What do Brisbane, Bangkok and Berlin have in common? Each city has a fan club of 1899 Hoffenheim. Not bad for a Bundesliga newbie who had only one official fan club until 2006
“Today we have 48 fan clubs with around 1200 members. And they keep growing,” said Mike Diehl who has been in charge of the team's fan clubs since 2005. Diehl worked relentlessly to spread his passion about Hoffenheim, going to villages with as few as 3,000 people in an attempt to recruit new fans.
“In the beginning, I'd go from village to village with my laptop,
projection screen and microphone. I explained to football fans in pubs, using a PowerPoint presentation, what Hoffenheim was really accomplishing and trying to achieve.
I'd give away ten tickets and encourage people to come to a game and find out for themselves. With time, the whole thing took on a life of its own,” noted Diehl as he reflects on the genesis of his endeavor.
First 1899 fan club formed in 2001
In 2001, Fanclub Zwinger was formed, marking the first 1899 official fan club. By the time Hoffenheim was promoted to 2.Bundesliga, there were around 20 fan clubs, most of which were formed in the Rhein-Neckar region.
Since then, the fan community has experienced large growth at the national level. “We realized that during away matches, we were getting more fans in our block, people joining and supporting Hoffenheim natives. Fans come from the cities where we play. In Bremen, there were around 500 Hoffenheim fans in attendance,” Diehl said.
In fact, it was in Bremen that the 1899 supporters got their
friendliest reception. This situation seemed to be the exception to the rule as normally, the Hoffenheim fans can't do without police protection. “A lot of fans of other clubs accuse us of pure commercialization. But we have a clear concept with young players and not with well-known names. That's a risk we take,” Diehl explained.
No potential violence
The 1899 supporters were keeping their cool and reacted to any
confrontation in a gleeful manner. There was no potential violence among the very young fans in attendance, who were more concerned with cheering on their own squad then provoking their opponents.
Fans in Brisbane, Bangkok and Berlin all represent the global reach of Hoffenheim's supporters. Their loyalty and dedication extend the club's jurisdictions from the heart of the Rhein-Neckar region all the way to Australia, Thailand and the German capital.
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