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In a series, Borussia Dortmund relives difficulties faced without an audience during the pandemic

This is the second episode of the second season of the series “Who We Are” (Who We Are), produced by Borussia Dortmund. In partnership with the OneFootball, a Sports Gazette will have access to all episodes, which will show the daily life of one of the biggest clubs in German football.

The second episode addresses the difficulties caused by the covid-19 pandemic in different areas. Fans, people from the club and player Julian Brandt spoke about the impact of the empty stands.

Fanatical Dortmund fan Petra Brüse explained, along with her husband Thomas Korduan, the changes that had taken place in football routine: “There was a hole in our lives. We never expected that, and we couldn’t imagine that the coronavirus pandemic would hit everyone so brutally, and that a lot of things would just shut down.”

Striker Brandt mentioned the performance on the field: “No matter how hard we try to adjust, it’s a bad feeling for me. At the end of the day, it’s your job. You have to be professional. But that fun thing, which makes you love football, you share with many people. And it wasn’t the same, of course. Now, in the end, I can say that it was the season in which I learned the most”.

With the support of 25,000 fans, Dortmund debuted in Bundesliga 2021/22 on August 14 this year, with a rout over Eintracht Frankfurt, by 5 a 2, no Signal Iduna Park.

The fundamental role of the fans, however, was even more evident in the third game, when Borussia lost to Hoffenheim, 2-1, at home. In the final minutes, with strong support coming from the stands, the team turned the score to 3 a 2. The club’s chief video analyst, Daniel Ackermann, highlighted this moment.

“Looking at the analysis of the physique and playing time, we saw that the players were already exhausted, there was no energy left. By giving so much and creating so much energy in the stadium, I don’t think it would have really worked in most of the cheerless games,” he pointed out.

Finally, managing director Carsten Cramer also cited the financial problems caused by games with closed gates during the pandemic.

“There was nothing normal about being alone in the stadium. We try to handle this on our own. We do not take any government loans or guarantees. We do not fire any employees. A club like Borussia Dortmund loses from 3 to 5 million euros directly and indirectly through games with little or no spectator”, he concluded.

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