Kaiserslautern 0-0 Ingolstadt, Tuesday 30th July 2019

Kaiserslautern 0-0 Ingolstadt, 3.liga, att. 17,212 (Fritz Walter Stadion)

Welcome to ...

Without a 'new' ground to visit tonite, I went back to an old favourite, Betzenberg, Kaiserslautern - or the Fritz Walter Stadion to give it its official name.  This place is a cathedral.  Or a castle, built atop the highest hill in town.  You can see it from everywhere, and, most importantly, from the railway station, so there's no excuses to get lost.  Just don't go into town; there's a reason Kaiserslautern doesn't even get a mention in Lonely Planet.

The coolest roundabout on the planet.

I arrived an hour and a half before kick-off and expected relatively quiet surrounds.  Not a bit of it.  Hundreds had already congregated.  All the way from the station and up the hill to the stadium were pop-up bars and food stalls.  And then there's my favourite part of the walk, as you go through an opening underneath a prefab block and arrive at the other side, with steps heading up as far as the eye can see.  Good job there's another bar here.

Such an unassuming entrance to such an assuming place.

The sud-ost box office was busy, but efficient.  While considering which section I wanted, I gave in to chance.  '9.4', high up behind the goal.  This section had safe-standing, but since the higher up one went, the emptier it was, you could sit if you wished.  I moved along and to the left, and went a little lower.  One problem with higher up is that you can't see the rest of the stadium for the roof overhead, like in the Gallowgate End at Newcastle.

Plenty of space back here.

For all my climb, I wasn't rewarded with a goal.  I also realised it meant a longer journey for victuals, s the refreshment bars were all on the ground floor.  I also successfully negotiated their card system (you pay €1.50 deposit for a card and you can claim back the deposit on the card and anything left on it later).  Arriving so early, there was no way I wasn't going to eat and drink.  I found a perch outside, balcony-like, overlooking the steps I'd clambered earlier.

See that balcony?  I had my beer and wurst there.

Afterwards, I slipped by stewards to stand 'downstairs' in 9.2, though it's all one tier, really.  There still seemed plenty of space, albeit most of the crowd of 17,000 odd were behind this goal.  I also had the ultras' flags in front of me, but I guess the giant one ready to be unfurled is only used for goals, cos it never came out!  Ingolstadt came closest to scoring, a cut inside from the right ending with a curling shot rattling the crossbar.  For Lautern, it was a shot from inside their own half which the visiting keeper struggled to get back for.

The Lautern ultras.

Yes, my 6th game of this tour brought my first goalless draw.  Kaiserslautern are considered a 'big' club (think of Sunderland in division 3),  Actually, I enjoyed that.  Think some more of Sunderland in division 3.  However, one of them has won the league and cup in the last 20 years and the other is Sunderland.  Opponents Ingolstadt were no mugs though, having just been relegated from Bundesliga 2 and having been playing the likes of Bayern 3 years ago in Bundesliga. 

The home end awaits its heroes.

The Betzenberg, all steep stands and giant roofs is testament to civil engineering and architecture, making the most of every bit of space it has.  I'm shocked to read of the threat of 1.FCK having to leave due to monetary issues.  This famous old stadium and this famous old team evoke romantic feelings from German footie fans everywhere and is without doubt one of my favourite German football venues.  Long may it reign!

Welcome to...(II)

The Damage:
€13 ent
€4 beer (x2)
€3 wurst (x2)
€1.50 plastic glass deposit
= €28.50

The Tunes:
Gatecrasher black (Various)
Strange Free World (Kitchens of Distinction)

Stayed at:
Mannheim Youth Hostel (€27)

The view from my balcony.

Get your scarves here.

Stadium plan.

Who doesn't need a 'Scheiss Mannheim' scarf?

Inside the bogs.

Giant screen in the far corner.

The Ingolstadt fans.

That away end in full.

The teams come out.

Come on Lautern!

The dugouts.

Match action.

Looking towards the away end.

Some of the c32,000 empty seats.

The Main Stand.

MSV Duisburg 1-3 Kaiserslautern, Friday 24th July 2015

MSV Duisburg 1-3 Kaiserslautern (Bundesliga 2)

How do they make these things?

Thirty minutes in and your season is over, 0-3 at home to Kaiserslautern. There seems no hiding from the future seasonal paths these two will take - ‘lautern are (again) one of the pre-season faves while MSV, despite previous Bundesliga heritage and a healthy crowd today of 23,500 (double the last time I came), are expected to be mid table at best.  Still, for 12 minutes (!) MSV matched them as both sides tippy tappied it around to no avail. Then lautern just took off.

0-1 Fast move on the break, cross from right banged home on the run.
0-2  Comedy.  The MSV right winger passes back to the right back but he's not there.  Lautern clean through but he stumbles and takes it too far past keeper.  As defenders recover he hammers in a shot which hits a defender and goes in.
0-3  Through ball and centre forward lashes in a belter from 20 yards
1-3 A corner (?) late on is curled in and a defender heads home.

MSV idea to keep the score down

As I said, it was my second time here, more by luck than crook - it was the only Bundesliga 2 game on.  Also, it was a relatively short journey from Amsterdam, where I’d been based.  I was even so confident of finding the ground I didn't even bring a map; just turn right and follow the railway tracks. Only I followed some home fans and must have zigzagged even more than last time.

I got to the stadium in good time, about 2 hours before kick off.  Yet the home fankurve had already sold out. Dammit.  I had a feeling this might happen so I went to the away end on the off chance. Also sold out.  The cheapest seats were €20.  Well, I rather fancied being in the home end, so went back to the ticket office where I was bemusedly offered a ticket by someone needing rid of one (turns out it was his son’s, who was in the executive boxes today; for some reason the office was loathe to refund him and he gave the €27 ticket to me for €20). With €1.4:£1 at the moment this still represented excellent value.

Roll up, roll up, get your zebras here

So, in I went. I coulda had a beer outside from one of the pop-up vendors with their boxes of beer in ice/water. But I badly needed the toilet and settled on beer and wurst in the stadium.

Support for both sides was initially excellent.  The enclosed nature of the Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena means little escape for the noise and I was surprised at quite how loud the home end was. Unfortunately, the noise abated slightly as their heroes slumped to 3 goals down but they roused themselves, especially in the second half.  They weren't going to let the side down even if the side did

The mascot watches the game

One chant received support and rounds of applause from both sets of fans, as ‘Scheiss Red Bull’ rang out; everyone's least favourite side given a reminder of their place.  Maybe it was sung with such lustre because the game was on telly?  But I wonder, did telly turn down the volume?

Afterwards,  I didn't hang about, catching one of the (free) buses back to the station for a train to Dortmund where I was staying that night.  Must be up and ready for St. Pauli tomorrow! Attendance: 23,686 The Damage:
€20 ent
€2.20 wurst
€3.50 beer (x2)
€2 brezel
= €31.20 (£22)
The Tunes:
Drone Logic - Daniel Avery
Platipus Records Volume III - Various
The 3 EPs - The Beta Band

Things you can't do in England #1.

The stroll through the park towards the stadium.

MSV's odd turnstyle structures

Come On You Zebras!

The home end

I spot a team bus!

The away end

The stadium clears at full time.

After match interviews for the cameras

Greuther Fürth 2-1 1.FC Kaiserslautern, Monday 12th August 2013

Greuther Fürth  2-1  1.FC Kaiserslautern,  Bundesliga 2, att. 14,030

Catch this bus.  The one with the footballer on it.

As long as you arrive in Fürth in good time, things couldn’t be easier.  Follow a man (or woman) in green from the main station and there’s a bus takes you right to the stadium.  Perfick.  Whilst I had the directions to walk it, it looked a fair trek and I wasn’t against bussing it.

The bus dropped us outside some alcohol cash and carry: handy for those pre-match beers given the warm late summer evening.  Walk around the corner to find a couple of stalls with a selection of t-shirts, badges, scarves, etc and the ticket booths were right in front of me. I asked for a terrace spot and there were two choices: the away end or ‘Der Lohner’ on the opposite corner of the same end.  There was a seated area inbetween the two terraced corners which turned out to be quite sparsely populated.  The main fan kurve, the ‘Nordtribune’, was sold out.  I wasn’t too displeased, I didn’t fancy getting shunted about tonight, so I plumped for ‘Der Lohner’, since I was (!).

1st sighting of stadium

Aside from the seats behind one goal, it was pretty much a full house (14,030) for a match involving two sides tipped to be challenging this season.  Even the Kaiserslautern seats were fairly busy, presumably cos their terrace sold out.  Being a ‘top spiel’, Fürth added €1 for a ticket: €14 to stand.  These 2 sides are tipped as contenders (indeed, after the match, a Lautern fan told me it was a big blow losing, cos this pair would finish top 2.  There’s confidence – only 33 more games to go!

Lautern fans get the pat down

I enjoyed my visit to the Trolli Arena.  It was a mish-mash of stands, with a small hotel in one corner, while the away end and ‘Der Lohmer seemingly built on scaffolding and the terrace made of bolted-on tin.  (Presumably not tin, tho' I’m no expert on alloys.  As shown if tin isn’t even an alloy.  Is it?)  It all has the essence of ‘cheap as chips’ about it, but it works.

Odd gap in the stands

Both sides looked good, intricate passing moves unfortunately breaking down short.  Then, out of the blue it was 0-1. A corner flashed in and the ball was barged in via a head.  While a Lautern player took the plaudits, I wasn’t convinced.  Looked like a home head under pressure; but it was just what was needed as Greuther needed to score.

Duly, within a couple of minutes the equaliser came.  How was it? I write this two days later and I can’t honestly remember.  I do remember that straightaway both sides went back to cancelling each other out.

Welcome to ...

At half-time the entertainment was provided by a female fan trying to hit a gap in the net that had been mostly covered by an advert-strewn tarpaulin.  Good challenge but a bit dull.  The dinosaur mascot looked a little under-employed.  Use him.

During the second half, Fürth’s #33 was outstanding up front, holding the ball up and taking the game to Lautern.  Meantime, his opposition equivalent was struggling, constantly being pulled up for fouls (yet never being carded).  And it was Fürth who nicked it, a far post header off a corner, I think.
Afterwards, I made the obligatory blunder on the way back to Nürnberg.  I jumped off the bus at the Rathaus and had been advised to go one stop on the U-bahn to the hauptbahnhof (7 mins journey to Nürnberg).  However, there’s not so many trains on a Monday night following a 20:15 KO, so I stood on the platform for the best part of half an hour, getting cold.  I should have stayed on U1 – it only led straight to Nürnberg! 
Attendance: 14,030 (Trolli Arena)
The Damage:€14 ent
€3 badge
€3.70 beer (500ml)
€3.50 wurst
= €24.20
The Tunes:
various EPs (Curve)
Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space (Spiritualized)

2 stands and a hotel..only at Greuther!

Souvenir shop

View from the back over the bubble-roofed opposite stand

Getting ready for live TV (watch out for the dragon!)

The home end welcomes their heroes

3 rows of adverts...a record?

Kaiserslautern Corner (far side)

Hotel with view of the pitch

The crowd awaits the teams

Actually, there's more away scarves than home...