FC Koln - The RheinEnergie Stadium - Capacity: 50,374 (41,206 Seats)
The Stadium – The RheinEnergie Stadium Postfach 45, Köln 50879 The RheinEnergie stadion was once better known as the Müngersdorfer Stadion, a 54,000 capacity stadium, complete with running track, stands set back from the pitch and huge banks of terracing behind each goal. When it was opened in 1975 it was the only completely covered stadium in the country.
The decision to redevelop the stadium was made by the city council in June 2000, and construction started a year later. As with the majority of the other stadiums being used in the World Cup, 1.FC Köln continued to play home games at the ground whilst redevelopment took place. The running track was removed, along with the distant stands behind the goal. Instead a two tier stadium, with seats close to the pitch emerged.
The 46,000 all seater stadium opened in early 2004 with a friendly played between Germany and Belgium inaugurating the new ground. Some of the original features of the ground have been retained though. The old classic German styled buildings to the north of the ground are the original ticket and club offices. Also, in the North end of the stadium there is a small club shop and museum. On non-match days, regular ground tours also start from here. For Bundesliga matches, certain sections of the ground can be transformed from seating into terracing, increasing the capacity to 51,000. The new ground is a complete 2 tier “box” stadium, comprising of tight stands close to the pitch, and some of the most innovative lighting seen in the world, with four columns that rise from the corners of the stadium to provide both a stanchion for the roof cables, as well as a futuristic column of light. Behind each goal netting protects those in the lower tiers from wayward shots on goal. Lat season the club averaged 49,000 – an occupancy rate of over 98%.
Facilities for fans are excellent. Inside the stadium “compound”, there are numerous refreshment bars as well as clean and spacious toilets. Leg room is very generous and all seats offer an unobstructed view. During the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the stadium hosted four matches including the encounter between Sweden and England.
Who Plays There FC Kölnare considered to be one of the mainstays of German football, despite only being formed in 1948. They actually won the first ever Bundesliga in 1964, thus earning the title 1.FC (the first team), and went on to reach the semi-finals of the European cup in 1965 before losing to Liverpool in a replay. There then followed a period of mid-table stability, punctuated only by a German Cup win in 1968 until the late seventies when a further German Cup win was achieved in 1977. The following season they repeated the feat and added a 2nd league title to complete only the 3rd ever league and cup double in Bundesliga history. The season had a bizarre ending, with Cologne and Borussia Mönchengladbach level on points going into the final game separated only by goal difference of + 10. In their final match, ‘Gladbach thrashed Dortmund 12-0, and felt that they had done enough to take the title. However, Köln were also on top form and hit St.Pauli for five to capture the league title.
The championship allowed 1.FC Köln to take their place again with Europe’s elite in the European Cup. An excellent run in 1979 saw them reach the semi-final where they lost to eventual winners Nottingham Forest. In 1986 they went one better by actually reaching a European Final, when made it all the way to the UEFA Cup final against Real Madrid. The Germans headed to Spain in a confident mood, but couldn’t live up to expectations on the night and suffered a 5-1 defeat. An academic second leg did restore some pride when a 2-0 victory on the night brought some respectability back to the final aggregate score. True German stars Klaus Allofs and Pierre Littbarski carried on the good work and the team finished up as runners-up in both the 1989 and 1990 seasons.
The start of the nineties coincided with a period of depression over the city’s football team, as they slipped further and further down the league, until for the first time in their history they were relegated in 1998. Since then the team has bounced between the two divisions, although a 2nd division championship winning performance in 2005 capped a great first season in the new stadium, with Podolski impressing so much that he received a call into the national team for the Confederations Cup.
Unfortunately last season was all too familiar to the loyal fans. A cracking start to the season saw them sit as high as 4th early in the season before a terminal slump saw them eventually finish 2nd from bottom. The relegation also saw the club wave goodbye to their brightest star, Lukas Podolski who was tempted by the money from Bayern Munich.
At the stadium you will find a club shop, museum charting the club’s history. Stadium tours are offered also daily. For details visit the shop at the North end of the stadium. There is also a small fan shop in the city centre in Marzstrasse, across the road from Dom square. More details can be found at http://www.fc-koeln.de, although this site is only in German.
How to get a ticket for the RheinEnergie Stadium Despite their tendency to yo-yo between the top two divisions during the last few years, the club almost sell out in every home match. Tickets go on sale around 6 weeks before each home game via the website http://www..fc-koeln.de. You can also try and book by phone on 01805 32 56 56. Tickets for the standing terraces behind the goal start from €10 to €49 for some of the business club seats. Last season the club averaged nearly 49,000 despite their poor form.
How to get to the RheinEnergie Stadium The stadium is not really walk able from the city centre, although the number of welcoming bars and eateries along Aachener Strasse makes this option very tempting. Instead jump on one of the very frequent Tram No.1 which runs from Neumarkt, to the south of the pedestrian zone in the city centre directly to the stadium. The trams will run every 5 minutes or so in the build up to the matches and will take around 10 minutes to travel to the Rhein Energie Stadion stop.
The ground can also be reached direct from Köln Hauptbahnhof (Central Station), by taking S-Bahn line 6 (Direction Horrem) or line 13 (Direction Düren) which run every 15 minutes or so to K-Müngersdorf / Technologiepark, just 3 stops from the central station. When you get off at K-Müngersdorf you can either jump on one of the special stadium buses, or walk 15 minutes to the stadium down Vitalis Strasse. A taxi from the city centre should take around 10 minutes and cost no more than €20. Hail one from either the central station or from around the Neumarkt area.
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Getting around The city has a good mix of U-Bahn, S-Bahn and trams which covers most of the areas you will want to reach. The S-Bahn network runs as far south as Bonn, and all the way north to Dusseldorf. A single ticket for any form of transport within the city is €2, and a day ticket is €5.40.
Köln-Bonn airport is located to the south east of the city, around a 20 minute drive from the Dom. The airport is connected directly to the city centre by the S-Bahn line 6 or 13, which also links both Bonn and other destinations on the ICE network. From the UK, Germanwings fly fromLondon Stansted and Edinburgh, Easyjet fromLondon Gatwick and TUIfly.com from Birmingham and Manchester
Other airports within close reach include Düsseldorf, located 24 miles to the north of Köln, and linked directly to the main station by a regular S-Bahn line, as well as Frankfurt Main which is linked by the regular ICE service direct from the airport and takes just 57 minutes to complete the 110 mile journey.
Click here for a short video taken at the 2006 World Cup game between England and Sweden.
The Stadium – The RheinEnergie Stadium