Two highlights awaited the children of the Zurich School in Berlin-Köpenick this week: not only were they able to visit the venerable stadium at the Alte Försterei, but they also had the special pleasure of taking part in a children’s press conference with Union “soccer god” Grischa Prömel.
24 children from the “Fußball trifft Kultur” program at the Zurich School in Neukölln took the S-Bahn and streetcar to the stadium at the Alte Försterei last Tuesday, April 5. For many it was the first time they had ever been to a stadium and for most of them it was also their first visit to the stadium at the Alte Försterei. So it was all the more pleasing when FC Union head coach Urs Fischer suddenly ran into them on arrival at the stadium and willingly allowed himself to be photographed with the children.
The tour started immediately afterwards. Thomas Maier from the FC Union Foundation first showed the children the statue of the 1968 cup winners at the entrance to the stadium, of course with the justified hint that the Unioners still have the prospect of winning the DFB Cup this year. The children couldn’t answer why the stadium at the Alte Försterei is called what it is, but Thomas Maier explained it to them in detail.
Later, they moved on to the stands. When one of the children asked for a ticket for a Union match, Thomas Maier had to disappoint him: “FC Union has 11,000 subscribers, who of course always get their tickets. 2,200 tickets go to fans of the visiting team and the remaining tickets are raffled off to members of FC Union Berlin. 21,717 people fit into the stadium.” During the rest of the tour, the children learned, among other things, that the stadium was co-built by the Union fans themselves. Inside the stadium, the kids were able to visit a box and take a look at the pitch from above.
Then it was off to the large event room, where the children were able to take their seats as if they were at a real press conference. The anticipation was great and the guest of honor was not long in coming: Grischa Prömel, “soccer god” and Union midfield ace, entered the room. With great journalistic interest, the children started straight away with their questions: “How old are you?”, “When did you start playing soccer?”, “Where did you play?”, “How much do you earn?”, “Do you have a favorite series?” and many more questions were put to Grischa Prömel.
For example, the children learned that Grischa was born in Stuttgart and used to play for Karlsruher SC. It is also interesting that Grischa doesn’t attach much importance to cars and therefore still drives the same one that his grandmother gave him for his 18th birthday. Grischa also revealed his favorite book: the biography of Andre Agassi “Open”. After more than 40 minutes of questions, Thomas Maier ended the children’s press conference and the children were of course able to get autographs. Grischa was even asked to sign anoraks after he had made sure that the child’s mother (apparently) didn’t mind.
After almost an hour, Grischa Prömel, who clearly enjoyed talking to the children, said goodbye. All in all, the children were able to get to know “their” club, FC Union Berlin, extensively on this day – exactly according to the motto of the FtK Club Challenge 2022. The children were very happy about the great experience and had a lot to talk about on the way back.