A considerable number of German soccer fans regularly chant anti-Semitic slogans and songs in stadiums.  Unfortunately, the fan clubs have so far failed to offensively counter this problem.  The initiative "Dem Ball ist egal wer ihn tritt" (The ball doesn't care about who kicks it) takes fans from various soccer clubs on a visit to the former concentration camp of Auschwitz in order to trigger a lasting critical discussion about anti-Semitism and racism in soccer.



„We’re going to build an underground train from Mönchengladbach to Auschwitz …”  Soccer fans regularly sing this revolting anti-Semitic song on their way to the stadium.  But why Auschwitz?  By singing their song, the soccer fans are insulting the fans of the opposing team as “Jews”.  The problem is that this incident is not an individual case: the “Auschwitz Song” has established itself nationwide and can be heard in all soccer stadiums and in clubs across the country – it is considered a “regular song” by clubs and forms a sharp contrast to the image of the cosmopolitan soccer Germany in the World Cup Year 2006. 

Unfortunately, fan club have so far failed to engage in a discussion about the despicable content of the “Auschwitz Song”.  This is why the association “Dem Ball ist egal wer ihn tritt” (The ball doesn’t care about who kicks it) thought it was high time for action.  They started a pilot project: fans from various clubs in North Rhine-Westphalia visit the former concentration camp of Auschwitz.  The aim of the project is to make people aware of the hateful character of the “lyrics” in order to counter racist and anti-Semitic attitudes among soccer fans more effectively.  The main target group are young fans between 14 and 26, who are supposed to function as “anti-racism coaches” within their own circles of fans.

The project will be accompanied by a broad media campaign in cooperation with the clubs in order to produce a real change.  The overall aim for the future is to establish a long-term project so that racist songs in soccer stadiums and among fans will soon be a thing of the past.  In May, 25 fans aged 18 to 28 from various clubs took part in a three-day trip to the death camps.  When they returned they were deeply moved: “It was nightmarish. Before I went, I couldn’t imagine that I would be that emotionally affected”, remarked a 22-year old.  Two of the fans want to share their experiences with a larger audience by presenting the trip on the club fan radio station.  One of them declared that while it is difficult to change the attitudes of the older fans, the younger ones may change their mind when thinking twice: ”Some of them don’t even know what they are singing about!”  The trip had a great impact on the attitudes of the participants, said project leader Bodo Berg: “The message was clear - both in Germany and Poland.  It didn’t only reach the 25 youngsters that took part in the trip.  Many more people will benefit from it because the message is being spread by the ‘anti-racism coaches’.  We are also producing a flyer to be found on all the fan clubs’ websites to make sure that the clubs keep an eye on their own situation”.


Jan Schwab, Antonia Oettingen

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