Hertha Berlin 1-0 Brondby, Thursday 28th July 2016

Hertha Berlin 1-0 Brondby, att. 18,454 (Friedrich Ludwig Jahn Sportpark) - Europa League 3rd Qualifying Round, 1st Leg

The Friedrich Ludwig and its floodlights.

Has my luck changed? After finding myself in the wrong town for one game (Gornick Leczna) or unable to buy a ticket on the day of the match on another (AS Trencin), I purchased one of the last half dozen tickets for Hertha v Brondby (or so the ticket lady told me). The reason so few left? Hertha weren’t playing at their 76,000 capacity Olympic Stadium, they’d moved the game ‘across the border’ to East Berlin and the Friedrich Jahn Ludwig Sportpark, which I’d previously been to for a Dynamo Berlin DFB Pokal game.

Steps up to the Main Stand.

At least I knew about the venue change this time and, having arrived in Berlin too early to check-in, but late enough to expect the box office to be open, I pootled to the stadium. On my previous visit, I bought a ticket at the turnstile. No sign of that this time though. I did a circumference of the stadium; no sign of a ticket booth, though evidence of a future match – TV lorries and BSC (Berliner Sport-Club) merchandise trailers (closed), as well as stewards lurking, in their bright orange bibs. So I tried the arena box office next door, a venue for concerts and volleyball amongst other things.  ‘Do you sell tickets for the football?’ ‘Yes. You are very lucky, there’s only about 6 left.’ I was in, €21. More expensive than normal, but lo! I was in the Main Stand. Maybe THAT’S why it’s a sellout, they’re only opening one side.

The wall.

I had a laidback afternoon thereafter, laundering my clothes while quaffing a few Schöfferhofers in the hostel bar (Pfefferberg) and chatting rubbish with the barman. Then it dawned on me: I was late. Time flies when you’re chatting and laundering. I walked the 15 mins back to the stadium, missing kick-off.

The match was, indeed, a sellout. I saw an office emblazoned with ‘ausverkauft’ (sold out) signs. And it wasn’t only one side, the whole place was full (save for a no-man’s land next to the Brondby fans). BSC fans had turned out in numbers for this incongruous meeting. And while using another venue might have brought out the novelty value, allegedly, Hertha had only managed 4,000 in a previous Europa fixture here.

Hertha fans looking on.

Brondby had done their bit too. Their corner of c1,000 was awash with yellow and they’d even fixed blue and yellow bunting from the front fence to the back. And later they got their flares out (as well as a bugler) in response to Hertha’s ultras.

However, that was not before BSC scored the only goal of the game, Ibisevic on 28 minutes. A cross from the right was flicked on and finished in acrobatic style from 8 yards with an overhead kick. Been a long time since I’ve seen one of THEM. That was it for the 1st half. BSC looked the better team, lots more possession, but chances were few and far between.

The Brondby corner.

Early in the 2nd half, the BSC ultras (who’d handily acquired an entire block n the far corner) unleashed their flares. Straightaway, the tannoy performed its function of telling the fans not to be so naughty, while those around me tutted their dissatisfaction with their own fans. The smoke enveloped much of the stadium.

The Hertha ultras unleash their flares.

By now I was ensconced in my seat, high up in the lower tier, near the halfway line, adjacent to the press. It wasn’t actually my seat, but so many fans were electing to stand at the back of the tier that I seized my opportunity, only rising to grab a wurst in the 2nd half (once the queues had diminished).
The flares roused Brondby. A sweet, one-touch move involving 3 or 4 players put the centre forward clean through, in the proverbial acres of space. He looked up, checked he wasn’t offside, strode toward the Hertha goal and delicately dinked the ball over the keeper…and bar. Not so delicate after all.

...which was the cue for Brondby to fire up themselves.

There was still time to see Salomon Kalou (still going!) be substituted, while Brondby fans gave their side and manager a huge ovation at the end; they’d lost, but they were still very much in it.


The Damage:
€21 ent
€2.50 wurst
= €23.50

The Tunes: 
So Tonight That I Might See (Mazzy Star)
Total Life Forever (Foals)

Friedrich Ludwig panorama.

I can still see you...

Fans stood up at the back of the lower tier.

The sun setting over East Berlin.

The view from the Hertha ultras' corner.

Looking towards the Main Stand and Brondby corner.

Every club has one.

The press.

Match action.

Brondby players coming to applaud their fans.

The tunnel.

The Main Stand at full time.

The stadium clears.

Goodbye!  Safe journey!

FC Augsburg 0-1 Hertha Berlin, Saturday 15th August 2015

FC Augsburg 0-1 Hertha Berlin, att. 28,130 (Bundesliga)

Welcome to ......

Whatever you do, DON’T walk to this stadium – it’s miles away! While at the Hbf, looking for a tram to the stadium, I spotted a few Augsburg fans dawdling on bahnhofstrasse, at what looked like a tramstop. It wasn’t the line I was looking for, but offered me ‘futballinen’ which sounded like exactly the man. Turns out they do football specials on matchday, from 2 hours before kick-off. This was 2pm, an hour and a half before, and the tram was full after two stops, so beware. We thus traipsed past 8 or so other stops without stopping, trying not to think ‘schedenfreude’ on the passing by of every sorry group. Not much point having free travel to the stadium if you can’t get on it.

The journey was long, and the streets were flat. Couldn’t the locals have cycled there? The tram tipped us off…and the stadium was STILL the best part of a mile away, last building in town, then the motorway. Bolton all over again. Not the most beautiful of facades either, concrete a-plenty. Turns out Augsburg have plans to encase the stadium in something more salubrious, but it’s all about the money. A pity, since Augsburg FC has grown exponentially in recent years, to the point where they’re virtual Bundesliga mainstays.

The stadium looms in the distance.

The stadium is less than 10 years old and is not much bigger than their previous ground in terms of capacity, but the club president, in his scheming, felt the Bundesliga could only be achieved with a new stadium (less athletics track, more seating, more cover…more VIP space)…and he was right. Augsburg have been in the Bundesliga for five years and have qualified for Europe this season.
I know all of the above cos I dropped on lucky in the ticket queue. A similarly-aged fan approached me with a spare ticket for the kurve - €14. Turns out he targeted me cos he only had one ticket and I looked alone. Well, he got that right. As ever, the home terrace was sold out. Whatever you read about cheap Bundesliga football, it’s rare you’ll find a terrace ticket for most of the teams.

The stadium has 26 sections (literally A-Z) with the home terrace K-O. Peter was normally in ‘N’with his sister, but after a swap of tickets, he came in ‘M’ with me. Unfortunately, having talked too much (BOTH of us), we left it late and space was at a real premium. We ended up right at the back, stood behind fans on the same step as us, so viewing wasn’t ideal, but no matter. We were still too busy talking.

In case you're in doubt

The WWK Arena is one tier all round, with a large terrace behind one goal for the home support, while the away fans are situated in the opposite end, in one corner. Excellent views too, with the terrace having a steep rake, although there are staunchions at the back holding the roof up. Costs obviously had to be cut somewhere.

The match was generally a let-down (well, it was for the home fans). The only goal was a weak penalty straight down the middle from Kalou, following a foul. Otherwise, FCA only threatened in the last few minutes, as the keeper joined in the attack. (On one of these, the Hertha keepr caught the ball and could have kicked for goal, given there was no-one in their half. But he chose to hold onto it and waste time. Boring.) An earlier free kick slammed against the Hertha post.

Note the away terrace, far corner.

There were cards galore though and Hertha saw redhalfway through the 2nd half. A chance for Augsburg perhaps? 11 v 10. Only it wasn’t 11 v 10, it was 10 v 10. We’d missed star player Bobadilla getting a second yellow for taking out a player on the halfway line in the last minute of the opening half. Ironic, given that the loudest cheer of the day was for the earlier news that Bobadilla had signed a new contract. Hero to zero.

After the match, the heavens opened and we hid under the stands, having a beer. We chatted rubbish for another couple of hours before we had to leave – I hadn’t checked in yet, and it was Peter’s teatime. I’d had a great day, whatever the result.

The Damage: €14 ent€4.70 beer (x2)= €23.40

***Apologies for the lack of pics; too busy rabbiting!