Friday , March 29 2024

Bundesliga: The Return of the Ultras!

After a two-year absence from the decks, the ultras are back on the terraces. Borussia Dortmund’s Südtribune, the lofty South Stand, was once again a Yellow Wall made up of 24,451 fans donned in the club’s iconic colours. There was also a huge banner reading “Willkommen zurück im Westfalenstadion!” meaning “Welcome back to the Westfalenstadion.” The excited fans waved flags back and forth as they filled the air with yellow confetti and streamers.

This was the first time since February 2020 that the ultras were back inside the largest football stadium for a Bundesliga match, and they were not alone. Other famous stadiums across Germany were filled with the sounds and sights that define the country’s fan culture. The other stadiums that were filled with football fans include Kaiserslautern, Berlin, Bielefeld, and Karlsruhe.

The Werder Bremen Chief Executive claimed that fans on the terraces and the socially inclusive ticketing are the elements that help clubs develop a close relationship with their fans. Vwin sports news stated he made these claims after his club also welcomed back its own ultras. He also added that the symbiosis between the fans in the stands and players on the pitch makes football work. The players usually draw some of the energy from the crowd, which can help the team get a few more percentage points.

After the corona-virus enforced break, the Bundesliga became the first top European league to return. However, the games were played behind closed doors. In 2021, the league allowed a limited number of fans to return to the stadiums, and seats replaced the unreserved standing terraces. Besides that, fans had to wear face masks, and the tickets were personalized and licked into identity cards to make it effortless to contact trace should the need arise.

Alle Oder Keener

Most accepted cooperated with the league by adhering to the safety measures. However, they thought they couldn’t express their fan culture freely, vibrantly, and independently under such conditions. As a result, they opted to stay away and stick to the mantra “Alle oder keener,” which means “everyone or no one.”

The main issue was Germany’s stringent event admittance criteria. The government categorized entry to football stadia as 3G – geimpft, genesen, getestet – meaning vaccinated, recovered, or tested. It also classified it as 2G, which means only vaccinated and recovered fans were allowed to attend football matches. These measures were enforced by personalized tickets that were checked against COVID-19 vaccination certificates.

The ultras were suspicious of the government and protective of their personal data and decided that was a red line they were not ready to cross. Borussia Monchengladbach ultras returned briefly after local regulations were relaxed in September 2021. However, others remained faithful to the “everyone or no one” principle.

Different states and leagues had different rules, and each had different demands. But, without the ultras on the stands, football matches have been horrifyingly quiet. The German football culture is highlighted by the ultras setting the tone on the terraces, but this critical part of the football events was missing for 763 days. However, the long-awaited return of the ultras marks the return to normalcy in the German football arena.

About Arunava Chaudhuri

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