Rostock - Hansa Rostock - The DKB Arena - Capacity 30,000 (20,000 seats)
About the DKB Arena The DKB Arena sits proudly on the edge of the port of Rostock, on the original site of the Ostseestadion which had been home to Hansa Rostock since 1954. The current smart box type stadium was constructed in 2000, opening its doors in August 2001 in time for Hansa’s return to the Bundesliga. The stadium is very similar in design to a number of British stadiums – a uniform two tier structure with the stands close to the pitch. The unusual feature is the floodlights that appear to lean into the stadium to get a better view.
Like many other stadiums in Germany, the 10,000 standing places behind the goal can be converted into seating, reducing the capacity down to 25,000 for such occasions. The stadium has hosted the national team on two occasions, the last being in October 2006 when Germany beat Georgia. Under the East German republic it also hosted a game versus Poland in 1954. In the summer of 2007 the naming rights to the stadium were sold to the Deutche Kreditbank (DKB).
Who plays there? Despite the money of Hertha (and Dynamo) Berlin, the fame of the names of Carls Zeiss Jena and Dynamo Dresden, and style of Leipzig and Energie Cottbus, Hansa Rostock can claim to have more fans from the old East Germany than any other site. In fact in a recent study it was found that over 3.8million Germans said they followed the side to a certain extent, only behind Bayern Munich, Dortmund and Schalke in the whole country.
Despite this fan base the club have had modest success – one single East German Championship in 1991 as well as four East German Cups are their only returm, and since Unification in 1992 they have one single honour – winning the 2nd division Bundesliga in 1995. The club seem to bounce happily between the top two divisions, staying briefly in the top division before returning to the second tier.
Whilst the origins of the club can be traced back to the 1920’s when a team in the city played under the name of Lauterer SV Viktoria, later to become Empor Lauter after the Second World War. It wasn’t until 1965 that the name Hansa Rostock was adopted by the club in recognition of the region as a “super centre” of development in the East German football league.
After winning the final ever East German championship in 1991, the team were invited to form part of the newly expanded national Bundesliga along with Dynamo Dresden. They recorded their best ever finish of 6th place a few seasons later, although since then they have had to be content with the occasional end of season miraculous escape from relegation.
How to get there The stadium is located in the west of the city in the Hansaviertel area. It is well served by public transport being a short walk from the S-Bahn line in the direction of Warnemünde, alighting at Holbeinplatz, or by the tram-like Strassenbahn where line 1,4 or 12 run to Holbeinplatz or Line 11 runs to the Zoo which is a 10 minute walk away.
For a more detailed view on who plays where in Germany, go to Footiemap.com.
Getting a ticket Tickets for games at the DKB Arena are generally easy to get. The exceptions are the matches versus Hamburg, Werder Bremen and of course Bayern Munich. Tickets can be picked up at a number of shops in the region, as well as the official Fanshops in the city centre (Breite Strasse and Kopernikusstrasse). You can also book tickets by phone (Tel: +49 381 3770 120) or by internet at http://www.hansa-ticketshop.de. Tickets range in price from €13 in the standing corner sections of the north stand, to €40 for the VIP tickets in the West Tribune. A good bet for the neutrals is the €27 in the upper and lower East Tribune.
Getting around Public transport options in Rostock revolve around the street trams and buses that radiate from Steintor and Hauptbahnhof. A ticket for any type of transport costs €1.80.
Rostock does not have any routes direct to the UK at the moment. The small regional airport is located close to the Rostock to Berlin Autobahn around 25 kilometres from the city. Currently the airport is served by Germanwings (from Cologne-Bonn) and Air Berlin (from Nuremberg). However, it surely cannot be long before Ryanair open up this route from the UK.
The nearest airports serving the UK is Berlin (2 ¾ hours by train) which is served by Ryananair and Easyjet amongst others, as well as Hamburg (2 ½ hours) and served by Germanwings and BA.
About the DKB Arena