Bundesliga | 1. FC Union Berlin: “We’re fucking awesome”

The women at 1. FC Union are almost nothing but fun. Photo: imago/Contrast When Dirk Zingler talks about the problems in his club, he mostly talks about the men. Even in the eighth year of the Bundesliga and after games in the Champions League, the president of 1. FC Union Berlin looks enviously at a newcomer like Elversberg. And then he calculates why the club at the smallest location in Bundesliga history generates more revenue from each of its home games than the long-established Köpenick team: because the newcomer has more profitable seats than Union, even with the current stadium capacity, 2,500 of which are sold at the VIP price. In the Alte Försterei there are only 1,800 places for wealthy VIP guests.

Matchday revenue is just one financial pillar in professional football. But for Zingler, one thing is certain when it comes to 1. FC Union: "The good years are over." The club president formulated this sentence strangely casually in a media round on Thursday, before informing the members at the annual meeting that evening about the club's development and the associated key figures. After revenue of around 197 million euros in the previous season, the club is planning on 174 million euros for the current season.

If you take the goal of staying in the league, then the Köpenickers should at best leave three competitors behind them this season. And when it comes to this competition, Zingler lists other clubs in addition to the sports association from Elversberg, Schalke, Cologne, Mönchengladbach and HSV, all of which would have better conditions than Union. “Here at the Alte Försterei, match day revenue is lower than anywhere else in professional football,” Zingler wants to put the situation in perspective. And because the Berliners have avoided relegation for seven years in a row under these circumstances, the president blew another crisp sentence into the air: "We're fucking awesome."

Now things are a bit more complex in football too, the game itself is becoming more and more complicated. In any case, it would be difficult to find someone who would say with complete conviction that there are better conditions for the Bundesliga at SV 07 Elversberg than at Union Berlin. A look at the personnel expenses of both clubs is just one example: The SVE probably rose with a budget of ten million euros, and the professional department in the upper house shouldn't cost much more. According to the Bundesliga's financial figures, 1. FC Union Berlin, on the other hand, ranks tenth in the league with around eight times the budget.

“Our club has to invest a lot to make it competitive.” The infrastructural development will have consumed almost 300 million euros since 2008 when games are played in the new Alte Försterei more than 20 years later. In addition to the construction of new training centers for Zingler, the stadium expansion is the most important factor for future success: The final schedule for this is now probably set. After Christmas singing in 2027, demolition will begin in and around the stadium, and the club wants to play football again in the Alte Försterei on the first match day of the 2029/2030 season. “The schedule has been coordinated with the authorities and the Olympic Stadium,” assures Union President.

For the women of Union everything is a little different. On the one hand, they are almost just fun. In the first year of the Bundesliga, they were the biggest crowd puller in the entire league - and set a new record. Now, in the second year, the sporting hierarchy in German women's football is to be broken up with the new coach Marie-Louise Eta and again plenty of reinforcements. Union's footballers will not play in the Olympic Stadium during the one and a half year construction phase. “We have to invest a seven-figure amount for an alternative venue,” revealed Zingler. He didn't want to say where she was yet. This decision should be made in the next six to eight weeks.

Zingler also hopes for more joy from Union's men. While the economic change in Wuhlheide will take a few years to come, the sporting turnaround should already be successful. In order to be successful in the long term, the style of play must continue to develop, is the club's analysis. More active, more dynamic, playing more football than working. Mauro Lustrinelli is supposed to make this change. In return, the new coach got all the players he wanted, revealed Zingler. And the president is happy with the start: “Seven goals in the first two competitive games – the entertainment value increases.”

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