Week 4- Dortmund

 This week I fulfilled one of my long-term bucket list items: going to a game at Signal Iduna Park in Dortmund, with tickets in the Yellow Wall. This is my account of the day's events.

Our day started bright and early, and Pat missed our tram to Köln by like 30 seconds, which was just another unfortunate but hilarious chapter in his rivalry against German trains. We all ended up making our ICE train to Dortmund with plenty of time to spare- we actually had time to stop by the Dom once again (reference Week 2). A man was drawing a beautiful mural on the plaza in front of the cathedral. Our train was full of drunk Dortmund and Freiburg fans making the trek north- mind you it was 10 AM at this point. Honestly the best train experience of my life- 10/10 would recommend hopping on any train with a ton of intoxicated Germans united by their love for their respective football clubs at any opportunity you can get.

After we hopped off in Dortmund, we bought scarves and started exploring the city. Dortmund is a large working-class city that doesn’t have quite the grandeur of Köln- rather the city was very humble and efficient in appearance. We spent the early portion of our afternoon exploring the town on our walk to the stadium. We ate at a small food stand about a mile from the stadium, with very good Brinkhoff and BBQ sandwiches on offer. We talked to some very friendly Freiburg fans while we were ordering, who were fascinated by our status as American students (probably the most consistent reception to us in my experience so far). As our tickets were for a specific section of the Yellow Wall, we decided to enter the stadium about 90 minutes early to get the best “seats” (standing only, remember!). After we crossed a pedestrian bridge into the plaza outside of the stadium, the atmosphere was buzzing. We made our way into the stadium (which I must add had very college football-like concourses) and into our section. We decided to stand against safe-standing railing about 10 or 15 rows up from the pitch, giving us an absolutely incredible view. As the stands slowly filled in around us, we were quickly introduced to classic BVB/German football songs such as Triumphmarsch, Borussia, and Heja BVB– all certified bangers. And yes, they do sing You’ll Never Walk Alone before every game, which is admittedly a beautiful song aside from the whole Liverpool thing (which, for reference, is my club Manchester United’s primary rivals). As the starting lineups were revealed before the game, there were no surprises, but I was admittedly annoyed with young American sensation Gio Reyna’s listing as a substitute. He’s been in great form since his World Cup debacle…more on that good form later.

The match started pretty evenly, with early yellows for Raphaël Guerreiro and Kilian Sildillia. Sildillia hilariously earned his second yellow in the seventeenth minute (his second in three minutes) for a bad tackle on Karim Adeyemi, inciting a cascade of cheers and chants throughout the stadium. Dortmund grabbed the lead in the twenty-sixth minute through former Freiburg defender Nico Schlotterbeck, and I was immediately showered with beer from about 5 different directions. Dortmund’s lead felt comfortable as the game neared the end of the first 45, but Lucas Höler snatched an equalizer for Freiburg on the stroke of halftime, a goal that I can only describe as the epitome of smash and grab. The halftime mood around the ground could be summarized as a mix of frustration and contentment, as Dortmund controlled the entire first half with their man advantage and were unlucky to not be in the lead. BVB attacked the south end (our side) in the second half, and the Yellow Wall was roaring from the whistle. Freiburg’s defense fell asleep off of a recycled corner, allowing Adeyemi to stroll into the box and finish with aplomb. The touch paper was very much lit three minutes later, as Sebastien Haller nodded home for his first Dortmund goal following his long absence due to his ongoing battle with testicular battle. Signal Iduna Park was rocking, and me, Pat, and Milo were soaked with beer, having the time of our lives without a care in the world. Julian Brandt unleashed a rocket for Dortmund’s fourth, before Reyna was finally introduced for club captain Marco Reus in the 71st minute (Dortmund’s only remaining player from that incredible 2012/13 team). I promised the boys that Gio would score as soon as he was subbed on, as Freiburg had absolutely no foothold in the game at this point. Freiburg’s manager, Christian Streich, was sent off in the 77th minute for dissent, once again to the home crowd’s delight. Reyna did indeed finish Freiburg off with Dortmund’s fifth in the 82nd minute, and I was probably the loudest person in the stadium at that point. ‘Murica. 2026 WC Champs, or something like that. As the final whistle blew, it truly felt like Dortmund had an inflection point in their season and under Terzic’s fledgling reign. This team has some seriously impressive talent- Jamie Bynoe-Gittens is a name to become familiar with for sure. The raucous atmosphere continued into the water closets and throughout the concourses, and the three of us left the stadium with giant grins, knowing that we lucked into attending what might go down as Dortmund’s game of the season, especially in Bundesliga play. 10/10 day, an experience I’ll never forget. Allez BVB.