as a venue for the upcoming match encounters on Sunday, January 24, and Saturday, January 30. We regret the economic situation of KFC Uerdingen, but we must safeguard the interests of our society. We are not yet able to provide any information on the further scheduled football matches of the KFC Uerdingen in the Merkur Spiel-Arena. "

Uerdingen described the move by the stadium operators as " completely incomprehensible " and KFC president Mikhail Ponomarev described the club as being " the victim of an internal power struggle at D.Live. However, the stadium situation is becoming increasingly unsustainable for us – and not just because of the costs. We need the help of the DFB here. "

Regardless of whether the stadium situation can be resolved or not however, the future looks bleak for the former DFB-Pokal winners and last week the club went into administration. Ponomarew, who had also recently announced his retirement, spoke of the possibility of the club crashing into the regional leagues and said of his decision to call in the administrators " After long and intensive reflection on how to best meet the current challenges, we consider this step to be the optimal solution to secure the future of KFC Uerdingen. "

Christian Seifert, chief executive of the German Football League (DFL), has admitted that fans are unlikely to return to the Bundesliga before the end of this season. All major leagues across Europe are currently playing matches behind closed doors due to COVID-19 and although the Bundesliga began its season with a limited number of fans permitted in stadiums, matches have been played behind closed doors since October. Clubs had been allowed to open their stadiums at 20% capacity, providing local infection numbers were low and the relevant hygiene processes had been approved. Although there are still around four months of the 2020-21 season remaining, Seifert has admitted that the campaign is likely to be played out without fans. In an interview with German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung , Seifert said: “In any case (of a fan return), not in a significant number. If we had ruled out games without fans from the start as some people demanded, the system would have collapsed. And no one at (the league) or the clubs wants to have games without fans either. However, we still have them because they are the only permitted option for hosting games, and presumably we will have them until the end of the season.”

Seifert had previously warned that the Bundesliga’s turnover would drop by as much as €1bn (£891m/$1.2bn) this season if fans were unable to return to stadiums and said that the 2019-20 season, which was paused in March due to COVID-19 before being concluded behind closed doors, saw turnover drop by around 6%, or €250m. He went on to say that this would seem like a “ gentle breeze ” compared to the losses anticipated in the 2020-21 season.
Borussia Dortmund recorded the highest attendance of the 2020-21 Bundesliga season so far when 11,500 fans watched their 4-0 win over SC Freiburg in early October and a number of other teams also welcomed fans to their stadiums. Champions Bayern München have so far played all their home games behind closed doors.

This week has already seen one fan favourite return to his former club. Yesterday Luka Jovic rejoined Eintracht Frankfurt in a loan move from Real Madrid, the club he joined 18 months ago for a €60 million fee. The move has not worked out well for either Jovic or Madrid, as he has only scored twice in 35 games. H eh as also been unable to displace Kareem Benzema in the starting line up. He will now rejoin the club where he scored 36 times in only 75 games, including scoring five in one game against Fortuna Düsseldorf in 2018, until the end of the season. Still only 23, he will now get the chance to restore his reputation and regain some much needed confidence. Jovic has been given the number 9 shirt and clearly figures in Adi Hutter’s plans. Now another striker is on the point of returning to a club where he was a goal-scoring legend. Klaus Jan Huntelaar, who scored 126 goals in 240 appearances for Schalke between 2010 and 2017, is poised to return to the crisis ridden club as they bid to escape relegation. He has been at Ajax for the last four seasons, but has never really established himself in the first team. Likening it to having to choose between your two children, Huntelaar will mull over the move over the next few days. In scoring twice in added time for Ajax last night against Twente Enschede, he demonstrated that he still has the ability to contribute. At the advanced age of 37 he is clearly not a long term solution for Schalke’s woes, but he may be able to come in and score enough over the next few months to keep them in the Bundesliga.

Bayern Munich’s weekend got off to a bad start last Friday night when they unexpectedly lost 3-2 away at Borussia Mönchengladbach, their old rival from the 1970s. The second game after the winter break saw the champions looking hesitant and lacking much in the way of incisiveness. To make things worse they committed several defensive errors, gifting Gladbach two of their goals. However Bayern had a midweek cup tie against second division Holstein Kiel to look forward to before resuming Bundesliga action at home on Sunday. Despite last weekend’s defeat Munich remained top of the Bundesliga, so last night should have been an exercise in recovering their confidence. It turned out to be anything but. Kiel are playing well in the Bundesliga 2 but no one expected what transpired in the Holstein Stadion. The hero of the night was Kiel’s veteran Fin Bartels. Back playing for the club he had represented as a junior, after a career with several Bundesliga clubs, he scored the goal that made it 1-1. After going behind early in the second half, Kiel left it til the last possible minute to equalise and force extra time. After a further 30 minutes of stalemate then tie went to penalties. Neither side missed a kick as it got to 5-5. At that point Munich’s Marc Rota missed the first spot kick of the evening. Up stepped Bartels who calmly converted his penalty to decide the tie and send not just Kiel and Schleswig-Holstein crazy, but the rest of Germany too. Possibly the greatest cup upset of all time had just taken place.

Having already been the venue for the DFB-Pokal Final for 35 years, many people may already view the Olympiastadion in Berlin as the 'German Wembley', but partners at German architecture firm GMP have made the suggestion that it could become just that should Hertha Berlin end up leaving the historic venue. The Olympiastadion is a double tier, all-seater stadium holding just under 75,000, making it the second largest in terms of overall capacity in Germany after Dortmund's Signal Iduna Park. However, this is just one of the reasons the stadium has it's detractors amongst football fans. They say it's simply too big for a club of Hertha's stature, leading to poor atmospheres echoing around the vast bowl which on an average matchday is only 60% full. Complaints are also made about the lack of terracing, poor sightlines from the deep lower tier and the running track which sets the stands too far back from the action.

Hertha have listened and announced in November 2018 that they are looking into the possibility of building a new stadium to move into once their tenancy at the Olympiastadion expires in 2025. As well as Hertha's home matches, the 'Big O' has played host to the DFB-Pokal Final every year since 1985, and in 2006 it was the venue for the World Cup Final when French maestro Zinedine Zidane objected to something Italy's Marco Materazzi said to him. It's also a concert venue, playing host to The Rolling Stones, Madonna, U2 et al on their world tours; and it occasionally reverts back to it's original athletics purpose as it did for the 2009 World Championships when Usain Bolt smashed two world records.

GMP partner Hubert Nienhoff has proposed that the venue could become the national team’s sole venue if Hertha do choose to build a new stadium and move on. In an interview with German news website t-online , Nienhoff said: “ What I think is a shame is that the Berlin Olympic Stadium is increasingly being presented as unsuitable for football games. I just can’t understand it, especially because I’ve seen football games in the Olympic Stadium from so many different positions – be it upper or lower tier, east stand or main grandstand. I was always impressed by the volume. I always had a lot of fun in the Olympic Stadium. ” Nienhoff isn't in favour of Hertha moving out of the Olympiastadion but believes the venue could be repurposed if the Bundesliga club did leave. He said: “ Before it is completely fallow, why don’t we finally use it as a national stadium? ” Nienhoff’s colleague Hans Joachim Pap added: “ If the Olympic Stadium were to be converted into a pure football stadium without affecting the historical structure, the complete modernisation since the commitment for the 2006 World Cup would have cost less than half what the new Wembley building would have cost in England. Germany would finally have its ‘German Wembley’, which does not have to fear comparisons with the original.”

This afternoon marks the return to action of the Bundesliga, after the shortest winner break in memory. Only two weeks ago World Footballer of the Year, Robert Lewandowski scored in the last minute of added time to give Bayern Munich a 2-1 victory against Bayer Leverkusen, allowing them to leapfrog over their rivals and retake top spot. Now the question is whether they can retain that lead as they look to secure a 9th straight league title. Leverkusen had played some magnificent football leading up that defeat to Munich, their first of the season, and now need to try and recreate the kind of attacking flair that saw them score almost at will at times. This is usually the time when aspiring challengers to Bayern’s crown wilt under the pressure. Last year RB Leipzig were leading the table in January but then seemingly lost the winning habit that had propelled them to the top as they couldn’t do anything but draw for games on end. Two years ago Borussia Dortmund were in the same position, but they simply faded away once the season resumed. At the other end of the table FSV Mainz and Schalke 04 have got a major job on their hands if they are to avoid dropping down to Bundesliga 2. Both clubs have installed new coaches over the winter break. At Mainz Jan Moritz Lichte was dismissed after only four months in charge following a run of games which saw them win only once. The final straw was a defeat to second division VfL Bochum in the DFB Pokal days before Christmas. Former Huddersfield Town manager Jan Siewert has been promoted from his role as academy manager to coach the first team this weekend, although this is likely only a temporary appointment. It may well be a baptism of fire for Siewert as his team have the unenviable task of a trip to the Aliianz Arena to face Bayern Munich. Meanwhile at Schalke, which started off the season with Siewert’s predecessor at Huddersfield, David Wagner, in charge have moved on to their fourth, yes fourth, coach of the season by appointing veteran Christian Gross, who had been managing in Saudi Arabia until early last year. It can only be described as a left field manoeuvre, but nothing that Schalke, who last won a league game in January 2020, do can be regarded as surprising. Gross last managed in Germany in 2010, when he was dismissed after nine months in charge of VfB Stuttgart. It is will be interesting to see what, if any, effect he has on a club whose confidence is at rock bottom. It couldn’t possibly get worse...could it..?

Thomas Hitzelsperger, the former Aston Villa, Everton and West Ham midfielder who is currently Head of Sport at VfB Stuttgart, has launched a stinging attack on the club President, Claus Vogt, and stated his intention to stand directly against him when he stands for re-election next March. Despite a very successful 2020, durung which Stuttgart secured promotion back to the Bundesliga and made an excellent start to their campaign back in the top flight, currently lying in 7th place, there has been considerable disquiet behind the scenes. The picture Hitzelsperger paints is one of Vogt driving the club towards financial and sporting ruin as he cares solely about himself and his own image. The former midfielder had the most successful period of his career at VfB, being part of the team that won the Bundesliga title in 2007, during which time he became a regular in the German national side. After retiring in 2013 he joined the the club’s management structure and has risen very quickly to his current position. His credentials in terms of credibility with supporters is therefore spot on. Vogt has only been in office a year and it is clear that the two cannot work together. having already had issues over the contract extension offered to the coach Pellegrino Matarazzo . As President, a largely executive rather than operational position, Vogt seems to enjoy taking too much interest in the day to day sporting operations, and publicising the fact, something which should be in Hitzelsperger’s remit. However he is proving popular with the fans, perhaps unsurprisingly given the positive results on the pitch his since arrival. The power struggle threatens to roll on until the two go head to head in the election on 18th March. Vfb Stuttgart clearly isn't big enough for both of them.

One of Germany’s most iconic teams, and the East’s most successful in terms of seasons in the Bundesliga, FC Hansa Rostock, celebrated its 55th birthday this week. Post war East German football was rife with re-organisations and on occasions the wholesale movement of teams to new towns. This is how Rostock gained a team in 1955 when Empor Lauter, playing near the Czech border was relocated to Rostock on the Baltic Coast, largely at the behest of local party functionaries, in the face of considerable opposition from Lauter’s fans. Empor Rostock played for ten years without much success before another re-structure of East German football in 1965 lead to the creation of FC Hansa Rostock, a team which has now become a part of the city’s fabric. The prefix Hansa refers to the medieval Hanseatic League, a trading organisation that bound the Baltic ports of Germany. Twenty five years playing in the top division saw them finish second on five occasions, as well as losing five Cup Finals, before improbably winning a league and cup double in 1991, the final season for East German football. As champions Hansa got one of the two places available to eastern teams in the first ever all German Bundesliga but were relegated at the first attempt. However they were able to secure promotion three years later and then spent a decade as a mid table team in the top flight, before finally being relegated in 2005. That level of achievement now seems very distant as the club dropped into the 3. Liga for the first time in 2010. For the last few years it has even been a struggle to remain at that level, as off the field financial issues affected the club’s competitiveness. The notoriously fanatical fans (whose fanaticism has occasionally spilled over into full blown hooliganism, in common with several other eastern clubs) have had to go through some tough times in the last decade but the ship (pardon the pun) has been steadied of late and after consecutive 6th placed finishes, Hansa are in the thick of the promotion race once again this season.

German clubs have pioneered innovative fundraising ideas since the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic and SG Dynamo Dresden this week became the latest to think 'outside the box' by selling more than 72,000 “ghost” tickets for their DFB- Pokal home clash with SV Darmstadt 98. With fans currently barred from stadiums due to a spike in Coronavirus cases across Germany, the 3.Liga outfit launched a ' 30,000+ Ghosts for Dynamo' campaign by selling tickets for the match at €5 each . The loyalty of Dresden's following is unquestionable but even the former East German champions were taken aback when 72,112 “ghosts” bought tickets - nearly three times their average attendance last season and more than twice their Rudolf-Harbig Stadion's capacity. Dresden said on their website that it would have been the third-biggest crowd ever to watch one of their games.
More dependent on the income that fans bring through the turnstiles than their Bundesliga counterparts, sides further down the football pyramid in Germany, like Dresden, have been especially hard hit by having to play matches behind closed doors. “ Every Dynamo can be proud of this. That is certainly unique in Germany ” said Dresden striker Philipp Hosiner.

It didn't all go according to plan for 'The Beast from the East' however, as their Bundesliga.2 opponents make short work of the tie, winning 3-0, while a planned choreography involving 30,000 biodegradable balloons had to be cancelled because of high winds before kick-off.

The cost of the COVID-19 pandemic on German football has been laid bare by Christian Seifert, chief executive of the German Football League (DFL), who has predicted that the Bundesliga’s turnover will drop by as much as €1bn (£909m) this season if fans are unable to return to stadiums. Although the season began with a limited number of fans in stadiums, matches have been held behind closed doors in Germany since October following a spike in COVID-19 cases. Clubs had been allowed to open their stadiums at 20% capacity, providing local infection numbers were low and the relevant hygiene processes had been approved. It remains to be seen when fans will be able to return in Germany and Seifert has spelled out the potential impact empty stadiums will have on revenues. “ The overall loss of fans for the entire season will be about €650m compared to 2018-19 ” said Seifert, who added that another €250m would be lost on money spent on Bundesliga players during the transfer market. Seifert went on to say that the total turnover for the 2020-21 campaign would amount to “ a loss of one billion (euros) or about 20% ”.
Seifert said that the 2019-20 season, which was paused in March due to COVID-19 before being concluded behind closed doors, saw turnover drop by around 6%, or €250m. Seifert said this would seem like a “ gentle breeze ” compared to the losses anticipated in the 2020-21 season. Borussia Dortmund recorded the highest attendance of the 2020-21 Bundesliga season so far when 11,500 fans watched their 4-0 win over SC Freiburg in early October. A number of other teams also welcomed fans to their stadiums but champions Bayern Munich played all of its home games behind closed doors.

Bayer Leverkusen went top on Sunday, comfortably beating TSG Hoffenheim 4-1, to leapfrog Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig and occupy first place for the first time in six seasons. This is rarified stuff from a team which has yet to win a major domestic title and is still haunted by the misfortune of the 2001-2 season, when they gave up a five point lead in the last week of the league season then promptly lost both the Champions League and DFP Pokal finals. This year it is looking very different though, as, following Wolfsburg’s loss to Bayern last night, they are now the only undefeated team left in the league. They are in excellent form too, sweeping away opponents quite majestically. Since the start of November they have won ten of the eleven games played either at home or in the Europa League and have scored a whopping 38 goals in the process. This from a team that was supposed to struggle this year following the departure of key player Kai Havertz to Chelsea in the summer. Coach Peter Bosz has the team playing terrific attacking football, but they can also defend. Only RB Leipzig have conceded fewer goals, something which augurs well if they hope to remain at the top. Any concerns that they may get nervous or play in a more inhibited fashion now they are the team every opponent is aiming to beat, were swept away last night as they thumped local rivals 1 FC Cologne 4-0. As on Sunday when they took a 4th minute lead through Leon Bailey’s tremendous shot, they came out of the traps fast and were 2-0 up within eight minutes. Two more goals just before the hour, the final one scored by their new bright young hope 17 year old Florian Wirtz, and it was game over. Now the attention turns to this weekend when Bayern Munich visit the BayArena. The last time these two played was in the DFB Pokal final in July, when Bayern won 2-0 but were never really threatened. At that time they were on a long winning run and frankly looked unbeatable. This year there is a fragility about the reigning champions however and it will be interesting to see if Leverkusen are able to exploit this. If they can beat their rivals and extend their lead at the top heading into the winter break, then it really could be time for the team known as the “Werkself” to start dreaming that their long wait for a title might be over.

After the 5-1 debacle in Dortmund, when home team BVB were taken apart by promoted VfB Stuttgart, the club leadership bowed to the inevitable and fired coach Lucien Favre, who had been in charge at the Signal Iduna Stadium since 2018. He was somewhat surprisingly kept on at the end of last season, when Dortmund’s title challenge petered out following the restart in May. However he was given the vote of confidence by Sport Director Michael Zorc, with the club stressing continuity at the time. As ever though this is a results business and BVB’s simply haven't been good enough of late. Despite winning their group in the Champions League, their domestic form has been poor and the defeat against Stuttgart was their third home reverse on the trot. There are certain results that almost have to lead to a dismissal, particularly when a coach is already under pressure, and this was one of them, reminiscent of the sacking of Niko Kovacs at Bayern Munich last year after a thumping against Eintracht Frankfurt. Dortmund currently sit in 5th place, six points behind the new leaders Bayer Leverkusen and threatening to be cast adrift in the race for the title. Edin Terzic has been promoted from the coaching staff to replace Favre. As a boyhood fan of the club, he is no doubt pinching himself at this turn of events. He is known to be more demonstrative than the rather laid back Favre and is thought to favour a more aggressive and fast paced type of football than has been seen of late in Dortmund. He has been appointed as caretaker coach for the rest of the season, at which time a permanent coach will be recruited. At the moment the clear favourite For that position is Marco Rose, currently in charge at Borussia Mönchengladbach, although he is under contract until 2022. However a lot can change in six months and for now Terzic is the man in possession. This time last year Hansi Flick was put in caretaker charge at Bayern Munich, with a view to a permanent coach coming in a the end of the season. FCB then went on a fantastic run, won the Treble and Flick is still there, so who knows whether something similar may happen in Dortmund.

For the first time since the 2014-5 season all four of the Bundesliga’s representatives in the Champions League have advanced to the last 16 of the competition. Defending champions Bayern Munich did it in style, winning five of their six group games, in the process setting a Champions League record with 15 consecutive victories. In addition they were top scorers in the group stages with 18 goals. Borussia Dortmund likewise secured top spot in their group with a 2-1 win in St Petersburg on Tuesday evening. Striker Erling Haaland is joint top scorer in the competition with six goals, despite misssing the last two matches. RB Leipzig entered their match against Manchester United knowing they needed a win to progress. Coach Julian Nagelsmann had clearly fired his team up as they put their opponents to the sword from the outset, scoring in the second minute. When Justin Kluivert made it 3-0 with 20 minutes to go it seemed all over. However Manchester United weren‘t finished, scoring twice in two minutes to set up a nerve wracking finale. In the end though it was too little too late and RBL survived. The team no one in Germany likes will now be looking to emulate last season’s campaign when they made a run to the semi-finals. The team that finished fourth in last season’s Bundesliga, Borussia Mönchengladbach, entered the final round of matches unexpectedly leading their group. A win or draw at Real Madrid would secure their first ever place in the last 16 of the Champions League (they are former finalists of the old European Cup, losing to Liverpool in 1977). They had clearly been watching the Leipzig v Manchester United game 24 hours earlier ... but came out looking more like the English team rather than their successful countrymen. They trailed to two Benzema headers on 25 minutes and were fortunate that the final score remained only 2-0, as Madrid hit the woodwork several times. However their passage through to the knock-out stages was assured by the draw that took place in the other group game between Inter Milan and Shaktar Donetsk. Following the conclusion of the game in Madrid, the Mönchengladbach players huddled round a TV screen and duly celebrated when the referee in Milan blew for full time with the score at 0-0.
Manager Marco Rose said after the game “We most deservedly lost today, but we deserve to have progressed.” Meanwhile midfielder Lars StIndl said “It‘s madness! We played our worst game of the campaign yet we still made it through!”

One of the most iconic stadiums in eastern Germany, the Ernst Abbe Sportfeld, home to Carl Zeiss Jena since 1924, has been due for redevelopment work for months. By 2023 the club should have a modern stadium, which can hold 15,100 fans, but the ongoing corona crisis has meant that work has been delayed. It had been due to start in the summer, but the club wanted to play a final game with fans, which were not permitted at that time. Although games in the Regionalliga Nordost have been cancelled indefinitely, pending a return to amateur team sport in Germany once the public health situation improves, matches took place earlier in the season with fans in attendance. Jena played six games at their home stadium, with an average of 1,170 turning up to watch their team make a decent start following their relegation from the 3. Liga last season. In fourth place when the season was halted in late October, they will struggle to regain their place in the professional ranks, given that Viktoria Berlin lead the division, having won all 11 matches played so far. The work on the Ernst Abbe Sportfeld began last week, with the initial demolition of the Nordkurve. All sections of the stadium will be rebuilt over the next three years, at a total cost of almost £50m. The funding is coming from a mix of private finance (70%), the Thuringian state government (22%) and the city of Jena itself (8%). The redevelopment of the stadium has been planned since 2009, but kept being put off or delayed for political and/or financial reasons. Now, however, it is definitely going ahead. Of the planned total capacity, 4,800 and 1,500 standing places will be available for home and away fans respectively. All the stands will be covered and, with the removal of the running track (which once featured East German Olympic gold medalists plying their trade), will be closer to the pitch. The main stand will also include the training facilities for the junior sections of the club. In addition the pitch will be over a metre higher than it is currently because of the proximity of the Saale river and the consequent risk of flooding. With an eye on the future, the stadium would be suitable for the Bundesliga.2. Whilst undoubtedly a sad day for purists, the new stadium sounds an ideal development which is long overdue for a club which still has ambitions to play at a higher level. PHOTO © Bietergemeinschaft Elex und jenArena

Last night saw the third Berlin derby between Hertha and Union since the latter were promoted to the top flight in 2019. The first one last season was a major occasion, with both sets of fans in “high spirits” as the game was interrupted for 10 minutes as they competed with each other for the most spectacular pyro show. Last night’s game was inevitably less dramatic, at least on the terraces, as the match was played at an empty Olympic Stadium. Union Berlin entered the match on an unbeaten run of four games, which had taken them up into the giddy heights (for them) of a Europa League qualifying spot, whilst Hertha‘s form had been a bit more patchy and they were still looking for their first home victory. Things were going according to the form book at half-time, as Union led 1-0 through Amoniyi, although they were reduced to 10 men when Andrich raised a high boot in the 23rd minute. Hertha coach Labbadia used two of his substitutes at half-time to re-energise his team and these had an immediate effect as Pekarik equalised in the 51st minute. The game was relatively even, despite Union being numerically inferior, until Piatek scored in the 69th and 77th minutes to give Hertha an unassailable lead. They could have scored again not long before the final whistle but Piatek missed a great opportunity to claim a hat trick. Union, whose main priority remains staying in the Bundesliga, now have an injury worry about their top scorer, Max Kruse, who went down just before the end of the match. However the club can be sure of a place in the hearts of the nation‘s football fans, unlike their cross city rivals. As one commentator on the Kicker Facebook thread said yesterday “Union is a club which manages to earn affection throughout the country and beyond because of their fan culture. Hertha though, although it pains me to say it, is a grey mouse that nobody cares about. No one particularly likes Hertha, but no one really has a problem with them either, they are just indifferent to them, no matter how much they try and and change that”.
A perfect summary of the difference between the two clubs in Germany’s capital.

The Deutsche Fussball Bund today confirmed that Joachim Löw will remain in his post until next summers European Championships. His position had come under intense scrutiny after the humiliating 6-0 defeat against Spain in the final qualifying game of the Nations League. After a teleconference the DFB stated that it was happy with the path the national team was on under Löw and that a single game couldn’t be allowed to be the tool by which his progress was measured. The decision also had the full support of Oliver Bierhof, the Sporting Director of the team. Both Löw and Bierhof have come in for increasing criticism since the 2018 World Cup, with German fans maintaining that it was time for both to vacate their positions and allow new incumbents to improve performances and results. The DFB has perhaps unsurprisingly thrown its weight behind the duo, though it will do nothing to increase enthusiasm for the national teams prospects next summer.

Hamburger SV are now in their third year of attempting to get out of the second division and back to where they feel they feel they belong, in the Bundesliga. The previous two campaigns saw their promotion push derailed by dramatic collapses in form at the business end of the season, often in quite comical circumstances. “HSV Promotion Push v3“ got off to a cracking start, with the club on the Elbe winning their first five games and racing out to a five point lead over nearby Holstein Kiel. A 2-2 draw with local rivals St Pauli in the Hamburg derby saw the first dropped points of the season, but the five point gap was still intact. However the following week saw Kiel score an injury time equaliser to deprive HSV of all three points. In the subsequent international break these setbacks appear to have had a disastrous effect on the psyche of the club as they have lost twice since, to VfL Bochum at home and now to FC Heidenheim, the team that pipped them into third place last season. Both games were settled by late goals, Bochum scored in the 78th and 82nd minute, whilst FCH‘s Christian Kuhlwetter completed his hat trick in the 90th minute. Imagine how good HSV would be if they could see out games without conceding in the last 15 minutes. So after leading the table comfortably at the end of October, they are now in second place as Gruether Fürth won their own derby against 1.FC Nuremburg, their fifth victory in a row (since being beaten by HSV ironically) and now sit atop the league and on a great run of form. Hamburg will hope to turn around their terrible run when Hannover 96, without a win in their last four games themselves, visit next weekend.

New monarchies, IKEA-built grandstands, rebranded local beer and Schweden-Happen - j ust how close did Zlatan Ibrahimovic come to playing in the Regionalliga? Find out with our guide to Rot-Weiß Oberhausen:

SC ROT WEIß OBERHAUSEN | SAMSTAG 15:30

Diego Maradona, acclaimed by some as the greatest footballer of all time, made his debut in Europe on the less than hallowed turf of SV Meppen’s Hindenburg Stadium. The date was 3rd August 1982 and the team from the small provincial town in northern Germany, not far from the Dutch border, were hosting a pre-season friendly against Barcelona to celebrate their 70th birthday. For a team in the non-league pyramid, Meppen had form for attracting big-hitting opposition. Their 60th birthday had seen a visit from the reigning German champions Borussia Mönchengladbach, while a year later Ajax had made the short trip from Amsterdam and fielded a team including Johan Cruyff and John Neeskens. In an effort to attract a team of that ilk, the club owners pulled in every favour they could. They were put in touch with Barcelona, then managed by the German Udo Lattek who was looking for a game while his team were on a pre-season training camp in Holland. Aware that Meppen had provided a decent test to their previous international opponents, he was happy to travel to Germany for the game. No sooner had the fixture been announced, Barcelona signed Maradona from Boca Juniors. The club could not believe their luck ... what had promised to be a big occasion, was now an event of major significance in European football. Ticket sales, which had already been going briskly, went crazy and had to be stopped within a couple of days. Officially the stadium, today known as the Hänsch Arena, could hold 13,000. However 18,500 are believed to have attended the match. It is probably one of those games where every resident of Meppen over the age of 40 will claim to have been there that night. In the end it was a low key appearance by the Argentinian superstar, as he scored a penalty, inevitably sending the keeper the wrong way, before being substituted at half-time. Nevertheless it provided the opportunity for a little bit of football history to take place in a quiet corner of north-west Germany.

With the contract from their current kit manufacturer Under Armour running out, St Pauli set out on a search for a replacement provider with three principles in mind. Any new supplier had to convince the club of their credentials in the following areas: sustainability, transparency and Fair Trade. Quite simply they couldn’t find anyone who could satisfy their demands so will consequently be manufacturing the kits themselves. St Pauli, based in Hamburg’s Reeperbahn area, has long prided itself on doing things differently from other clubs. It is avowedly left wing, truly representative of its working class neighbourhood, and explicitly repudiated to any racism or extreme right wing views in football, long before such sentiments were in the mainstream. “This uniqueness and constant desire to find new ways of doing things has always been a trademark of St Pauli. With our own Teamsport Collection we are again following our own independent path.” said club president Oke Gottlich. The kit will be called DIIY (Do It Improve Yourself), rather English in origin, but Gotttlich added “That‘s St Pauli, why imitate when you can do it better yourself.” The club is hoping to get its kit ready for May 2021, with advance orders being taken from next month. With its emphasis on sustainability, they hope that they will be able to supply other clubs as existing deals with manufacturers expire.

it won’t be often that Uefa Nations League qualifiers will have many ramifications beyond the match itself, but tonight’s 6-0 demolition of Germany by a rampant Spain could well be one of those games. Manager Joachim Löw was already under pressure and and this result will have done everything to increase it to the point where it may become unbearable. Before the game he had received a semi “vote of confidence” from team manager Oliver Bierhoff who had said the question of the coach would not be discussed until after next year’s Euros. It is inconceivable after tonight’s game that those conversations won‘t be taking place in the offices of the DFB with immediate effect. Spain got off to a great start with an early goal from Morata, who was unmarked at a corner, but already Spain, and Morata in particular, had shown themselves to be the more creative and enterprising of the two sides. Whilst the scoreline makes for grim reading (it is Germany’s worst defeat for almost 90 years), it was the limp and lifeless performance that made this such a remarkable game. With the score still at 1-0 and the contest very much alive Leroy Sane was in a good position on the right yet dribbled himself into trouble and lost the ball. Two minutes later he did exactly the same. Within 10 minutes Spain were 3-0 up and the game was over. If anything, 6-0 flattered Germany as they were utterly outclassed all over the pitch. Spain had a legitimate goal disallowed, Manuel Neuer made several crucial saves in one on one situations and Spanish attackers had moments of indecision where they should have exploited opportunities to increase their lead. Time and again the German defence was cut to ribbons. The final tally of 23 Spanish shots to only two by Germany, together with 69% possession of the ball, gives an indication just how dominant Spain were. And conversely how inept Germany were. It is difficult to know where the national team goes from here, given that this was pretty much the first choice side. For a manager for whom everything has gone wrong since 2018 this may well be the game that seals his fate as the calls for his head (Löw raus) grow by the day.

Good and bad news for those still wishing to visit the Friedrich-Ludwig Jahn Sportpark in Berlin. Demolition of the historic (albeit decaying) stadium has been put back again - this time until 2022 - by the Berlin authorities who plan to spend a whopping €200 million converting it into an 'inclusion sports park'. The latest delay has come following a legal challenge by lawyers who state that the development plans were not " legally compliant and highly vulnerable to legal action " and have ordered new plans to be drawn up that take into consideration the environmental impact of the development on the surrounding area including the proposed felling of trees. As part of the planning process, an architectural competition to design the new stadium complex is also due to take place and expected to be completed by mid-2022. Until then, the current stadium should definitely remain standing with German Green MP Andreas Otto stating "Any dismantling measures will take place at the earliest after the competition has been completed" .

Now for the bad news. While the constructors, planners and designers discuss what's next for the Jahn Stadion, its operating licence expires at the end of next month and will definitely not be renewed. The Berlin authorities have confirmed that " There will be no more events, competitions or games there from 1 January 2021. The only exception is for school sports and training, they are still allowed to use the grass pitch in the stadium."

Regionalliga clubs VSG Altglienicke and BFC Dynamo who have have played their home games in Prenzlauer Berg this season, are both therefore on the move - with VSG sharing the Amateurstadion in the Olympic Park with Hertha Berlin II; and Dynamo heading to the Sportforum Hohenschönhausen which will see €3 million from the overall Friedrich-Ludwig Jahn Stadion redevelopment budget spent on it to bring it up to spec.

Whether or not things remain on schedule however is anyone's guess. This is Berlin after all.

The fall out from Germany’s 3-1 victory against Ukraine on Saturday is rumbling on. The match was in doubt until the afternoon of the game itself as five members of the Ukraine squad tested positive for Coronavirus in the 48 hours beforehand. It only took place after being given the go ahead by the local health authorities in Leipzig when it was decided that the rest of the team did not need to isolate. Now the post match tests have revealed that three more of the squad have tested positive, two of whom took part in the match on Saturday. Whether the Ukraine‘s match in Switzerland tomorrow takes place is uncertain. This issue has sparked further debate about whether this round of international matches should be taking place. The UEFA Nations League may be important in the eyes of the football authorities but the tournament has hardly caught the imagination of Europe’s football fans. That matches requiring international travel are being scheduled, at a time when most of Europe has travel bans in place, is coming in for intense criticism. The threads on the Facebook feeds of both Kicker and 11 Freunde, the leading German football publications, were overwhelmingly in favour of postponing the Ukraine game on Saturday whilst opining there is absolutely no justification for playing the final match in the qualifying stages against Spain tomorrow. As the international team struggles for credibility and support this week has been a further blow to its reputation.

Newly promoted 1. FC Saarbrücken have made an excellent start to their first season in the 3. Liga. Fresh off winning 2-0 against Viktoria Köln last night, they can sit back and relax as the rest of the division‘s fixtures take place this weekend. With a five point cushion at the top of the table they know that regardless of any other results they will remain in first place. The team that won the Regionalliga Südwest last season also had a superb cup run, getting to the semi finals of the DFB-Pokal where they lost to Bayer Leverkusen, a team which finished fifth in the Bundesliga. As such they were the first non league team to make it into the semi finals. So they had nothing to fear entering this season. After putting a four game wining run together to go top earlier this season, they stumbled and lost two on the bounce at the end of October. However they have emerged from that wobble and last night’s win, away at the team in 4th place, was their third in a row and sees them firmly established as the best side in the division right now. Coach Lukas Kwasniok was appointed at the start of this year having been dismissed as coach of then bottom Carl Zeiss Jena last November. Instead of looking up at the rest of the 3. Liga, as he then was, he is now looking down on the competition. “He’s doing a good job tactically and the team is listening to him. He involves the players in this decisions and that is really important. That is the secret of his success” said Sporting Director Jürgen Lugingner ahead of last night’s game about the 39 year old coach. No one at the club is getting carried away and there is no talk of promotion. The 3. Liga can be a notoriously difficult division to maintain a great run of form. None of last season’s eventual top 3 were anywhere near those positions at the half way point last year. However there is no doubt that 1 FC Saarbrücken are making the early running this season and are currently the team to beat in the 3. Liga.

The ongoing financial difficulties that clubs below the top levels are experiencing thanks to the absence of fans through the gates due to the Coronavirus pandemic was illustrated yesterday when 3. Liga side KFC Uerdingen only got the go ahead to be able to stage today’s league tie against SpVgg Unterhaching after paying some of their rent arrears. KFC have played their home games at Düsseldorf’s Merkur Spiel Arena for the last two seasons. Prior to that they spent a year based at MSV Duisburg’s stadium. Their peripatetic existence has not helped build a strong supporter base since returning to the ranks of professional football. The club has was only 14th and 17th in average attendance the last two seasons. Doubtless the financial situation at Uerdingen would not be great even with fans attending matches but without them it is looking particularly bleak. This week it has reached crisis point as the club was unable to pay October’s rent bill of €174,000 which had been due five weeks ago. The stadium landlords contacted the club on Wednesday saying it needed to pay the overdue amount ”as quickly as possible“. They also advised that unless payment was made today’s game would not be allowed to take place. However if part payment were made then the game could potentially go ahead. In the end KFC paid half the outstanding balance yesterday and this was sufficient for the landlords to relent. However this is clearly just kicking the problem down the road as November‘s rent, plus October’s arrears, will be due shortly. On top of this a further sum of €56,700 is also outstanding. With income streams limited for the foreseeable future, it is hard to know how Uerdingen will be able to right their financial ship.

The German national team is playing a friendly against the Czech Republic in Leipzig this evening, but the game is being met with complete indifference among the German footballing public. Ever since they won the World Cup in 2014, after thumping Brazil 7-1 in the semi final and then edging past Argentina in the final, thanks to Mario Götze’s extra time winner, the national team has been losing fans and friends. At a press conference earlier this week the team manager, Oliver Bierhof, confirmed that the the country was falling out of love with his charges. There are a number of reasons for this: - the terrible performances at the World Cup in Russia in 2018 when for the first time ever, they were knocked out of the tournament at the group stage - the subsequent very messy fall out with Mesut Özil who accused the DFB of institutional racism when announcing his international retirement - the retention of Joachim Low as manager. Having already been in charge for 12 years at the time of the last World Cup, it was the time for a fresh face - the enforced retirement of stalwarts Mats Hummels, Thomas Müller and Jerome Boateng shortly after the World Cup. The latter two were crucial components of Bayern Munich’s triple winning side last season and the former is still performing at a very high level for Borussia Dortmund - the failure to replace these stars with adequately talented players. Germany finished bottom of their Nations League group in 2018/9 - largely indifferent performances this season...four of the five games played so far this season have been draws - seven of tonight’s starting XI can count the number of caps they already have on one hand. It seems like anyone can get a game for Germany these days... - last but not least, there is widespread scepticism about the merits of playing international friendlies (in front of empty stadia) in the midst of a major continent wide pandemic The DFB has a major job on its hands to rebuild the support it once took for granted.

As reported in the local media on Sunday evening, Würzburger Kickers today confirmed that recently appointed head coach Marco Antwerpen had been relieved of his duties after just five matches in charge. Antwerpen (pictured) had replaced the popular Michael Schiele at the Flyeralarm Arena last month but, as the Kickers have struggled to adapt to life in Bundesliga.2, four successive defeats (including a 1-4 reverse at FC Heidenheim 1846 on Friday night) has seen the club hierarchy replace him with former SV Waldhof Mannheim coach Bernhard Trares.

Referring to Antwerpen's appointment, Kickers' Director of Football Felix Magath admitted "I made a mistake".
Before turning his hand to coaching, 55-year-old Trares played 183 Bundesliga and 275 Bundesliga.2 games and was once a player under Magath at Werder Bremen. After spells in charge at Wormatia Worms and FC Schalke 04 II, he led SV Waldhof Mannheim to the Regionalliga Südwest title and promotion to the 3.Liga in 2019 before leaving in July this year after rejecting a new contract offer from the Palatinate club.

He will take his place in the FWK hot-seat for the first time on 22nd November against Hannover 96 with Würzburg hoping that, after saying Auf Wiedersehen to Schiele and Antwerpen already this season, Trares' appointment will be a case of third time lucky.

Tonight sees the latest instalment of the fixture which has in recent years become known as Der Klassiker , the German version of Spain’s El Classico between Real Madrid and Barcelona. In the Bundesliga, the matches between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund have earned the nickname, as it represents the head to head match ups between the two strongest teams In the country. It is unclear when the fixture started being referred to as Der Klassiker , however it is as much a creation of the marketing departments than it is of any sense that there is a genuine rivalry between the two sides. For a start the first competitive fixture between the two was not until 1965, when Bayern Munich first appeared in the Bundesliga. By this time other classic rivalries in Europe had well over half a century of mutual history. The great rivalry in German football in the 1970s was between FCB and Borussia Mönchengladbach, with their meetings being worthy of being labelled as Der Klassiker (even though no one had thought up such a name then). A variety of teams have challenged Munich’s domestic dominance over the subsequent decades but nothing really emerged as a rivalry to warrant being given a name. In the mid 2000s BVB got into real financial difficulty and Munich’s leadership provided vital support when Dortmund’s future was in genuine doubt. It was only when Jürgen Klopp took over in 2008 and the team he created won back to back league titles that the fixtures took any particular significance. The two have won the last eleven Bundesliga titles (eight in a row for Munich) between them and are currently first and second in the table, so there is no doubting that it is the most significant fixture in the German footballing calendar. But that doesn’t earn it the soubriquet of Der Klassiker ...

Getting rid the legacy of Germany’s painful past is an ongoing issue, even in 2020, three quarters of a century after the end of WWII. FC Schweinfurt 05 were the opponents for FC Schalke 04 (German teams do like having their year of origin in their team names) in the delayed 1st round tie in the DFB Pokal.
Schweinfurt is located in northern Bavaria and the team is one of the more powerful teams in the fourth their Regionalliga Bayern. They play their home games at the Willy Sachs Stadion, which is where the problem lies. Schweinfurt‘s main industry was the roller bearing factory set up by Ernst Sachs in the 19th century. His influence throughout the community was everywhere and his image still features in the city’s flag. The club‘s stadium however is named after his son Willy and he has a much more complicated legacy, to put it mildly. He was a member of the SA, as the Nazi party grew in popularity then moved into the SS in 1933 as the they took over the country. Three years later he was granted the Freedom of the City having built the stadium that still bears his name and donated it to the city. He was such a prominent member of the Nazi Party that the ceremony in his honour was attended by such luminaries as Heinrich Himmler and Hermann Goering, whilst Hitler himself sent a telegram in congratulations.
His legacy grew even more tainted as the crimes of the Nazis increased. The factory in Schweinfurt, now run by Willy Sachs, continued to produce roller bearings and became a vital component of the Nazi war effort. In addition it was manned during the later years of WWII by slave labour from occupied territories who were treated brutally.
Astonishingly despite all this the stadium remains named after Willy Sachs and there is a remarkable lack of enthusiasm for changing this. Locally a movement has started to rename it the Sachs Stadium, thereby retaining the reference to Ernst who did so much to put the city on the map. Willy Sachs, who died in 1958, will see his legacy live on until the city develops the will to get finally get rid of this shameful episode in its past.

In the 3. Liga this evening early pacesetters Hansa Rostock are playing at 1.FC Kaiserslautern’s Fritz Walter Stadion. The visitors will go three points clear at the top of the table if they win, whlist the hosts are still searching for their first victory of the season and are mired in the bottom four and facing the very real prospect of playing in the non league Regionalliga next year. Nearly 30 years ago the two sides met in very different circumstances. In 1991 1. FCK had improbably won the Bundesliga the season before, their first championship since the early 1950s. Meanwhile Hansa Rostock were the last ever champions of the DDR Oberliga, which was wound up following the reunification of Germany in October 1990. Hansa hadn’t been of the leading teams in the East for a number of years so their triumph was almost as much of a surprise as Kaiserslautern's was in the West. In the one and only German Super Cup in the summer of 1991 the two respective champions met each other for the first time, with the team from the West winning 2-1. As eastern champions Hansa joined an expanded Bundesliga but only lasted a season at that level. They did secure promotion back into the top flight in the mid 1990s and there were a number of fixtures between the two sides in the first half of the 2000s. However the last Bundesliga game between the two was in 2005 and the last Bundesliga 2 game only five years later. The demise of both teams has often mirrored each other and now both “big” clubs find themselves in the 3. Liga, albeit it at opposite ends of the table, and searching vainly to restore some element of their former glory.

Today would have been the 100th birthday of Fritz Walter, captain of West Germany when they surprisingly beat Hungary in the 1954 World Cup final, a victory which provided a post war Germany, still reeling from the conflict, with some element of emotional legitimacy and self respect. Walter was part of the generation of players whose careers had been ravaged by WWII. As a result he was an exceptionally modest man who spent his entire club career with 1. FC Kaiserslautern, helping them to win the German championship twice. The club from the Pfalz was the dominant force in domestic football at the time and sent five players to the World Cup in Switzerland, including Walter and his brother Ottmar. The victory, as West Germany recovered from a 2-0 early deficit to win 3-2, was a key milestone in the country‘s footballing development. Hopes beforehand were not particularly high, given that there was still no professional national league in West Germany at the time. The subsequent failure to defend the title in 1958, with Walter then 38 and clearly past his best, was a key driver in the footballing authorities‘ decision to establish the Bundesliga.
Walter, who ran a hotel and restaurant in Kaiserslautern and never moved away from the town after retiring, became a national icon in a country desperate for anything to celebrate at the time. He was venerated for the rest of his life, in a way that no other German footballer has been since, until he died in 2002, during the course of another German run to the World Cup final.

The enforced absence of fans from matches due to the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause headaches for many stadia management companies across Germany. With grounds sat empty and idle for much of 2020, companies are seeing unsustainable gaps developing between profit and loss - with the latest to feel the financial pressure being Bremer Weser-Stadion GmbH who operate Werder Bremen's iconic Weserstadion. The company had warned that without additional funding they would soon be on the brink of bankruptcy with all the uncertainty surrounding the future of the historic stadium that would bring. Bremer Weser-Stadion GmbH are joint-owned by the city of Bremen and SV Werder, and so both parent companies have secured the funding needed to sustain the business, with the city's €3.5 million pledge being matched by the Bundesliga club. Wary of concern amongst its fanbase, Werder Bremen have also assured fans that the future of the stadium has been secured ... for the time being at least.

The question now, as Germany faces a second national lockdown and the impact it is likely to have on all areas of the economy - not just professional sport - is when will the revenue streams start up again? Sadly, it's entirely possible that German football will see no significant matchday income for months and that further bailouts will be needed.

Did you know that 1.FC Köln aren't the only club from the cathedral city to have rubbed shoulders with German football's elite? Find out which other club did in our latest guide from the Regionalliga.

https://www.samstag1530.com/scfortunak%C3%B6ln

Yesterday saw the team at the bottom on Bundesliga 2, Würzburger Kickers, travel north to play Hamburger SV, who have started the season with four straight wins and sat atop the table. Kickers having just picked up a solitary point, it looked a foregone conclusion that HSV would dispatch the team promoted from the 3. Liga with ease. At half time then, with the visiting team leading through a 40th minute goal, Kickers fans (which include half of the Samstag 1530 editorial team) were pinching themselves and dreaming of an improbable upset which would kickstart their season. HSV had played poorly in the first half and Würzburg were good value for their lead. Whatever half time talk HSV Coach Daniel Thioune delivered certainly had an effect as they came out a completely different team after the break. Kickers suddenly looked vulnerable and had to mount a rearguard action to maintain their lead. Eventually the pressure told and Simon Terodde, newly arrived from Cologne in the summer, and with over 100 goals during his career at this level, equalised on 65 minutes. He then put Hamburg in the lead with just under 10 minutes to go, which extinguished the visitors hope of getting anything out of the game. An injury time goal made it 3-1 and the scoreline reflected the relative league positions of the teams going into the fixture. HSV are now five points clear of second place Kiel and can possibly start thinking about the return to the Bundesliga which has consumed the club since their relegation to the second tier in 2018. However fans would be foolish to get carried away as the previous two seasons have begun very well, only to fade badly in the home straight. There is still a long way to go in this most unusual of seasons.

After picking up their first point of the season last week with an equaliser at home to Union Berlin (hardly something to get too excited about, but so low is the bar a the Veltins Arena right now, that anything other than a defeat is a treated as a major triumph), Schalke 04 entered the Revierderby game against Borussia Dortmund hoping to continue their upward trajectory (i.e. staying off the bottom of the Bundesliga). The talk beforehand was of needing a 200% improvement to get anything from this game. Suffice it to say they fell well short of this as their local rivals strolled to a convincing 3-0 victory. Despite enjoying 77% possession in the first half BVB were unable to put Schalke’s goalkeeper under much pressure. That changed in the second half as Akanji, Haaland and Hummels all scored within 23 minutes to ensure Dortmund keep pace with Bayern Munich on 12 points, one behind RB Leipzig at the top of the Bundesliga. Any hopes that Manuel Baum would come in and provide a new manager bounce have proved sadly unfulfilled. The morale at Schalke, now 21 games without a win, remains at the lowest of low ebbs. Even one commentator at 11 Freunde, who hails from the Ruhr, but is no fan of Schalke (indeed he talks about how insufferable their fans can be) has urged people to be sympathetic to the plight of the Traditionsverein from Gelsenkirchen. Were it not for FSV Mainz 05’s even more woeful start to the season ( five defeats and conceding an average of three goals a game) Schalke would be rooted to the bottom of the table. The only saving grace is that they have played the top three in their first five games (albeit losing those by an aggregate score of 15-0) and that their schedule now gets a little easier. In a a very early season six pointer they travel to Mainz on 7th November. Now if they come home from that game empty handed, then there really is no hope.

That‘s what the coach of 5th tier FC Düren of the Mittelrheinliga was hoping for before the 1st round tie of the DFB-Pokal against Bayern Munich on Wednesday evening. ”I want to concede fewer than eight goals, then we are better than Barcelona or Schalke“ said Guiseppe Brunetti referring to the heavy defeats suffered by Spanish side in the Champions League in August and by Schalke on opening day. Well he got his way as his team lost by only 3-0, in what was a routine performance by the European champions, who gave five players their debut and only fielded four of their core squad. Choupo-Moting, once of Stoke City and newly arrived from PSG scored either side of Thomas Muller and the result was never in doubt. With 72% possession, nearly three times as many completed passes, 21 shots and a corner ratio of 10:1, FCB never looked likely to succumb to what would have been the greatest cup upset of all time, even with a weakened team. However the visitors performed creditably and can go back to action in their division, where they have made a great start with three wins out of three, with their heads held high. Even if claiming to be better than Barcelona may be a bit far fetched...not Schalke though, everyone is better than Schalke...

We've dropped into the Regionalliga today to bring you a guide to a club with one of the most fascinating and complex histories in football. Read our guide to 1.FC Lokomotive Leipzig here:
https://www.samstag1530.com/lokomotiveleipzig

Today saw the latest instalment of the 1.FC Kaiserslautern v Waldhof Mannheim rivalry at FCK’s Betzenberg, one of the deepest and most bitter rivalries in the country. From the authorities point of view there is the small mercy this season that there were no fans in attendance at the most eagerly awaited fixture for both sets of supporters. Last season was the first league meeting of the two sides for almost 30 years and the anxiety over crowd trouble overshadowed the build up to the game. In the end both matches last season passed off without incident, but the animosity between the fans is palpable. Many years ago the relationship between the two clubs was cordial. However in 1983 Waldhof were promoted to the Bundesliga for the first time and had to relocate to Ludwigshafen because their home stadium was deemed unfit for the top division by the DFB. Crucially Ludwigshafen is on the left bank of the Rhine, whereas Mannheim is on the right. The then club leadership at FCK were extremely displeased at what they saw as an attempt by Waldhof to encroach upon Kaiserslautern territory. Regional divisions between ancient geographical entities in Germany may seem a bit arcane, but can sometimes be very real...so this move by a team from the Kurpfalz (Mannheim) into the Pfalz (hitherto Kaiserslautern land) set off an inter-club feud which shows no signs of diminishing. To add insult to injury Waldhof moved into the Südweststadion, which had once staged FCK games. Kaiserslautern‘s president urged the club fans to attend Mannheim home games in red to underline the fact that the team in blue and black were trespassing on Kaiserslautern turf. On top of all the controversy over the stadium the summer of 1983 saw Mannheim player Fritz Walter (coincidentally the same name as FCK and possibly the whole of Germany’s greatest football hero) decide to switch to Kaiserslautern...only to change his mind and sign a new contract with Mannheim. Mannheim remained in the top division for seven eventful seasons with the games between the two sides only adding to the nascent enmity. Often at the heart of these was Kaiserslautern goalkeeping legend Gerry Ehrmann, who conceded two of the four penalties (of which he managed to save two) awarded to Mannheim in one game in 1987 and who was punched a couple of years later by Waldhof striker Attila Birlik, a move which immediately ended his participation in the game, but elevated him to club legend status among Mannheim fans. With honours even entering today’s game (seven wins each and six draws), there was the opportunity for one of the two to claim series bragging rights. Neither side had registered a victory in the first three games of the season thus far, so a win was important for both irrespective of their mutual dislike. The away side went ahead in the first half and were clearly on top. However, just as they did on Monday night when they raised their game and rescued a point at Wiesbaden, Kaiserslautern looked much stronger in the second half and got a well deserved equaliser through Marlon Ritter in the 77th minute. So neither side has bragging rights and the anticipation can start building towards the clash at Mannheim later in the season.

Three games into the season and watching Bayern Munich has been anything other than boring. After hitting eight past Schalke on opening weekend, the defending champions were sensationally beaten 4-1 by Hoffenheim last week, with the effects of extra time in the Super Cup win over Seville a few days earlier having an effect. Yesterday’s 4-3 victory over Hertha Berlin continued the streak of wild games in which FCB have taken part so far this season. What was looking like a routine win in an empty Allianz Arena once the home team went 2-0 up proved to be anything but. Two excellent Hertha goals brought them back level and an upset seemed possible.

However Robert Lewandowski, fresh from being crowned the best footballer in Europe, wasn’t finished. Having scored the first two Bayern goals, he appeared at the back post to register his hat trick with five minutes to play. There was yet another twist though as Hertha equalised again in the 88th minute and looked likely to condemn FCB to back to back winless games.
More drama was to follow though as Hertha conceded an injury time penalty which was calmly converted by...who else...Lewandowski, who right now is as close to unplayable as anyone in the sport. Bayern saw out the remaining time and moved to within a point of the three remaining undefeated teams: Leipzig, Augsburg and Frankfurt.

Game of the day yesterday was the 4-4 draw in Mannheim, as home team Waldhof came back from 1-0, 2-1 and finally from 4-2 to secure a point against Türkgücü München, who are really enjoying their first season in professional football. After beating crisis hit FC Kaiserslautern last week (and thereby costing their opponents’ coach his job) 3-0, the side formed from the Turkish community in Munich looked to be on the way to securing another three points before Mannheim striker Joseph Boyamba scored twice in the last 20 minutes to grab a point following a breathless game. The late equaliser prevented a clean sweep for all four of the Munich based teams in the division over the weekend. On Friday night Bayern Munich II showed that last season’s title winning run was no fluke by disposing of relegated Dynamo Dresden 3-0, whilst yesterday Unterhaching ended Ingolstadt’s impressive start to the season by winning 1-0 away from home. Then 1860 Munich won 2-1 away at Zwickau, meaning Türkgücü were the only team to drop points, thanks to Boyamba’s late heroics. It is obviously very early days, but all four teams (three of whom call the Stadion an der Grunewalder Strasse home) are in the top eight of the 3.Liga table after the first three matches of the season. With Ingolstadt, who very narrowly missed out on promotion last season, sitting in fourth place, there is a very heavy air of Bavarian dominance in the standings thus far. With 1860 at home next Saturday afternoon, Türkgücü will host Wehen Wiesbaden at the Olympic Stadium, the first of the eight agreed matches at the former home FC Bayern Munich, which hasn’t hosted a league game since the Allianz Arena was completed in 2005.

In a move that gives rise to all sorts of sensationalist 'clickbait' headlines and will have HSV fans everywhere fearful of imminent financial collapse, Hamburger SV have sold the deeds to the land beneath their Volksparkstadion back to the city of Hamburg in order to finance a renovation of the ground ahead of the 2024 Euros. The Volksparkstadion was built in 1999 at a cost of €100 million and was at the time of its opening one of the most modern stadiums in the world. Twenty years later however, the stadium is beginning to show its age and in need of a spruce up - especially since Hamburg have been announced as one of the host cities for Euro 2024.

However, there's a problem.

Being innovative comes at a price. There's no suggestion that the club are going to struggle financially in the short to medium term, but obviously stadium renovations require additional revenue - something they've been unable to generate having lost their long-held Bundesliga status back in 2018 and subsequently making heavy weather of earning a return. Add in the financial challenges presented by the ongoing COVID pandemic and HSV aren't in a position to fund the project alone.

So, the club have decided to sell the land under the Volksparkstadion back to the city of Hamburg in a reversal of a deal that was first struck in 1998. Back then, the city sold the land for a symbolic DM1 on condition that HSV help fund the stadium build in time for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Now, the city will buy the land back on the proviso that HSV use the €23.5 million amount they will receive to upgrade the stadium for Euro 2024. Under the agreement, ' Der Dino' will also have to pay an annual lease for the land worth 1.8% (€423,000) in a deal that will last until 2087, by which time the city will have recouped the €23.5 million plus an additional €5 million (which should go some way to appeasing the city's St Pauli-supporting taxpayers). HSV's provisional estimates put the cost of the upgrades at €20-30 million and although nothing is finalised at this point, it is expected that a renovation of the membrane roof will be included in the list of works now that it's beginning to reach the end of its shelf-life. Other improvements are expected to include full LED lighting, a new sound system as well as upgrades to the media and hospitality facilities.

Rumours about the stadium's naming rights being sold again also continue to circulate - a concern to the ' Rothosen ' faithful who have been pleased to see the stadium retain it's historic Volksparkstadion moniker for the past five years. HSV's biggest individual shareholder, billionaire Klaus-Michael Kühne, actually paid for naming rights until 2019 but didn't put a brand on the stadium. However, with HSV currently not in a particularly strong financial position, TV channel Sport1 recently suggested Deutsche Telekom (a current commercial partner and minority investor of HSV) could be the ones to grab the name. source: StadiumDB.com

The German word for patience is Geduld, but there has been very little of that in evidence over the last 24 hours at every level of German football as Bundesliga side FSV Mainz 05, Würzburger Kickers, newly promoted into Bundesliga 2 this season, and 1. FC Kaiserslautern of the 3. liga all released their coaches. The common denominator was a poor start to the season, with all three sides losing both their opening games in dispiriting fashion. David Wagner, formerly of Schalke 04, at least has company in the ranks of the trainers who have plenty of free time on their hands only 10 days into the league season. Another common factor behind the early dismissals appears to be considerable off field issues. Schalke‘s woeful finances have been referred to before and FC Kaiserslautern, Bundesliga champions twice in the 1990s, have exactly the same painful issues...a pile of debt, an inability to bring in new faces to freshen up an underperforming squad and complete uncertainty as to future income streams. The final straw for the club management was the 3-0 defeat at newly promoted Turkgucu Munich. Despite the off field constraints outgoing coach Boris Schimmers had done a reasonable job in guiding FCK to 10th place last season, when at one point it looked as though the Traditionsverein was heading to obscurity of the 4th tier Regionalliga Südwest. The bosses at Mainz had already decided to terminate coach Achim Beierlorzer‘s contract on Friday, following the mismanagement of the role of striker Adam Szalai, who had been told to find a new team, sent to train with the Under 23s, yet came on as a substitute in the first round of the Cup. In addition Beierlorzer was quoted as saying “There is no doubt that Adam can help us in certain situations.” That Szalai was part of the team council negotiating with the management about that timings of the 15% wage deferral payments caused by the pandemic has also inflamed the matter. In any event Mainz looked hopeless as they were dismantled by VfB Stuttgart 4-1 at home on Saturday, though it appears Beierlorzer’s fate was already sealed. The final sacking, that of Würzburger Kickers Michael Schiele, is a little more curious. Schiele oversaw a superb second half of the season, particularly after the restart, which saw the Kickers fly up the table and take the second automatic promotion spot. As arguably the team with the smallest fan base in Bundesliga 2, you might think expectation levels would be modest. However a cup defeat, followed by two reverses in the league (against Aue and Dusseldorf, two decent sides) was enough for Schiele to be released and replaced with the coach of fellow promoted side Eintracht Braunschweig, Marco Antwerpen. The club leadership, now with Felix Magath at the helm, and backed by investor Flyeralarm, had clearly seen enough and opted to make the change. So four dismissals after the second game of the season...perhaps a sign of trigger happy clubs who are already on a knife edge due to the perilous state of their finances during the pandemic. Here’s hoping that a bit more Geduld is shown to other coaches who will now be looking over their shoulders with increasing alarm after a couple of poor results.

The David Wagner era at Schalke is officially over as the club’s head of sport Jochen Schneider finally released the embattled coach on Sunday morning following yet another defeat, this time at home to fellow strugglers Werder Bremen. Despite previously sticking by Wagner, who only joined the club in May 2019, a statement issued by Schneider said “Unfortunately the first two matches haven’t seen the required improvement in performances or results. We have therefore decided to go down the route of starting afresh with a new coach.“ The club had hoped for a turnaround in results and performances this season, but two games in and the prognosis is just as bleak as it was at the end of the 2019-20, which saw Schalke plummet down the table on the back of a 16 game run without a win. The new season got off to a disastrous start with an 8-0 defeat at Bayern Munich, followed by yesterday’s 3-1 loss to Werder Bremen, who had made a similarly poor start to the new campaign in losing 4-1 at home to Hertha Berlin. In a battle of possibly the two worst teams in the Bundesliga Schalke looked poor from the start, conceding two goals from set plays before haof time. Whether a new coach will be able to turnaround a team which has conceded 49 goals in the 18 games since they last won is a moot point. Schalke is a club in crisis, suffering from crippling debts and a lack of matchday revenue in the 60,000 capacity Veltins Arena. There was a distinct reluctance to part ways with Wagner, but the disappointing start to the season and the lack of any improvement in performance left the club with very little alternative but to look for a new coach.

Hertha Berlin became a by word for a joke club during the course of last season. There was the high profile appointment of Jürgen Klinsmann as trainer which ended with his even higher profile departure only a couple of months later, amid much mutual recrimination about unfulfilled promises. Then in May, as the Bundesliga season was getting ready to restart, there was the embarrassing video which Salomon Kalou put out of him breaking social distancing guidelines with his teammates, which lead to a suspension. After losing five of the last six games to finish the season, any optimism generated by the arrival of new trainer Bruno Labbadia had well and truly vanished. The gulf between the capital’s major club and the leading group of Bundesliga teams seemed as big as ever. This impression seems to be confirmed by the defeat to Eintracht Braunschweig, who were only promoted from the third to second division last season, in the first round of the DFB Pokal, one of the few upsets on a weekend when nearly all the leading Bundesliga teams dispatched lower league opposition with ease. However all this was cast aside last weekend when Hertha travelled to Werder Bremen and won 4-1 at a canter. Two goals just before half time, followed by another just after the hour meant that Labbadia’s team were never in trouble. Whilst Bremen are far from the strongest opposition, it was a perfect start. Now they face Eintracht Frankfurt this evening and a win will put them top, at least until Bayern Munich and the other leading teams play tomorrow. Frankfurt laboured to a 1-1 draw at home to newly promoted Arminia Bielefeld, so Hertha will go into the match with confidence that they can make it two wins out of two. Whilst it Is of course way too early to make any rash pronouncements that Labbadia has fashioned a team which can compete with the likes of BVB Dortmund and RB Leipzig, if not quite Bayern Munich yet, the outcome of tonight’s game will go a long way to giving the long suffering fans of the capital’s flagship team some hope that their team will be in the fight for European places come the end of the season.

17 year old Jamal Musiala had a busy weekend, one which ended with him being very much in the spotlight. On Friday night he came on as a second half substitute for Bayern Munich and scored the final goal in their 8-0 humiliation of Schalke 04. In the process he became Bayern’s youngest ever goalscorer.
Less than 24 hours later he was in the starting line up for FC Bayern Munich II for their 3. Liga game against city rivals Türkgücü Munich, making their first ever appearance at this level, and played 66 minutes of an exciting game that finished 2-2. It may indeed be some kind of record to play games on consecutive days for different teams. Having arrived at Bayern at the start of last season, Musiala was part of the FCB II team that had a superb end to the season, winning the 3. Liga title after the restart in June. As a consequence of his performances for the second team he was called into the first team squad at the end of last season and became Bayern’s youngest ever player in the penultimate game. After his late cameo against Schalke his profile is now sky high. However, that he was playing 24 hours two divisions lower indicated that there will be no opportunity to allow himself to get carried away. It‘s a long way from the glamour of the Allianz Arena to the grit of the Stadion an der Grünewalder Straße, the concrete jungle where FCB II ply their trade in front of the lowest crowds in professional football (when full stadia were allowed). Musiala has an interesting background, which is causing two rival Football Associations to fight over his allegiance. He was born in Stuttgart, with a German mother, but moved to England at the age of seven. He then went through the English football system until he was part of the academy at Chelsea. Unlike Callum Hudsoi Adoi, who elected to stay at Stamford Bridge, Musiala felt his career would develop better at Bayern Munich, a view confirmed by coach Hansi Flick. His ongoing progress will be watched closely not only by leading clubs in England, but also by Gareth Southgate and Joachim Löw.

The legal battle SC Freiburg are having with German authorities about playing matches in their new stadium shows no sign of abating as the latest round of hearings this month saw the case take an unexpected turn. The case originally made headlines back in October 2019 when the courts in Mannheim ruled that any matches played at the soon-to-be-completed SC Freiburg Stadium after 8pm or between 1-3pm on Sundays would be banned. The stadium has cost nearly €80 million to construct and is expected to be packed with 35,000 fans each match - so the decision to ban matches because they exceed permitted noise limits during local resident's 'resting times' is causing a major headache for SC Freiburg and the German football authorities regarding fixture scheduling. There did appear to be a breakthrough in the deadlock back in May when it was revealed that the Mannheim court had based it's ruling on outdated noise limits that were lower than those currently in place and, in light of this development, the courts reviewed the case and were widely expected to overturn the ban. In a controversial move however, they have instead decided to uphold their original decision although they have made an exemption for evening and Sunday matches on the proviso that these are cup games in either domestic or international competition. For the Bundesliga games though, the original ban on matches in evenings and Sunday afternoons stands with the court arguing that the 18 home matches a season were wrongly classed as 'rare events' in the planning documentation - which would have allowed for higher noise thresholds. The ruling has proved to be controversial although both SC Freiburg and the local authorities are hopeful that the ban can be overturned sooner than later when the case will be reviewed by the Freiburg Administrative Court. The Regional Council of Freiburg is arguing that the Mannheim court's decision isn't in line with rulings in other German states, where classification of Bundesliga games has been allowed. And even if the Freiburg court agree with their counterparts in Mannheim then further appeals are promised along with changes by the local authorities to the planning permission documents and noise measurements as soon as fans are allowed in the SC Freiburg Stadium - although this last bit may be some time off as construction delays and the ongoing COVID pandemic limiting the number of fans allowed in stadiums has led to SC Freiburg confirming they will only move away from their old Schwarzwald Stadion in 2021.

The Bundesliga season got underway yesterday and resumed pretty much as the last one finished...with no one capable of getting close to Bayern Munich. The defending champions, seeking a ninth consecutive title, humiliated visiting FC Schalke 04 8-0. In as one sided a game as you will ever see, Bayern started off strongly, scoring in the 4th minute, and never let up. They were 3-0 up after half an hour, Serge Gnabry completed his hat trick on the hour to make it 5-0 and new arrival Leroy Sane opened his account for the club to make it 7-0. By this stage Schalke were barely clinging on and there was a feeling that the 12-0 record score in Bundesliga history (Mönchengladbach v Dortmund in 1977-78) could be under threat. In the end the rout was completed by 17 year old Jamal Musiala, making only his second appearance for the club, who scored in the eighth goal in the 81st minute. Mercifully for the Königsblaue there were no further changes to the score line. Without the departed Thiago and Perisic, Bayern didnt miss a beat and were rampant. Schalke looked completely lost, which cannot be put down solely to the departure of Weston McKinnie. The pressure now will ramp up on coach David Wagner, even though the club committed to him in the off season. Needless to say there was much commentary on social media about the score, with even Hamburg’s official twitter feed proclaiming sympathy for the team from the Ruhr. Comedian Tommy Schmitt commented at 3-0 “One of the Bayern players has just asked ‘Do you want to mix up the teams? Or put the score back to 0-0? Maybe you should just have one of our players?’“ In a way these just show how far Schalke have sunk... As an aside the great and the good of Bayern Munich (including Karl Heinz Rummenigge, Oliver Kahn and Uli Hoenesss,) could potentially be in trouble today as they were seen sitting in the directors box without masks and with no social distancing measures whatsoever. The DFL, which has worked very hard to get fans back into stadiums a the start of the season, is said to be less than pleased and is considering punishing the champions.

Tonight sees the opening fixture of the 2020-21 Bundesliga season with champions FC Bayern Munich looking to start off a ninth consecutive title wining campaign against FC Schalke 04 at the Allianz Arena. Of the remaining eight games, five are kicking off at 15.30 (German time) with a tea time game to follow and then the schedule is rounded off with two games on Sunday afternoon. all those games not taking place at the traditional Saturday afternoon slot will be shown live on BT Sport in the UK. There has been several development on fan numbers allowed to attend each game and the individual states, in consultation with teh DFL, agreed a unified approach, which would allow up to 20% of the stadium to be occupied. However this was only put in place a few days ago and not every club has been able to put the processes in pace to allocate tickets as per the permitted levels now. All of which means that the only game this weekend that will feature no fans at all is the opener tonight in Munich. The remaining games will have varying levels of fans in attendance, as below: Eintracht Frankfurt 6,500 Union Berlin 4,300 FC Köln 9,200 Werder Bremen 8,500 VfB Stuttgart 8,000 Borussia Dortmund 10,000 RB Leipzig 8,500 VfL Wolfsburg 500 This latter fixture was permitted a greater number of fans in attendance (5,200) But due to the constraints of time only 500 will be there. There are some regional conditions on the number, all of which are maximums so may not reflect true actual number of fans that go. For instance at RB Leipzig’s game all the fans must live in Saxony. 75% of the fans at Dortmund’s game tomorrow evening must live in Dortmund with the remainder available to other parts of North Rhine Westphalia. Whilst these restrictions are far from ideal, they do, in the eyes of most, represent considerable progress from where the position was when the Bundesliga concluded at the end of June. It hopefully marks the beginning of a process that will see full stadia at some point in the future.

In a move that was heavily predicted since the end of the Champions League campaign last month, Bayern Munich’s Thiago Alcantara is leaving the current European Champions to join the team who were champions the season before. The Spaniard will sign a four deal, with the transfer fee set at £20m, with the option of rising to £25m depending on Liverpool’s success in both the Premier League and the Champions League. A couple of weeks ago the rather outspoken Uli Hoeness had talked of blackmail from England as both Liverpool and Manchester Utd made attempts to sign the midfielder. On a BBC 5 Live interview around the same time Jürgen Klopp somewhat disingenuously said he’d had no idea that Thiago had requested extra time off before the start of the season until the interviewer told him. For his part Thiago seems to want to start a new chapter in his career while he still has time (he is only 29). Having won seven Bundesliga titles and four DFB Cups in his seven season in Bavaria, culminating in the Champions League victory against PSG in August, it is hard to see what else he has left to achieve in the game in Germany. With only a year left on his contract Bayern have at least mananged to get some value out of the transfer even thought the club heirachy were desperately keen that he stayed.

If it's not the COVID pandemic causing delays in stadium construction, it's good old fashioned human error; and someone has some explaining to do after steelwork being used in the redevelopment of the Wildparkstadion in Karlsruhe was found to not meet building standards. Works had been progressing on schedule, despite the pandemic, and the 9,400 seater east stand was taking shape with seats installed, railings fitted, metal cladding being added to the exterior etc. Catering and merchandising kiosks were being fitted out and even the all-important toilets were being plumbed in. However, the girders designed to bear the weight of the roof didn't meet building regulations and, just to compound the error, it wasn't until they were already in situ that the mistake was discovered. All work on the site had to be halted last month and the operation to replace them has taken weeks to complete.

It's not known at this stage what impact this will have on the overall delivery schedule, but what is certain is that the completion deadline for the east stand (due mid-September) will definitely be missed. However, as with any stadium development in progress at the moment, the COVID pandemic means that delays are less problematic than they normally would have been, given that fans are unlikely to return to stadiums in high numbers for the foreseeable future.
So, for now, the project continues and until the end of this season, during which Karlsruhe will continue to play their home matches at the stadium, the Wildparkstadion will offer a temporary north stand and the east stand (providing the contractors actually manage to do the job and have it approved this time !). Then, by mid-2021, the south stand is expected to be ready and all of the 34,000 capacity stadium should be delivered in 2022.

Overall costs for the project were originally expected to be in the region of €123 million but those involved are bracing themselves for an additional bill of around €20 million since spiralling costs started to cause concern back in May. This latest setback will do nothing to ease those concerns.

Hamburg defender Toni Leistner had already had a miserable evening as his side went down 4-1 to Dynamo Dresden in the first round of the DFB Pokal. However it got worse after the final whistle as he was waiting to do a post match interview with Sky. Before the interview got underway he heard some insults coming from a supporter in the main stand at the Rudolf Harbig Stadion in Dresden. The red mist then descended and Leistner climbed into the stand to confront the fan in question. He was finally restrained by other supporters having grabbed the fan and shoving him to the floor. Eventually stewards reacted to the incident and forced him to leave the stand. He than carried out the planned interview, clearly irritated with what had happened. Leistner, who comes from Dresden and started his career at Dynamo, later apologised but said that the insults aimed at his family, wife and daughter were “below the belt”. After what he described as an already emotional game for him his fuse blew, but he vowed that something like that would not happen again, no matter what insults were thrown his way. The game took place before 10,000 fans, the biggest attendance at a post Corona event. Dynamo Dresden were also embarrassed by the incident and are reportedly trying to identify the supporter who insulted Leistner. It is likely that the player will also face some punishment from the DFB which is carrying out an investigation and will act before Hamburg’s league opener at the weekend.

The German football season kicked off this weekend with the first round of the DFB Pokal, when a raft of amateur teams get the opportunity to play at home against teams from the first and second divisions. Last season 1 FC Saarbrücken, then in the Regionalliga Südwest, got all the way to the semi finals of the competition before losing to Bayer Leverkusen. With a handful of games still to be played the lack of upsets this season is palpable and probably has a lot to do with the absence of fans creating an intimidating atmosphere in support of the amateur teams. Another factor could well be that nearly all those teams outside the top three divisions have not played a competitive game for almost six months. The DFB always gives the home advantage to the lower league teams, but this years it amounted to very little. The net effect of all thIs is that only two teams, both playing in the fourth tier Regionalliga Südwest, were able to prevail against teams from the second division. SSV Ulm beat Erzgebirge Aue 2-0 on Saturday whilst on Sunday Elversberg had a convincing 4-2 victory over St Pauli. The only other upsets on opening weekend were Eintracht Braunschweig, promoted into Bundesliga 2 last season, beating Hertha Berlin in a wild 5-4 game and Wehen Wiesbaden edging past FC Heidenheim 1-0, which is less of an upset than it may seem given that both teams were in the same division last season. The tone was set on Friday night when Havelse went 1-0 up against Mainz, but then conceded five in the second half. Elsewhere Holstein Kiel won 7-1 at Rieslasingen-Arlen, Leverkusen put seven past Norderstedt, as Augsburg did at Eintracht Celle. Borussia Mönchengladbach went one better and beat Oberneuland 8-0. None of this bodes well for 1. FC Düren of the fifth tier Mittelrheinliga who take on European champions Bayern Munich on Thursday night. Should the home team improbably prevail it would undoubtedly be the greatest upset ever in the history of German football.

The DFB has called off this weekend’s 1st round cup tie between Schalke 04 and FC Schweinfurt 05 because a court in Munich has decided that Turkgucu Munchen should be playing the team from the Ruhr instead. In a “you couldn’t make it up” kind of scenario the Bayerische Fussball Verband, which runs the amateur game in Bavaria lost a legal battle against Turkgucu, throwing the tie into confusion and leaving the DFB with little alternative but to postpone the game until the courts have decided who has the right to represent the BFV. When the draw for the cup was made Schalke were paired against the best amateur team in Bavaria. However the BFV had called the season off once the Coronavirus pandemic hit and declared that the team leading the Regionalliga Bayern, then Turkgucu, were champions and would be promoted into the 3. Liga for the 2020/21 season. Consequently the team previously in second, but now leading the Regionalliga, Schweinfurt, were placed into the draw for the cup. However Turkgucu filed a suit claiming that they should have that place and the regional court in Munich agreed with them. The BFV have logged an appeal against the decision, but it was impossible to get that heard before the weekend, plunging the tie into uncertainty. As a consequence, and much to Schalke’s annoyance, the game has been postponed. This is one of the more numerous fallouts of the Coronavirus epidemic and the hurried decisions made by the football authorities when nobody knew when football would be starting up again. Also it had to involve Schalke, a club which never fails to attract attention or incident.

When full the newly renamed Deutsche Bank Arena, home to Eintracht Frankfurt, is arguably the best atmosphere in the Bundesliga (don't just take our word for it, in a fan poll last season it was voted the best stadium by 25% of respondents, easily ahead of the competition). For obvious reasons it has had no one in it of late, however when the new season kicks off next weekend, the local authorities in the city have granted a license for 6,500 fans to attend games. This is less than the 11,275 which the club had petitioned for, but represents a major breakthrough and is now the largest number of fans at a game in the first round of Bundesliga games after the 8,000 which the Saxony state government has allowed to watch RB Leipzig. The standing area will be empty and only every fourth seat, both vertically and horizontally will be occupied. The 31,000 season ticket holders will have to apply for a ticket to each home game. Once they have been successful they will no longer be allowed to enter another draw until such aa time as everyone who has applied has seen a game. There will also be 50 places for disabled supporters and 750 VIP/hospitality passes. The club says that it cannot make any money on ticket sales of less than 10,000, which supports their application for slightly more. However it does represent an important step forward in the re-introduction of fans into sporting stadia. Right now it is the least worse option. Inevitably not everyone is happy and this includes the ultra fan groups of the club. One put out the following statement ”It won‘t surprise anyone to learn that we cannot accept Bundesliga games without supporters being able to stand, without away fans and having to hand over your personal data. Without having seen the concrete proposals we cannot comment, however our version of football looks different to this. It is clear that the top priority for the current football circus is that business must carry on...we have seen this over the last few months. Whoever enjoys taking part in this type of show, feel free to carry on. For us, this simply isn't an option.” In the current public health and subsequent political environment, the sense in being so black and white/all or nothing does the ultra fan groups little credit. It is hard to see what other options are available to the clubs and the politicians who are the ones making the decisions.

Because of the ferderal nature of German politics many decisions are made and carried out by individual state (Land) governments. Responses to the Coronavirus pandemic fall within these so it is up to each state (and there are 16 of them, from city states such as Hamburg and Berlin, to large areas such as Bavaria) to determine the number of people who can attend events and that includes football matches. So how many fans will be at football matches when the season starts with the first round of the DFB Pokal this weekend..? Well that depends entirely on where you are are what your Land has proscribed. Consequently it’s a very mixed bag, as can be seen below: FC Kaiserslautern - 0 fans Hertha Berlin - 4,000 Hansa Rostock - 5,000 Halle - 3,200 Magdeburg - 2,500 Mainz - 1,000 Borussia Mönchengladbach- 300 RB Leipzig - 8,500 (this is to the first game of the Bundesliga season) One thing is clear though. Those teams in the east of the country, where there were far fewer cases of Coronavirus during the height of the pandemic (and where infection rates remain very low), are being allowed more fans than teams in the west. Hence the much higher numbers at Leipzig, Rostock and Halle compared to the correspondingly low numbers at Mainz and Mönchengladbach. A case in point is SC Freiburg, located in the south western state of Baden Württemberg. The club had put forward a case for allowing 20-30% of the ground to be occuped, equating to 4,800-7,200 fans. However the state government has decreeed that no more than 500 can attend an event, leaving them more than likely opting to play in front of empty stands once again. How long this situation carries on for is for obvious reasons entirely unclear. However it does mean that there is no longer a simple answer to how many many fans can attend a Bundesliga game. And that Geisterspiele, at least in the east, are a thing of the past.

It‘s too early to say that Schalke 04 is beginning to resemble a 2002 vintage Leeds Utd, but the financial predicament the club finds itself in is having an impact on the squad ahead of the 2020-21 season. The Traditionsverein from the Ruhr has agreed to loan promising 22 year old Weston McKennie to Juventus for the forthcoming season for a fee of 4.5m Euros. The move will be made permanent should certain sporting criteria be achieved, although it is not clear what these are. A fee of 18.5m Euros would then be payable, potentially rising by a further 7m Euros if certain other clauses are triggered. In the event of the criteria not being achieved, Juventus will still have an option to purchase McKennie for the same price. The American midfielder joined Schalke as a teenager in 2016 and has played 91 times for the club over the last four seasons, including 32 appearances in 2019-20 This is a move that Schalke are clearly having to make to deal with the high level of the club’s indebtedness, bringing in much needed revenue and reducing the wage bill. Head of Sport Jochen Schneider admitted as much, saying “The agreement we have made with Juventus is the most financially beneficial for Schalke and the most attractive sporting move for Weston. Obviously deciding to let go one of our most talented players like Weston is partly down to the financial state the club is in.” With Schalke having experienced a terrible second half of the season, the last thing coach David Wagner will want is to see his squad weakened by the forced sale of talented players. Whether McKennie is the first of several exists from the Veltins Arena will be seen in due course.

Despite moments of defensive frailty, Bayern Munich advanced to their first Champions League final since beating Borussia Dortmund at Wembley in 2013. Serge Gnabry’s two first-half goals, the first a superb solo effort to create something out of nothing, ensured that Lyon, who had plenty of opportunities but very little finished product, had too much to do in the second-half. Several chances to put the game to bed were squandered, but when Robert Lewandowski put away a header on 88 minutes it confirmed what had become inevitable. Munich have been the form team in Germany from the moment Hans Flick took over in November. He has transformed a team that looked lethargic and clueless under his predecessor. The energy and speed with which they play is unmatched anywhere - not only in the Bundesliga - but also throughout the major leagues in Europe. Opponents get very little time on the ball, no matter where they are on the pitch. Lyon managed to create some openings but were very quickly closed down and were unable to generate consistent pressure. FCB had the ball for 2/3rds of the game and completed over twice as many passes as OL.
PSG await in the final. Whilst they have a more talented squad than Lyon, and in Neymar and Mbappe two of the most talented players in world football, it remains to be seen if they have the collective ability to cause Bayern any damage. What Flick has achieved is to create a team which seems to be so much more than the sum of its individual parts.

FC Schalke last played a game at the Parkstadion in 2001 (the infamous game where they thought they had won the title before Bayern Munich scored and secured the Meisterschale ). From then on they have played at the Veltins Arena (initially called the ArenaaufSchalke) constructed next to their former iconic home. For years the Parkstadion, built for the 1974 World Cup, was unused and unloved. indeed it became a bit of an eyesore compared to their brand new stadium. However a programme of renovation has been undertaken and the stadium is now fit again to be used. The plan is for the Schalke U19 and U23 teams to use it as their home ground. Both have spent years playing at smaller grounds elsewhere in the Ruhr, but can now return to proper “home” territory. Having once had a capacity of over 70,000 the numbers allowed in to the reconfigured Parkstadion will be a much more modest 3,000. However the emotional significance of playing there should give the juniors an added boost. Schalke were to have played a game against Zenit St Petersburg to inaugurate the stadium at the end of March, but the game was postponed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The hope now is that some of the first team’s pre-season friendlies can take place there and that a small a number of fans may even be allowed into these Testspiele .

It was supposed to be open in time for the new season before COVID-19 threw a significant spanner in the works and although no-one can say for certain when SC Freiburg will finally make the move to their new home, this much we now do know: opening in 2020 is out of the question.

Sporting director Jochen Saier and coach Christian Streich confirmed the news today with both suggesting the Breisgau-Brazilians (Breisgau-Brazilians) will stay at the Schwarzwald Stadion for the time being and won't play their first game at the new SC Freiburg Stadium until after the winter break - providing of course there's no further issues caused by the virus. Construction of the stadium, which has been underway since March 29th 2019, had initially progressed as planned and the stands are reportedly complete with railings installed across the single-tiered south stand. The roof is 75% complete with just one stand yet to be covered. Parking and training fields on the complex are in place and work on the tram line extension is at an advanced stage. However, the project to build the €76 million stadium in the Wolfswinkel district of the city is now months behind schedule with COVID-19 being blamed for the supply chain delays in the construction of the mostly prefab stadium.

Given that there is no certainly at the moment that fans will actually be allowed into stadiums when the new season kicks-off on the 18th of September, the delay may not be a major problem - but as part of the stadium licensing process with the DFB, Freiburg have listed both the old Schwarzwald Stadion and the new stadium on their application.

Ironically, the delay may also give Freiburg's fans the chance to bid farewell to their old home - something that has been denied to them as the final weeks of football season in Germany were played out behind closed doors.

The on-off saga of Jadon Sancho’s possible transfer to Manchester United from Borussia Dortmund is looking less likely this morning, as BVB set off on to their pre-season training camp in Bad Ragaz, Switzerland with their English midfielder among the travelling party. All summer Dortmund have made it clear that they will accept nothing less then €120 million for the 20 year old and Manchester United have yet to put in an offer approaching this valuation. In addition, they also said that the date of departure for the training camp was a deadline and, with no deal on the table, that matter should in theory be closed and Sancho can look forward to a fourth season in black and yellow. With Manchester United now in north west Germany for the latter stages of the Europa League and their minds fully focused on that competition (for which they are the favourites), it does seem that the biggest potential transfer of the summer between England and Germany will not now be taking place. That honour remains with Timo Werner, with Kai Havertz still waiting in the wings.

With Germany chosen to be Euro 2024 hosts, VfB Stuttgart are keen to be part of the show and have been looking at plans to redevelop the Mercedes Benz Arena. The estimates, which in a post-COVID world may already be outdated, have been put at an eye-watering €65 million and will see the lower part of the main stand (which dates back from 1974) demolished and rebuilt in a newer configuration with new changing rooms, media areas and even more of the obligatory VIP boxes built in order to generate extra revenue. The floodlight system will also be overhauled and changed to LED. Funding for the project would be split between three stakeholders - VfB Stuttgart, the stadium operators Stadion NeckarPark GmbH and the city of Stuttgart itself. A major factor in this all working was VfB's return to the Bundesliga.
A caveat with the city council meant that whilst VfB were kicking about this season in Bundesliga.2, the club only had to pay 50% of the rent on the Mercedes Benz Arena. However, the increased revenue from Bundesliga football would enable VfB to once again pay full rent (approx. €6.3 million per annum) and this is how the city would recover it's share of the redevelopment costs. The solid logic behind the plan fell apart however as soon as COVID-19 appeared on the scene and despite a return to Germany's top tier, VfB Stuttgart are not in a financial position to stump up their €22.5 million contribution. The club haven't revealed the full losses attributed to the pandemic but it is understood to be an 8-figure amount and are known to be amongst a number of Bundesliga clubs applying for bank loans to see them through the next few months. The city of Stuttgart itself saw tax revenue fall and expenditure increase as it dealt with the crisis. As a consequence, it too is now struggling to meet it's obligation now that it understandably has to re-evaluate public spending. On top of everything, the Mercedes Benz Arena which usually hosts hundreds of events every year currently stands empty and largely unused - another loss of revenue.
With no prospect of things returning to normal anytime soon, big decisions are going to have to made in the city soon.

The disruption to football schedules caused by Coronavirus means that clubs have very little time this summer to carry out work on their stadiums and, under normal circumstances, RB Leipzig would have carried out a whole series of works in the off-season to meet demands for standing areas and an increase in capacity at the Red Bull Arena. With the possibility however of fans being allowed back in stadiums for the start of the new season in September, the club have decided to spread the work over two years. First of all, all the seats from the Süd Kurve (South Curve) and the away section were removed last month, and these areas are now being coated and sealed ready to be used as terracing. Once this prep work is complete, the seats will then be reinstalled before being removed again at the end of the 2020-21 season and replaced permanently by terracing. Until then, the Red Bull Arena will remain as one of only two Bundesliga stadiums not to have standing sections in them (the other being the Olympiastadion in Berlin).

When complete, the work will see the Süd Kurve capacity double in size to nearly 10,000. The away section (which will no longer be split between lower and upper tiers) will also be reconfigured with 'flexible fencing' and designed to only be as large as the travelling contingent requires it on a match-by-match basis - therefore leaving more seats for the home fans whenever possible. All this will increase the Red Bull Arena's capacity from 42,000 to 48,000.

Of course, during UEFA games, as with the upcoming Euro 2024, capacity will be brought back to the current all-seated size. But as RB Leipzig's matchday crowds are set to increase, additional work is planned including removal of food kiosks in the stands and replacing them with far bigger curved pavilions around the outer perimeter of the arena.

The 36 clubs in the top two divisions have today agreed on a set of proposals which will form the basis of re-introducing football fans back into watching live football, providing the politicians are in agreement. There are four elements: no away fans until the end of the year no alcohol will be sold no standing...the Fankurven will remain empty anyone buying a ticket must supply their personal details At all stages the DFL has said that these measures are temporary and just a means to an end, rather than an end in themselves. Inevitably these have already come in for heavy criticism, particularly from fan groups across the country. For these, the passion generated by the standing fans, mixed in with freely available alcohol of course, is what makes the experience of a game in Germany such an experience. However the DFL lead the way back in May when the Bundesliga resumed ahead of any other league and with some success, almost a blueprint for other countries who watched what was happening in Germany then restarted their own leagues in June. To that extent the DFL has bought itself some credibility in trying to find a way to return to normal sporting life in the age of Coronavirus. It remains to be seen whether the political authorities are in agreement and of course a lot will depend on the ongoing public health numbers and outlook.

The recent decision by the DFL (German Football League) to approve a change in stadium licensing regulations has caused quite a bit of controversy at SV Wehen Wiesbaden. After spending €9 million building a new stand (completion is expected later this year) to meet the minimum 15,000 capacity requirement for all Bundesliga.2 stadiums, Wehen have now been told that clubs with average attendances below 7,500 (Wehen rarely attract numbers over 4,000!) now only have to provide a minimum capacity of 12,500 instead.

With the new stand at a very advanced stage and just needing the roof to be fitted, the irony is that the Brita-Arena met this requirement before the work began which makes the timing of the DFL's decision rather unfortunate. Worse still, the local taxpayer association was already up in arms about the fact that €3.5 million of public money was being used to help fund the project in the first place !

However, although the work is no longer needed for the specific purpose of meeting stadium regulations and that the tax payers remain furious, it's not exactly been a waste of money. The Brita-Arena was built in 2007 and was only ever intended to be a temporary construct, with tubular stands and a distinct lack of brave new world stadia amenities. The new stand will therefore be the first permanent part of the ground and offer police, fire department and crowd control facilities as well as providing space for Wehen's fan shop.

July was a month of change in Frankfurt as after 15 years of being referred to as the 'Commerzbank Arena', Eintracht's stadium became officially known as 'Deutsche Bank Park' in a seven year naming rights deal worth €38 million. Stadium naming rights aren't something that interest football fans greatly and they tend to view such matters as just another example of rampant commercialism in the game. They will no doubt continue to refer to the stadium as the Commerzbank, or even it's original name 'Waldstadion' but something that will be music to their ears is the update that Eintracht have given regarding plans to create the second largest terrace in world football (second only to Dortmund's Südtribune) in a move that flies in the face of modern stadium trends. Work is set to begin strengthening the north-west end of the ground and extending it's upper tier downwards by several rows. Doesn't sound too ambitious does it? Not on the face of it, no - but in order to create cheaper tickets whilst improving the matchday atmosphere and expanding the fanbase in the process; the plan is to increase the terrace capacity from the current 7,435 to 20,344 by REMOVING (not adding) corporate hospitality boxes !

While it's not possible to create a single-tier terrace in the arena without some very costly work, removal of the hospitality areas is seen as an economically viable way of merging both tiers in the north-west end of the ground. The proposed changes will increase overall stadium capacity from 51,500 to nearly 60,000 - although UEFA's all-seater ruling would still be enforced and require temporary seating to be installed across the whole stand for European matches. However, capacity for both European and International matches would increase to just a shade under 50,000.

The work will be carried out over 30-35 months so as not to cause any disruption to Eintracht's matches and is expected to be completed during the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

SC Freiburg were set to move into the SC Freiburg stadium in time for the 2020-21 season - but like so many other things, the Coronavirus pandemic has put these plans on hold and now both the club and the city of Freiburg have confirmed that the new stadium won't be ready for months ... and may not even host football until the back end of next year ! Construction of the stadium, which has been underway since March 29th 2019, had initially progressed as planned and the stands are reportedly complete with railings installed across the single-tiered south stand. The roof is 75% complete with just one stand yet to be covered. Parking and training fields on the complex are in place and work on the tram line extension is at an advanced stage. However, the project to build the €76 million stadium in the Wolfswinkel district of the city, which was supposed to open in a few weeks time, is now months behind schedule. No-one seems to be able to say for certain just how many months, but the general consensus amongst those involved say that December 2020 is considered a realistic delivery time as COVID-19 is being blamed for the supply chain delays in the construction of the mostly prefab stadium. Given that there is no certainly at the moment that fans will actually be allowed into stadiums when the new season kicks-off on the 18th September, the delay may not be a major problem - but as part of the stadium licensing process with the DFB, Freiburg have listed both the old Schwarzwald Stadion and the new stadium on their application. Ironically, the delay may also give Freiburg's fans the chance to bid farewell to their old home - something that has been denied to them as the final weeks of football season in Germany were played out behind closed doors.

1. FC Nürnberg have hired Robert Klauß as their new head coach and the 35-year-old will step into the hot seat at the Max Morlock Stadion with some pedigree after his recent spell as Julian Nagelsmann's right hand man at RB Leipzig. "I don't take the opportunity to move as head coach to a club as big as 1. FC Nürnberg as a matter of course," Klauß explained. "This possibility underlines an incomprehensible appreciation. From now on, we have to use every hour of the day and give everything, really everything, for the club. I look forward to working with Dieter Hecking, who was a key reason for my change."
Dieter Hecking, Nuremberg's new sporting director added: "Robert is a courageous trainer with fresh and innovative methods. This also affects the style of play he favours. At RB, he was able to work independently under various head coaches and contribute his ideas. Robert is eloquent and he masters the way to create a spirit of awakening. His move to Nuremberg offers a great opportunity and opportunity for both sides."

Klauß was part of RB Leipzig's squad for the first half of the 2009-10 season in the Oberliga (5th division), making one appearance. He also played 18 times for Bulls' reserve team. He then became an academy coach in the summer of 2010, working with the U15s, U17s, U19s and U23s as head coach, before becoming an assistant coach under Nagelsmann in 2018-19. In 2018, he was named as the best coach of the year in the DFB's coaching course.

Already this summer Andre Schürrle, member of the World Cup winning squad from 2014, has announced his retirment at the age of only 29. Now he has been joined by fellow squad member from the glorious campaign in Brazil by left back Benedikt Höwedes, who has said he will not be looking for a new club following the expiry of his contract at Lokomotiv Moskau. It appears that the desire is no longer there or subject himself to the rigours of professional football, particularly after enjoying a protracted period of time this year with his wife and child. A club legend at Schalke, where he played for a decade in the first team, he left in 2017 to play for Juventus but his time there was plagued by injury and he only played three games. Two seasons in Moscow followed but Höwedes has decided that it’s time to look for a fresh challenge. He was a key member of the side which won the Wold Cup in 2014, being one of only three players, along with Manuel Neuer and Philip Lahm, who played every minute of each of the seven games en-route to ”die Mannschaft“ winning their 4th World Cup. In all he played 44 times for the national side. With Mario Götze’s career also running far from smoothly since that night in Rio, it shows that winning a World Cup medal is no guarantee of a long and successful ongoing career.

37 years after finishing his playing days at Hamburger SV Horst Hrubesch, now 69, is returning to the club where he achieved so much as a player. He has been appointed as the new Director of Youth Development at the club. After working in the youth set up at the DFB from 2000 to 2018, followed by a short stint in charge of the DFB Ladies team, Hrubesch will be in charge of all aspects of the youth set up at the Volksparkstadion. A club legend in the truest sense of the word, Hrubesch was the striking force that took HSV to three German league titles, in the process breaking up the Bayern Munich- Borussia Mönchengladbach duopoly that had ruled the Bundesliga for the previous decade. He capped his career in Hamburg off by winning the European Cup in 1983. With 129 goals in five years he was an indispensable part of the team. Now his task will be to develop those players who can not only contribute to a HSV regaining their Bundesliga status, but ensure they remain where they feel they belong for many a year to come.

When Sebastian Hoeness was appointed coach at Bayern Munich II there were public fan protests with placards saying “Having a big name doesn't make you a great trainer”. They referred to Hoeness’ family connections, being the son of former striker Dieter Hoeness and nephew of Bayern President Uli Hoeness. Indeed the latter had initial reservations about the appointment, fearing that there would be accusations of nepotism. However the 38 year old proved that having a big name is no impediment to being a great trainer at all. In his first season in charge of the FCB amateurs he proved all his doubters wrong by leading them to the 3.Liga title, despite his squad only being promoted from the Regionalliga the year before. Their form over the second half of the season was nothing short of sensational as they rose from being only two points above the relegation zone at Christmas to topping the table in July, losing only twice along the way. Now Hoeness gets to reap the reward for his achievements with a move to Bundesliga side (and Europa League qualifiers) TSG Hoffenheim. It was during his short time there as a player in the 2000s that he first encountered Ralf Rangnick. This relationship has been particularly beneficial to Hoeness, who was part of Rangnick’s staff at RB Leipzig for four years and where he cut his coaching teeth before Bayern Munich came calling. With Bayern II unable to be promoted out of the 3. Liga, Hoeness was facing another season competing against the likes of Viktoria Köln and SpVgg Unterhaching. Now he will be pitting his wits against RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund and of course his uncle’s team, Bayern Munich.

Following the draw for the first round of the 2020-21 DFB-Pokal, defending champions and record winners Bayern München will have to wait and see who their opponents will be. The Bavarians face the winner of the Middle Rhine Cup, with a further 22 clubs also waiting to find out who they will face in the first round of the competition.
Last season's runners-up Bayer 04 Leverkusen have been drawn against the winner of the Hamburg Cup, whilst Borussia Mönchengladbach will play whoever lifts the Bremen Cup. Bundesliga runners-up Borussia Dortmund meanwhile have a short trip to 3.Liga side MSV Duisburg. The list of 64 teams in this year's competition remains incomplete due to the disruption Coronavirus caused to the football schedule, and because the regional cups aren't set to be completed until the 22nd August 2020, teams looking to qualify from them were represented by 'placeholders' for the time being. The decision to conduct the draw before the full list was confirmed was taken to give clubs (especially the amateur ones) as much time as possible to put in place the social-distancing measures needed to host matches.

The first-round matches will take place between 11th to 14th September, and will mark the start of the 2020-21 season in German professional football. The Bundesliga is scheduled to resume a week later. The second round of matches is scheduled to take place from 22nd-23rd December, with the round-of-16 planned for 2nd-3rd February 2021. The quarter-finals have been scheduled for 2nd-3rd March 2021 and the semi-finals during the first weekend of May 2021 - although this is still to be confirmed. The date for the final has been fixed however, and will be held on 13th May 2021 at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.

The full draw (matches to be played 11th to 14th September):

1. FC Nürnberg – RB Leipzig Schleswig-Holstein Cup Winners (3.Liga and Regionalliga) – VfL Osnabrück Lower Saxony Cup Winners – FSV Mainz 05 Saxony Cup Winners – TSG Hoffenheim Bavaria Cup Winners – Eintracht Frankfurt Thuringia Cup Winners – Werder Bremen SV Wehen Wiesbaden – 1. FC Heidenheim Middle Rhine Cup Winners – Bayern München Lower Saxony Cup Winners (amateurs) – FC Augsburg South Baden Cup Winners – Holstein Kiel Eintracht Braunschweig – Hertha BSC Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Cup Winners - VfB Stuttgart MSV Duisburg – Borussia Dortmund Hesse Cup Winners – SV Sandhausen Württemberg Cup Winners – Erzgebirge Aue Dynamo Dresden – Hamburger SV Rhineland Cup Winners – VfL Bochum Baden Cup Winners – SC Freiburg Brandenburg Cup Winners – VfL Wolfsburg Bremen Cup Winners – Borussia Mönchengladbach Saarland Cup Winners – FC St. Pauli Hamburg Cup Winners – Bayer 04 Leverkusen Würzburger Kickers – Hannover 96 Westphalia Cup Winners #2 – Greuther Fürth South West Cup Winners – Jahn Regensburg Berlin Cup Winners – 1. FC Köln Lower Rhine Cup Winners – Arminia Bielefeld Bavaria Cup Winners – FC Schalke 04 FC Ingolstadt – Fortuna Düsseldorf Karlsruher SC – Union Berlin 1. FC Magdeburg – SV Darmstadt 98 Westphalia Cup Winners #1 – SC Paderborn

Despite two crushing disappointments at the end of the season (missing out on Champions League football and defeat in the DFB-Pokal final to Bayern Munich) Bayer Leverkusen cannot afford to wallow in their misery. When the Europa League resumes in the first week of August they will face Rangers in the second leg of the last-16 tie, already 3-1 up after winning convincingly at Ibrox. They will be well aware that having lost out on 4th place In the Bundesliga to Borussia Mönchengladbach, they will have a chance to claim a place in next season’s Champions League by winning the Europa League. With either Getafe or Inter Milan awaiting them in the quarter finals, the “ Werkself ” have an excellent chance to progress in the tournament. A further potential advantage for them lies in the location of the mini tournament which will take place in North Rhine Westphalia, almost on home territory. Whilst no games are taking place at the BayArena, nearby stadiums in Cologne, Düsseldorf, Gelsenkirchen and Duisburg will be used - all within 25 miles of Leverkusen. Leverkusen will have their fit-again captain Lars Bender at their disposal, together with star player Kai Havertz, who has yet to decide which team he will be joining for the 2020-21 season. Current favourites Chelsea have already signed Timo Werner from RB Leipzig, who will have to pursue their current Champions League campaign without their leading goal scorer. So the next month will be test of Leverkusen’s professionalism at the end of the very strange and demanding season. However the prize should ensure they are fully focused on the task.

Not long to wait now as the DFL (German Football League) announced this evening that the Bundesliga and Bundesliga.2 fixtures for the 2020-21 season will be published on Friday, 7th August 2020. The new season is set to commence on 18th September and the DFB (German FA) has already approved a new overall  schedule  for 2020-21 - including a shorter winter break and three mid-week matchdays ( Englische Woche ) due to the delay in being able to conclude the 2019-20 season.

However, there's still no word yet about if and when we will all be allowed into grounds to see the action.
Key dates for the 2020-21 season at a glance: Bundesliga, Matchday 1: 18 to 21 September 2020 Bundesliga, Matchday 34: 22 May 2021 Bundesliga.2, Matchday 1: 18 to 21 September 2020 Bundesliga.2, Matchday 34: 23 May 2021 Supercup: 30 September 2020

Despite finishing bottom of Bundesliga.2, Dynamo Dresden are doing anything but preparing for life in the 3.Liga. The club has allegedly approached the DFL, which runs the top two divisions, with a proposal which would see them avoiding relegation and playing a further season in the second division. The substance of their complaint is that they were adversely affected by the positive Coronavirus tests that four of the players had just before the re-start of the German season in the middle of May. As a result the entire squad went into quarantine for a two week period, whilst their competition played the first two of the nine outstanding matchdays when the German season was interrupted in mid-March.

With the dates for finishing the season set in stone, this left Dynamo having to play the remaining games in only 28 days, unlike the 42 days everyone else had, something they deem prejudicial to their chances of avoiding relegation.

One proposal is to play next season’s Bundesliga.2 with 19 team but it has also been mooted that relegation should be suspended all together and fellow ' Absteiger ' Wehen Wiesbaden also retaining their status in the Bundesliga.2 for next season. This one may run for a little while as the DFL ponder how to deal with this tricky and rather unique situation.