Help me pick a club

Discussion in 'Germany' started by WFU03, Aug 25, 2006.

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  1. Zak1FCK

    Zak1FCK Member+

    Aug 23, 2005
    Milwaukee
    Club:
    FC Kaiserslautern
    Nat'l Team:
    United States

    That is because it is hillbilly soccer.:D
     
  2. F96

    F96 Member+

    Oct 24, 2002
    Skåne
    Club:
    Hannover 96
    I somehow doubt that he will be able to watch 2. Bundesliga in TV in the US.
     
  3. sportfriend

    sportfriend Member

    Jun 24, 2006
    Canada
    if he's willing to pay 128 US dollars for an FCK subscription at www.seefootie.com

    then yes he can watch all the games! :p
     
  4. LebenslangGruenWeiss

    Aug 13, 2004
    Heidelberg

    You can't just choose a club like that. Just like you can't go to a pub and choose a girl that from that point on you love for the rest of your life can you?

    So do me a favor and choose Bayern because you fulfill the criteria of a typical Bayern "fan".

    I don't want to meet you in the stands of the Weserstadion in a Werder jersey because I know you'll never have the passion for the club that a true fan should have.
     
  5. sportfriend

    sportfriend Member

    Jun 24, 2006
    Canada
    i have to agree with leben here...But at the same time i do want more Bundesliga fans
     
  6. WFU03

    WFU03 Member

    Sep 8, 2004
    Singapore
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Thanks for all the replies (even Lebens).

    I agree that you can't just "pick" a club out of the blue...but it's not like I'm going to become a fan of a team because I live there. We just don't many bundesliga teams in north carolina at the present.

    I also highly doubt that I will ever be as passionate about any bundesliga team as I am about DC United because of that reason. But, you can follow a team without living and dying with them. And right now, I'll take that intermediate level of support because it may blossum into something more.

    Also, I appreciate the tips on the language part of the choice as well. Although slang varies by region, some will invariably be easier to follow than others.
     
  7. prymetyme

    prymetyme Member

    Aug 20, 2005
    Vallendar
    HAMBURG

    there looking like there my best pick, the family there. I like van der vaart and i love Trochowski.
     
  8. Betzenberg

    Betzenberg New Member

    Aug 26, 2005
    Trier / Germany
    Club:
    FC Kaiserslautern
    Nat'l Team:
    Luxembourg
    [QUOTE="Eisenfuß" Eilts]Agree, Lautern is a sympatic club (and they have a fan-friendship with us ;) ),
    but i read, you want to use their forum to learn German.
    Care of the accent there, in the boards, you will find something like this:
    "Der Spieler, wo hat heute getroffen."
    Word by word translation: "The player, where scored today",
    which makes no sense. Has to do with the fact, that they use the word
    "wo" (where) very often instead of "der, die, das" (who).
    It nervs, but when you know it, you can guess, what they mean.

    Only Mario Basler did the "wo"-thing ;) (Maybe he got that from his time in Bremen;) )
    Most of us are able to communicate in "hochdeutsch" believe me.
     
  9. wolfsburgh

    wolfsburgh Member

    Aug 6, 2001
    Pittsburgh, PA
    Last year, there was one of these threads, and I responded that if I were new to German soccer, the team that I would pick to follow would be Bayer Leverkusen. Here's why: (1) for my money, they consistently play the most attactive soccer in the Bundesliga and are fun to watch; (2) they are successful (a top 5 German team), but not so successful that you would be accused of jumping on the bandwagon; (3) they tend to develop and feature young talent; (4) they've been receptive to American players (Reyna, Hejduk, Donovan); and (5) their association with Bayer (they are essentially a company team). Many fans of "Traditionklubs" find this to be a negative (not entirely sure what it means, but they will sometimes refer to Leverkusen as a "plastic" club), but if you have no real ties to a specific region or club in Germany (and I'm going to assume by your post that you don't), it gives you something to identify with (Bayer, that is) that's concrete. As for your other criteria, Leverkusen usually plays a bunch on TV. I don't know how active their fan forums are, but my guess is that Leverkusen fans skew towards educated and cosmopolitan, so there would probably be a fairly high level of discourse.

    But I do not come at this question without some history, so I feel compelled to make a case for Borussia Moenchengladbach. They have won more BL titles than any team other than Bayern, have a terrific tradition, a fantastic new stadium, and a highly motivated and dedicated fan base. Borussia hit rock bottom at the turn of the century, getting relegated, but have been back in the 1.BL for five years. While they have failed to impress at times since returning to the Big House, I think most would allow that they are heading in the right direction, with several good young players leading the way (one of these days, they'll figure out how to win on the road, and then watch out). Moreover, they are a well-run club nowadays, and have followed a plan of sustainable growth over the last half-dozen years. This is a club that I firmly believe will get better. If this were a stock, I think Gladbach is a strong buy right now--a great brand name, a great pedigree, a good business plan, and probably still a little undervalued. BTW, their captain is Kasey Keller, an American. The two fan forums of which I am aware are www.seitenwahl.de, which is excellent, and the forum at the club's official site, www.borussia.de.

    I'm also a Wolfsburg fan, but I'm really concerned about the club's direction right now. Wolfsburg used to be a a sort of Leverkusen Junior (and not just because of the club's close association with a large German corporation, in this instance, Volkswagen), playing attactive, attacking soccer and seeming to be pointed towards big things. But the wheels fell off a few years ago (I point to the firing of their GM, Pander, who is now, coincidentally, at Gladbach, and to a lesser extent, the firing of Eric Gerets). Last year, they needed a point in their last game against Kaiserslautern to avoid being relegated (instead, Kaiserslautern was relegated), and this year, they have scored a grand total of 0 goals in their first three games (remarkably, courtesy of an improved defense and an own goal, they haven't lost yet this season). While I haven't seen them play this season, it would appear that they are playing fairly dire soccer. Still, the club is well-backed, has been kind to American players (Reyna, McBride, Deering), and you will never in a million years be accused of being a bandwagon fan with Wolfsburg.
     
  10. LoewenBoy

    LoewenBoy Member+

    Aug 25, 2004
    Giesing, Muenchen
    Club:
    TSV 1860 München
    Nat'l Team:
    Sint Maarten
    No, band "VW" more like.:D
     
  11. sting-ray

    sting-ray New Member

    May 16, 2005
    Bad Zw'ahn
    Club:
    SV Werder Bremen
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
  12. Zak1FCK

    Zak1FCK Member+

    Aug 23, 2005
    Milwaukee
    Club:
    FC Kaiserslautern
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    You forgot to mention that they are a bunch of cheaters. No Kaiserslautern fan will ever forget that travesty.
     
  13. wolfsburgh

    wolfsburgh Member

    Aug 6, 2001
    Pittsburgh, PA
    I have no idea to what you refer (I am not of fan of Bayer or FCK), but FCK hasn't exactly bathed itself in glory this century.
     
  14. Miran Klosnic

    Miran Klosnic New Member

    Feb 1, 2006
    Werder Bremen plays the most beautiful football in germany (maybe even in europe!). So if you are love football you should follow the games of Werder! I think it should be broadcasted in US sometimes. The fan-forums of the Werder Bremen-Homepage are perfect to improve your "german-slang-skills" ;) . There's even already a small english speaking section! So watch out here: http://www.werder.de/fans/werderforum/index.php
     
  15. LoewenBoy

    LoewenBoy Member+

    Aug 25, 2004
    Giesing, Muenchen
    Club:
    TSV 1860 München
    Nat'l Team:
    Sint Maarten
    Except for this past Saturday. :D
     
  16. Miran Klosnic

    Miran Klosnic New Member

    Feb 1, 2006
    Okay, you got me. :D But it was a Friday not a Saturday! :p
     

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