Danke, München – football brightens a dark autumn evening

Although a rainy November evening is just as inconsolable and gloomy in Germany as in Estonia, the Germans have something in this darkness that we don’t have – football!

At this point, we are not referring to the game itself, which, thanks to an English sailor, has been played in Estonia for 115 years already – the birthday of Estonian football is June 6, 1909, when Mercury and Meteor met.

Although 115 years may seem like a long time, in fact football culture has not been properly put down roots in this country – due to the Soviet rule. At least not like in (Western) Europe.

To Munich, but not because of Bayern

OlyBet.TV decided to spend the autumn school holidays differently this time and travel to Munich, Germany for an authentic football experience. Many football fans probably assume at this point that they have visited Bayern Munich’s home game, but this is where they are seriously mistaken. Because a true local is not a fan of Bayern, but of TSV 1860 Munich, who play in the third league!

“Bayern fans generally come from outside Munich and are glory hunters. A true Munich native who has actually grown up here is a fan of 1860. Because you simply have no other choice!” explained 32-year-old Tobias at the stadium – he has been a Die Lämmer, or lion fan, since childhood.

Thus, he also has memories of good times. From the time when 1860 still played in the Premier League (last time in 2003/04), played with Leeds United in the Euroseries, and when the club’s shirt was worn by international caliber national team members such as Daniel Borimirov, Manfred Schwabl, Abedi Pele, Paul Agostino, Thomas Häßler, Jens Jeremies and Davor Šuker.

“These were our heroes!” Tobias said in a slightly harsh tone after hissing the names.

Because this is his childhood memory. However, Tobias’s father, who did not speak English, but whose talk his son translated a little, also remembered VERY GOOD times. The times when 1860 won the national cup (1963/64), reached the final of the Euroseries (1964/65) and were also crowned champions of Germany (1965/66).

“Das waren die guten Zeiten,” the head of the family said with a slow nod, a nostalgic sentence that didn’t really need to be translated. Because those were the really good times…

The fans remain loyal (as of yet)

When we asked if 1860 could ever return to that level, both shook their heads. “No, we’re stuck here [in the third division] forever,” Tobias said.

“We don’t have a good coach and the president is sch**sse, which is why investors are no longer interested in the club. The management simply does not understand football and to be honest the passion of the players for the club is no longer the same. At least I don’t feel it when they run around on the pitch,” he continued in a demanding tone and made it clear that, unfortunately, this kind of apathy is slowly spreading to the fans as well.

But fortunately very quietly, because when we talk about 1860 home games, they are played in front of a full house, and even for away games, an average of 2107 people traveled with the club last year. “Last year, absolutely all home games were 100% sold out,” said Tobias with a note of pride in his soul.

We also experienced demand, when two weeks before buying a ticket, looking at the club’s website we were faced with a tough choice: you either watch the game from a place with limited visibility, the fifth row, or not at all. Our choice fell in favor of limited visibility.

At that moment, of course, we had no idea what it meant, and if we had to describe it in retrospect, the most apt comparison would be with the economy sector of Hiiu Stadium. Because the meeting had to be viewed through the fence.

Namely, the 1860 home stadium, which is known in English as Grünwalder Stadion, but in German as Sechzgerstadion, is surrounded by a thick metal fence, the upper edge of which is “barbed-wired” with teeth a few centimeters long.

So if someone has an irresistible urge to run onto the field, a friendly suggestion – choose another stadium!

It was a real singalong party

While watching the match through the fence put a certain stamp on the game, it in no way detracted from the experience gained from Seczger. Because the approx. 14,700 people who came to the venue – officially the 15,000-seat stadium was sold out, but in reality there were some empty seats – lived and breathed the rhythm of football.

This was particularly well experienced thanks to the 1860 fan sector, where the so-called ultras already waved flags half an hour before the start of the game. And when they finally took the field, both pyrotechnics and chants were unleashed.

This is also a place where Estonia has a lot to learn. Because even though we consider ourselves a singing nation and speak with pride about the tradition of singing parties… let’s just say that 15,000 random Munich football fans probably make a louder voice than 15,000 Estonians the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds. However, the emphasis here is clearly on the word “louder”, not “prettier”.

Of course, the song party in the stands will not last the whole 90 minutes, because even for the Germans, the football game is above all a reason to get together. You come with family and friends, to enjoy the beer and bratwurst too – both cost €5 each – and talk. This is in the background activity for football.

However, football is not forgotten, but what is happening on the field is constantly monitored from the corner of the eye. And if the ball hits the visiting team’s defender’s hand in the penalty area as a result of a ricochet, but the judge’s whistle is silent, the German version of the well-known song “the judge is ****” will be sung accompanied by a choir of whistles.

Highlights of the match:

However, next to more familiar and less familiar songs, one silent gesture had the most powerful effect.

Namely, around the 57th minute, 1860 (ultra) supporters started raising their scarves in a row, and it spread stealthily all over the stadium. Until the 60th minute, the same scarves raised above the head were put to work as helicopters, and the chants of “Shalalalala, shalalalala, seczig, München” broke out to the beat of drums.

Kids focus on the beer, not the game

Children also have a lot of fun during the match. They go back and forth in front of the stands, asking for beer cups. However, they do this not for the last sip, but instead for pocket money.

Namely, when a beer, you have to pay a deposit of 1 €, which can be returned if you return the cup. But who gets up from the stands during the game, right?!

That’s how the boys have made the system work for themselves and lend a helping hand, thereby collecting pocket money themselves. We also gave away our cup, when a little ten-year-old kid suddenly tapped us on the shoulder and asked in polite German: “Excuse me, can I take your cup?”

But there was also a more superficial approach. Because some of the football fans randomly threw the cup onto the asphalt to watch the kids fight over it like gladiators.

Blood was nto shed, but there was still a scuffle. The smaller ones, who lost in the fight, were not left completely empty-handed, because there were usually two or three football friends who gave their cups to the little ones. In other words, the loser of the fight turned out to be the winner.

The level and charm of Germany’s lower league

As for the game itself, whoever thinks that the German 3rd league is of a poor level, then… let’s just say that the players there are still better than was the duel between Pärnu Vaprus and Tartu Tammeka. They know how to trick and spin, but more importantly, they also know how to kick ass!

The fact that only three Estonians have been in the German Premier League – Marek Lemsalu, Karol Mets and Henri Anier – speaks for itself here. In other words, German football, be it in the third league, is no joke.

For those who think that we are somehow blinded by a one-time experience or the story of Tobias, an ardent 1860 fan, we can assure you that this was not our first football tourism trip, and the best experiences have been gained in the lower leagues.

It’s true, it’s still important to do your homework, to know in which places the fans support their teams passionately and where they don’t!

Finally, a word to Philipp, who also visited his friends in Munich and came to watch the 1860 game with them. Who is an ardent Borussia Dortmund fan and has also traveled to Europe with Die Schwarzgelben many times.

“People are here because it’s a tradition. München 1860 is a club for the people of Munich, and here everything is exactly as it should be – the old fashioned and traditional way. This is something similar to his home country, where the atmosphere is also magical.

“The German premier league often has more spectators than the Italian or French top league – that speaks for itself. Germany’s fan culture is simply mega,” he continued and also gave an exhaustive answer to the question of whether it is better than in England.

“It’s not for nothing that the saying that Highbury is like a library exists,” he said, referring to Arsenal’s former stadium, the atmosphere of which resembled a library in its saddest days. “I have traveled with Dortmund to Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool, and Liverpool was the only one that was okay. But even that wasn’t what you experience here!”

Well, the result of the game itself? Munich 1860 and Osnabrücken drew 2:2. But it wasn’t really important or fundamental. Because the most important thing was the experienced atmosphere!