Geordie Al's Groundhopper Scrapbook: Waldhof Mannheim 4-0 TSV 1860 Munich, Monday 5th August 2019

Tuesday 6 August 2019

Waldhof Mannheim 4-0 TSV 1860 Munich, Monday 5th August 2019

Waldhof Mannheim 4-0 TSV Munich 1860, 3.liga, att. 14,221 (Carl Benz Stadion)

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For a second game ain a row I hit on lucky with a local. This time, with kick-off looming and me stood at the back of a long queue for tickets (I thought arriving 5 mins before kick-off perfectly acceptable) a German guy came up to me, muttered something and waved what looked like season ticket cards (they were). ‘Sorry, I’m English.’ ‘Oh, would you like to use my girlfriend’s ticket as she can’t make it tonight.’ But of course!

They were good seats too, high enough up to see, low enough that the stanchions weren’t in the way. (The stadium slightly predates widespread use of cantilever roofs.) Course, first thing to do was get some beers in, and, what with the wait, we agreed on two each.

The ticket queue.

Mein host, Eric, turned out to be a wealthy gent (my age) who owned 8 cars, the most expensive of which was a limited edition McClaren which cost roughly the same as my house in London. ‘But you can’t drive them all. Which car have you not driven the longest (if you get my question)?’ ‘Ah…that would be the Porsche. I haven’t driven that in 4 years.’ Imagine. It’s another world. But his poor (economic) upbringing explained his ruthless ambition. He worked in banking, in Frankfurt – where else? And I liked that he didn’t hold it against me that I had no interest in cars. (Perhaps if I had more interest in sports cars I’d have made more effort to make money? Who knows.)

An uninspiring entry

This was a big game, by 3.liga standards. I’ve often wondered why a city as large as Mannheim, with its associated industry, had consistently under-achieved on the football field. According to Eric, the answer was money and mismanagement – at one point, the DFB relegated them to the regional Oberliga. After 17 years in the semi-pro wilderness, they’d finally fought their way up to the national 3.liga after winning the Regionalliga Sudwest last season. Having said all that, Mannheim had 7 successive seasons in Bundesliga up till 1990, though their position isn’t helped by being near Kaiserslautern, who get the German populist vote.

Oh, and a successful ice hockey team.

Their opponents today, TSV Munich 1860, have had trials and tribulations of their own. Embarrassing as relegation was to 3.liga in 2016/17, their subsequent demotion to the amateur league was worthy of a Greek tragedy, as the owner refused to pay the licence fee. See here for full story:
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/jun/03/1860-munich-demotion-germany-fourth-fifth-tier-unpaid-licence
Relegation itself was quite an achievement – they had the third highest paid squad in the division. They were also chosen as founder members of Bundesliga ahead of their neighbours Bayern back in the 60s. Now they’ve been bought out of their share of the Allianz Arena and existed only as Bayern’s tenants until the recent demotions have engendered a return to their spiritual home, the Grunwalder Stadion.

The TSV hordes. Can you see them?

The game was on a Monday night, for TV. A 3^rd division game! Turns out there’s a dedicated pay per view channel devoted to coverage. But it was still up against a Bundesliga 2 game with other fallen giants, Nuremburg v Hamburg (full-time, 0-4). There was a considerable crowd inside the Carl Benz Stadion though. And if the stadium holds 27,000, there can’t have been less than 20,000 there. Official attendance? 14,221.

The Waldof ultras.

We were sat towards the home end, where, bizarrely, the section behind the goal is seated, while the corners are terraced. However, the ultras insisted on being behind the goal, so, essentially, they pay a premium for the honour (since seats are more expensive). I’ve seen the same at Hansa Rostock. An advantage for the neutral though is that you can get a ‘stehplatz’ ticket and it not be too crowded.

Three sides of the stadium join together in a horse-show, while the 4^th side is the usual mix of seating and standing for the visitors. And for once, there was a fair smattering of fans sat down, the terrace presumably sold out.

Executive boxes, Mannheim-style.

Both sets of fans made some noise, all the more remarkable in TSV’s case as they capitulated 4-0. The pick of the herd was the 4^th, as Mannheim cut inside and curled it in off the far post from 20 yards. Still, the TSV fans stayed and even gave their players a good reception at full-time, though how embarrassed must the players have been? Stood in front of the away end, taking their salutes, following a shovelling. The Waldhof fans meantime bounced to their hearts content. My favourite chant (as translated by Eric) was ‘Just like Kaisers(lautern) you smell of s***’, after the TSV ultras unleashed flares and smokebombs.

Thereafter, Eric and I chatted for the best part of an hour before we parted ways; him in his (work) Audi, me on a tram. C’est la vie.

Lest anyone forgets. Full-time.

The Damage:
€0 ent

€26 beer and wursts
€5 badge
€2 plastic beaker
€1 prog

= €34

The Tunes:
Melody AM (Royksopp)
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (The Beatles)
Screamadelica (Primal Scream)
She Hangs Brightly (Mazzy Star)
Sheet One (Plastikman)
Shine (The Joy)
Shine (Estelle)

Stayed at:
Steffi’s Hostel, Heidelberg, £24