The mood in the stadium quickly reached an unexpected low because the English team remained extremely pale. In the city the English celebrated as usual.
Photo: imago/David Klein
If you take the train through Frankfurt am Main, you will be politely asked by an announcement to pay attention to your belongings in the compartment during the stopover. When you get off there, the wish for a pleasant stay comes with well-intentioned advice: “We are here in Frankfurt, please look after your valuables!” The uncertainty does not subside when you leave the station, wild shouts come from the forecourt into the hall .
20 men gesticulate animatedly at the taxi rank and run around between the cars and possible passengers. Fast words fly back and forth loudly. For some people arriving, this is all a bit outrageous and they turn around again. Ünal takes what sounds like an argument and doesn’t seem any different from a distance calmly. “No,” he says, “that’s not normal.” The explanation has to wait: while he puts my luggage in the trunk of his taxi, he chats again with a colleague and two or three conductors of the beige transport fleet. Then it starts and Ünal explains the hectic rush: “The English are here.”
Helicopter and distinguished visitors
There has been a state of emergency in the Main metropolis since Wednesday. The British tabloid “The Sun” writes of 350,000 English people who are currently on a football vacation in Germany, and at least 100,000 are said to be in Frankfurt. After the first night was said to have passed without any major incidents, helicopters began circling over the city from Thursday afternoon. Thousands of English fans had already gathered at the Römer to get in the mood for the second group game against Denmark. After the clashes with Serbian supporters during the first Group C game in Gelsenkirchen, security measures were significantly tightened again. And high-ranking visitors also had to be looked after accordingly: Prince William at least gave the English team’s appearance in the Frankfurt Arena a bit of shine. The Danish King Frederik X was able to celebrate with the better team at 1:1.
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There is actually enough space in Frankfurt for football fans at this European Championship. At 1.4 kilometers, the fan mile on the banks of the Main is the longest in Germany. The city spent more than 14 million euros to ensure that 30,000 people could watch the games there. However, the countless opportunities to drink and party in the city center are much more popular with the English. A melodious “Fucking!” can be heard on every corner.
The joy of scoring and driving a taxi
Ünal is happy about the many guests from the island. “The English do everything by taxi,” he says during the journey and laughs. He hasn’t had any bad experiences yet, neither have his colleagues, he says. Frankfurt’s taxi drivers are in great mood for the European Championship. With the motto “The Joy of Goals”, the Main metropolis is hosting a total of five games, with three more to come: the DFB team’s final group game this Sunday against Switzerland, and three days later the game between Slovakia and Romania in the Group E and a round of 16 on July 1st. Ünal was disappointed in the first game in his hometown last Monday. “They all walked to the stadium,” he reports of the Slovaks. Only a few Belgians got into his taxi. The taxi drivers also prepared properly for the tournament. “But these English people,” says Ünal and laughs again: “We really didn’t expect that.”
You can see English fans in top form on the way to the stadium. There isn’t much time left until kick-off – and the S-Bahn stops one station before the destination. They understand the announcement “Police operation”. The most frequently heard answer: another pleasant-sounding “fucking”. They don’t understand the rest. They don’t really care that there are people on the tracks making it impossible for them to continue their journey. They sing. And drink. A short time later it continues. The mood rises. The highlight is a wonderful version of Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark” in the resounding train station tunnel.
Without a show, there is no atmosphere
The English national anthem at the start of the second half is also impressive, coming solely from the throats of the estimated 15,000 fans without any musical accompaniment. Because the big show by Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Harry Kane and colleagues on the pitch is canceled, the mood reaches its lowest point. The “fucking” now sounds very out of tune. The final whistle produces a rare image, as a colleague assures me: the English fans immediately leave the stadium in droves.
The approximately 10,000 Danes, on the other hand, don’t want to leave at all. Like national coach Kasper Hjulmand, you probably enjoy the “feeling of being able to win against England.” Morten Hjulmand’s 114 km/h shot from 28 meters directly to the inside post in the 34th minute gave Denmark their second point in the game Group C. And the opportunity to celebrate progress in the last preliminary round game next Tuesday against Serbia in Munich.
“Hell Hole” and “Zombie Zone”
The English still believe in this, having already earned four points. But coach Gareth Southgate spoke about it with an air as if he had just been eliminated. His team, which is by far the most valuable in the tournament with a market value of more than 1.7 billion euros, definitely deserved it after this performance. A brilliant goal from star striker Kane to take the lead was the best thing about it. The rest caused whistles from fans from both camps.
The English fans don’t have the finest words to say about Southgate. “What now?” asks one of his group of ten people. The prompt answer: “Get out of here as quickly as possible and back to the city.” This time mostly by public transport. The English preference for taxi rides in Frankfurt can perhaps be partly explained by stories from the island. The metropolis on the Main was described in advance by the press as a “hellhole”. “There are now an estimated 5,000 drug addicts roaming around a few streets in the city center,” it was said. The train station district, from which more than 10,000 crimes are reported every year, is a “zombie zone”.
English conquest
Ünal doesn’t want to get upset. At least not through any headlines. However, he is worried about his business. “For five years now, you haven’t needed a license to drive a taxi here,” he says. He estimates my trip will cost around 15 euros. That’s right, exactly. With new colleagues, most of whom now “only drive with a navigation system,” I might have had to pay twice as much. “They don’t know their way around the city.” Ünal gives me my luggage and wishes me all the best. And he’s gone, towards the train station.
The good business with the English seems to be over. While the night in Frankfurt was still loud with blue lights and heavy with alcohol, the morning rain on Friday seems to have washed away the guests from the island – most likely towards Cologne. As we all know, it’s also a good place to celebrate. The great conquest of the cathedral city is planned for Tuesday, around the English game against Slovenia.
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