Here’s a question for Spectator football fans: what’s the most memorable match you’ve ever seen? I don’t mean on television. I mean in an actual stadium, the way football should be seen. For me it was in 1996, seeing England play Germany at Wembley, in the semi-finals of the Euros. England were the better team over 90 minutes, and also during extra time, but with the game tied at 1-1 it came down to penalties. The first five players on both sides all scored. Then Andreas Köpke saved from Gareth Southgate (I wonder what became of him?) and Andreas Möller stepped up and scored the winner. England were out. A few days later the Germans returned to Wembley where they beat the Czechs in the final, and English hearts were broken – yet again.
England have a great chance to avenge that bitter defeat and win their first European trophy – in Berlin
A generation later, the boot is on the other foot. This year’s tournament is in Germany and, with a stronger team than the Germans (at least on paper), England have a great chance to avenge that bitter defeat and win their first European trophy – in Berlin. Scotland will be there too, just as they were at Euro 96. Might they cause a massive upset by beating Germany in the opening game in Munich? I’ll be there, watching football the only way that really counts – up close and personal, in the flesh.
If you’re fed up with the commercialisation of the Premier League, a visit to Germany will revive your love of football. As in Britain, it’s central to the national culture, but in Germany it’s not so corporate. Tickets are cheaper, fans have a bigger say, and a lot of big clubs still have terracing. Going to see teams like Werder Bremen or Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, I’m reminded of my first taste of football in my early teens, standing on the Kop, watching the great Liverpool side of the late 1970s and early 1980s.
The last time Germany hosted a major tournament was the 2006 World Cup, a nationwide street party widely credited with transforming the country’s dour reputation. For visiting Brits, even the hot and sunny weather was a revelation. I was there for some of it, and in the outdoor ‘fan zones’ where people watched the games on giant screens, it felt like a rave. Today these fan zones are a familiar feature of every tournament, but back then it was something new. By catering for fans without tickets who wanted to be part of the action, Germany took tournament football to a new level.
This summer’s tournament is spread across ten cities, and even if you’ve got a ticket for a game, rather than simply going along to soak up the atmosphere, you’ll spend far more time on the streets than in the stadium. So, for anyone travelling to Germany this summer, here’s my guide to all ten host cities – all great football cities, where I’ve had the best and worst of times.
Berlin’s Olympiastadion, built in 1936 for Hitler’s infamous Olympic Games, stages the final of the tournament on 14 July. If it’s your first time here, the best introduction to this Faustian Metropolis is to walk along the Berlin Wall. Starting at the Brandenburg Gate you can walk north, past the Reichstag, or south, towards Potsdamerplatz. Along the way you’ll pass many of the major landmarks in Germany’s wonderful, awful capital, including the Holocaust Memorial and Daniel Libeskind’s Jewish Museum. Avoid Checkpoint Charlie – it’s a tourist trap. For more authentic Cold War history head out to Potsdam, and Glienicker Brücke, the Bridge of Spies in the Tom Hanks movie.
Cologne’s compact RheinEnergieStadion hosts Scotland vs Switzerland on 19 June and England vs Slovenia on 25 June. In a dramatic location on the River Rhine, Cologne is one of Germany’s oldest and biggest cities, but it was badly bombed in the second world war and rebuilt in a hurry. Its gigantic gothic cathedral survived, but beyond the patched-up Altstadt (Old Town), not much of the past remains. The cosy bars along the riverfront are convivial places to hang out. The local beer is Kölsch, served in elegant little glasses. The Ludwig Museum houses one of Europe’s best collections of modern art.
Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion, which hosts the second semi-final, on 10 June, is one of Europe’s most atmospheric football grounds, famous for its Gelbe Wand (Yellow Wall) of hardcore fans at Borussia Dortmund home games. Beyond the stadium, sites of interest are fairly few and far between. A large industrial city, now fallen on hard times, it’s never been a natural tourist destination, yet there are some recent innovations. The Dortmunder U, an iconic old brewery, now houses a smart new arts centre. Fans will love the Deutsches Fussball Museum, devoted to Deutschland’s national game.
England or Scotland could end up at the Düsseldorf Arena (home of Fortuna Düsseldorf) in the quarter finals on 6 July. If they do, then Scots or English fans are in for a nice surprise. Düsseldorf isn’t on the international tourist trail, but it’s a popular weekend destination for Germans, who come here for culture and nightlife. Commercial and industrial, it isn’t a pretty city, but it’s prosperous and dynamic. Visit the Kunstpalast, K20 and K21, three of Germany’s top galleries, then check out the buzzy riverside bars, where Altbier is the local brew.
Germany’s financial capital is often dismissed as boring, mainly by boring businessmen who fly in for boring business meetings and then fly straight out again. Yes, the modern downtown is rather dull, but there’s more to Frankfurt than shiny skyscrapers. The reconstructed Altstadt is lively and attractive, and the Museum Mile, on the south bank of the River Main, has some of Germany’s best galleries. Venture out to Sachsenhausen, a leafy suburb south of the river, and go to Wagner for a few glasses of Apfelwein, the local tipple. England play Denmark at Frankfurt’s Waldstadion on 20 June.
Gelsenkirchen’s Arena AufSchalke (home of FC Schalke 04) hosts England’s opening game, against Serbia, on 16 June. Like Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen lies in the heart of the Ruhrgebiet, that vast, sprawling rustbelt which used to be the powerhouse of German industry. Now its old industries are dying, it’s struggling to find a new role. However, like Scousers or Geordies, people here in the Ruhrpott are renowned for their humour, warmth and candour. If you prefer drinking to sightseeing, you can have a good time here.
‘What was it like growing up in Liverpool?’ a journalist asked John Lennon. ‘I didn’t grow up in Liverpool,’ he replied. ‘I grew up in Hamburg.’ Germany’s second city was where The Beatles became a band and in St Pauli, the dockland district where they learnt their licks, some of that grungy energy remains. The city centre is much smarter, crisscrossed by canals which run from the Alster, Hamburg’s vast and lovely lake, to the River Elbe, Germany’s rugged gateway to the North Sea. Don’t miss the Elbphilharmonie, a spectacular new concert hall designed by Swiss starchitects Herzog & De Meuron, the hub of the regenerated waterfront. England or Scotland could end up here, in the quarter final at the Volkparkstadion on 5 July.
When the Berlin Wall came tumbling down, Leipzig’s key role in the collapse of communism was largely overlooked. However, this gritty Saxon city was where Germany’s peaceful revolution began, and there are numerous memorials and museums around town (including the spooky former Stasi HQ) commemorating the brave revolt of ordinary Saxons against the tyrannical East German regime. Under the communists, Leipzig was grey and grimy, but since reunification it’s enjoyed a remarkable renaissance, mirrored by the rise of RB Leipzig, the local football team (powered by Austrian soft drink behemoth Red Bull). Like other cities in the former East, Leipzig is still very rough around the edges, but it’s vibrant and invigorating. Neither Scotland nor England will play at Leipzig’s Red Bull Arena, but for neutrals France vs the Netherlands on 21 June looks like the pick of the group games.
With an abundance of antique architecture and plenty of green spaces too, Bavaria’s stately capital is full of things to see and do. Art lovers will adore the Alte, Neue and Moderne Pinakothek, three of Europe’s leading galleries. If you’re here for the beer, avoid city centre bierkellers like the Hofbräuhaus, which are invariably full of sightseers. Go to the biergarten in the Englischer Garten, Munich’s huge public park, instead. Munich’s Allianz Arena, which hosts the opening game on 14 June, between Germany and Scotland, is an attraction in its own right. Built by Herzog & De Meuron, it looks like an alien spaceship. Inside, the sight lines are perfect and the atmosphere is intense. England or Scotland could end up here in the first semi-final, on 9 July.
Scotland play Hungary in Stuttgart’s magnificent Mercedes-Benz-Arena on 23 June, in a city famous for automobiles – not just the massive Mercedes works, but the smaller Porsche factory too. You can visit both factories, and the tranquil summer house where Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach built the first motor car. An affluent and sedate city, surrounded by a ring of wooded hills, Stuttgart is a pleasant place, albeit somewhat underwhelming. The most remarkable modern building is the Staatsgalerie, the superb city art gallery, designed by the late great British architect Sir James Stirling.
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