Berlin: A Secret Football Utopia

for me a long weekend in Berlin is not

about Burke I'm cheap bohemian bars or

avant-garde art galleries less dance

party more football it's about the

city's football culture Germany was

divided by East and West nearly 50 years

in football terms this means two

completely separate leagues with

distinct championships and rivalry is

created double the history creating

communities that fuel incredible

atmospheres in the top and like I say

there's no better place to see this

German capital so we're in Berlin right

now we've got four games four days most

of the German lower leagues

Berlin's an incredible footballing city

this weekend we saw four games but with

more time we've got a scene all of these

tonight we're heading off to see a North

Atlantic and zoria team from Ukraine me

ally Steve walking through the city so

we're here with bloody hell magazine

into studying the local football culture

here in Berlin particularly in the lower

leagues why in Berlin is there this

perception that it's not a football city

there are so many public roads Berlin

you have some cities where basically you

have one main football to have two main

focus of the Lin fill in the scope of

clubs everywhere and so like there's

this perception that hurts those

dominant but at the same time Hearst is

kind of this mad Club exactly because

you know if you have one set a hundred

focus on it rather than one small group

but if you live in multiple areas that

you go Football Club of like 100 or 10

people it's all based on community

exactly gentleman take a check and I

obeyed the rules we're good I'm correct

in Berlin the kinds of cheap is super

efficient but if you don't pay for them

they like you

look at the glory of this thing here at

a game in Berlin and got the most

amazing football

we've got pins on pins on pin because

they appreciate football culture that

son has the whole thing is it still

breaking football coach you're earning

of adult this is what it looks like when

you're having to piss them a little

Forest in Germany Berlin Olympic Stadium

is something to behold

it's specimen of German classic the

jacket the scars on the hands the

classic tradition of German football

aesthetic

these kids have been putting on an

atmosphere

there's no one dominant club right even

even Hertha Berlin who's tried to for

years last night we saw they don't pack

out a stadium and they still had a

chance in Europe they still do now what

makes you pop uncles who are bullying

something kind of unique because this

ideal that it doesn't have a football

culture the problem is maybe that we're

not that successful but at least in the

club's they exist like other madinat

exist 125 years they're just not as

particular but it exists and on the

other hand you have like ethical clubs

which is quite thing in Germany like

you're the esoteric clubs the great

clubs the old all those communities of

their own small football clubs playing

all together in the in the non-lead

they drill into Berlin Medina more about

6,700 ultras report division match a

damaged stadium the only part someone

said Berlin's not a football city so

many perfect pristine football pitches

everywhere and they wonder why Germany

just cannot stop dnumber berlin club was

dominant for use

all right guys we're just walking out

the other end check out what it's like

don't worry this is satire then actually

baby's here in the fourth league you go

out to the Olympic Park you go see a

club like dynamo who has all kinds of

history who's proud of being from East

Berlin the division still there they're

still singing off off were

from East Berlin but these lower leagues

a culture exists the tradition exists in

a city where the Olympic Park is far

away and spread and divided these bends

they'll come out and on a Friday night

show amazing support

it'll be hard like try crackle ends day

three football match three Berlin one

weekend we just woke up at 11 a.m.

we've got brilliance I'm Talia one so

rushing over the right now in cab would

get late

this is the big one for the weekend and

when you expecting doing some poly oh

yeah probably one of the best sandwiches

I've ever seen

undoubtedly he knows I was really

talking about it for like hours last

night poor kid go in to a community

completely far removed from the city

mountain everyone's walking through a

forest hit the ground that supporters

themselves goat that support of

themselves don't even try to play a dog

against team the other supporters don't

hit the blood to make it happen

the plan for this round in a few years

is to turn it into a 45,000 seat stadium

7,000 people will be sitting and 35,000

will be standing never been great at

maths it's the future of fan culture

just picked up the local fanzine look

I'll pick this book is look how much

information is in here it's all written

by the supporters coordinated by the

supporters sold independently and goes

towards funding local projects but the

responses aren't here right

most of them are local companies from

the area from the neighborhood the whole

thing eats itself in 90 minutes was they

singing for 90 minutes I'm obsessed with

the condition

I spot the golden spicy

don't be here that helmet is dedicated

to all the people who gave their time to

build you've got the names of all the

individuals the wards construct this

ground the community that exists at

Union and the way that people have come

together

I've had people here tell me that when

they die the last thing that will be

remembered for their life is being a

part of this

you guys we got kicked out of the game

because obviously Joey you're not quite

cool it's not a zoo granule - somebody

died it was an incredible game pulled

off one day last better

what a mess

why got a football with multiple I think

it's Kara community thing to have like a

good time to I mean it's the place where

you can have your beer your

bratwurst and just hang out just be

relaxed supporting a team even though it

isn't claimed good nobody cares about

that we're just having a good time over

there

all right family you're not walking over

to see a cable in a bikini live C day

for Game four hey kid Berlin is a club

who was bought by a truck fish owner

who's trying to sort of bring it up and

making the 30 club in the city they plan

a really cool old ground that was been

for years and redeveloped on the other

hand you have chemi Leipzig you know one

of these historic Hobbs from eastern

Germany there are obviously of the

chemical plant of Leipzig here we are

another football ground surrounded by

other another incredible piece of

sporting infrastructure this really

spectacular reason fourth Division Club

feel super informal which people like

was super easy but again things of the

history

I've seen so many different

neighborhoods in the city parts of it

that you can cross 50 years I've seen

all different communities all embracing

the same game what makes the football

city it could be a big club it could be

the celebrity players but I think in a

big way I made it look like there's many

clubs you can end up finding a ground

that connects with you

that's dope it's like the dream