Attendances Swell at World Cup Stadiums
August 20, 2005
Many believe fans are pouring through turnstiles all over Germany because they are gripped by 2006 World Cup fever but would this be the case if say England were hosting the tournament?
The opening weekend of the 2005/06 Bundesliga season witnessed a new record average attendance of 43,503 with an impressive 391,527 fans packing into the nine stadiums to beat the previous best of 40,944 set way back in 1965.
A bumper 81,200 watched Borussia Dortmund fall 2-1 to derby rivals Schalke 04 at the Westfalen Stadium last Saturday. Dortmund have the highest average attendance in Europe, several thousand better than Spanish titans Real Madrid and Barcelona, and other host cities for the 2006 World Cup are not far behind.
Bayern Munich's 340 million euro ($413m) Allianz Arena enjoyed a capacity 66,000 capacity crowd for the club's opening 3-0 win over Borussia Mönchengladbach a fortnight ago.
Prices make German games attractive
Admittedly the excitement of experiencing the atmosphere at the new Arena is a major attraction, but maybe there is another reason why German stadiums are full - affordability. In Germany it seems younger people and the working classes can afford to watch their local club and ensure the stadiums are full.
It's a direct comparison to the English Premier League where the most expensive season ticket for newly promoted Sunderland will cost ₤445 (657 euros) and the cheapest ₤110 (162 euros). At Schalke 04, one of the top clubs in Germany, offering their best season tickets at 192 euros.
Arsenal, a club of a similar standing in England, has the most expensive season tickets in Europe at ₤885 (1307 euros), just over 1000 euros more than the most expensive German tickets, those at Bayern Munich.
With tickets more affordable throughout Germany, the hosts have a sense that the momentum can continue with crowds flocking to stadiums as the excitement heightens, culminating in huge numbers of expectant fans once the main event opens.
Atmosphere building as World Cup approaches
"The atmosphere at the World Cup stadiums, and indeed Germany as a whole, is something special," explained Germany coach Jürgen Klinsmann. "You can sense that there is big tournament just around the corner."
If the atmosphere in the Bundesliga is mirrored in the 2006 World Cup, running from June 9 to July 9, players and fans can look forward to a football fest.
But it is worth remembering that World Cup tickets will be far from cheap and black market prices already range from 35 euros to 600 euros on auction site eBay.