As a Russian model competition prevented the training camp
**Now the teams are heading back out into the world to get the last bit of power for the season start in training camps. But history shows that things didn't always go smoothly in training camps. Space food, buckets for vomiting and the legendary "Miss Banana" tell many curious stories.
When Friedhelm Funkel was still coach of Fortuna Düsseldorf, he shook his head with a grin at the training methods of one of his legendary predecessors, Rolf Schafstall: "If we trained like that today, I'd probably end up in jail," some people might have thought it was a joke at the time. But time witnesses would sign a thick pen under it. There are recordings of Rolf Schafstall standing on the training ground in Bochum one day, full of disgust towards his players: "If I ever see that again, what we have here for weak footballers. Man, man, man!"
The ZDF reporter asked him casually if it might not be a good idea to bring their own women to the training camp - after all, there would be the opportunity for "a little shared time" and overall a "nicer atmosphere" would prevail. Rolf Schafstall stared at the question from the filmmaker speechless for a few seconds before answering harshly and directly: "No, I don't think so. That's over the top. We have a tough job. We're expected to earn points, to achieve something in the table. We want to stay in the Bundesliga, especially VfL Bochum, and all those other things are secondary. Women belong at home, they can stay there, and we men want to be alone with each other!"
Team caretakers behind the potted plant
Their own women in the training camp - that was indeed a ridiculous idea of the journalist. But foreign women were possible, as another story from the early eighties shows. At that time, Schafstall was on the road with his team for two weeks in the idyllic Sauerland. One evening, he used the stay to go out for player observation in the vicinity. The players of VfL had apparently been prepared for this longer, as they had set up storm-proof shelters for themselves. These diligent activities had not escaped the notice of the team caretakers, who hid behind a potted plant in the lobby and seemed to be preparing for anything that might happen in the following hours until the return of the trainer.
But when four lightly dressed women with high heels called out some player names and asked for their room numbers at the reception, they rubbed their eyes in disbelief. They nervously discussed what to do. In the end, they decided on the quick, ruthless and bold move and rushed up the stairs to the players' rooms. From outside, the sound of cheerful whistling could be heard.
Bravely arranged around a table, the women sat with three players and smoked. The caretakers stood silently opposite the pros and stared at them. Until outside on the floor, a joyful whistling could be heard distinctly.**
The door opened and a team member with a smile on his face and four bottles of Sekt on a tray entered. When the player saw the team manager, he turned elegantly on his heel and left without saying a word, still whistling, a few moments later. The four thirsty women followed under the disgruntled looks of the frustrated players. Trainer Rolf Schafstall is said to have never learned of this failed encounter.
But a disappointing visit from women is just one of the points that keep resurfacing in the old legends. Stefan Kuntz, the current HSV board member, once complained about other typical issues of a training camp: "The rooms were a bit smaller than an astronaut's capsule, and the food reminded me more of astronaut food." The topic of food also raises another issue, as trainer Peter Neururer once announced to the players: "You can take buckets to the bathroom." Jan Aage Fjørtoft once claimed that Felix Magath at Frankfurt Eintracht had completely destroyed someone's body: "We'll probably hold our training camp on Alcatraz next." Pranks in a damp atmosphere were no longer possible under "Quälix" at that time.
The former Bayern manager Reiner Calmund described the changed situation in 2001 in particularly impressive terms: "The players are now little sausages. Sleepyheads, who are yawning, and can't get out of their own way. Back then, no one sneaked out of the training camp, we had to catch the boys with a lasso. Now the players grab the key at reception, take their phone, their headphones - then it goes ding, ding, dumb. The whole day: eating, massage, ding, ding, dumb. Back then, the women called that the men weren't bulking up. Now the boys call to check if their girlfriends are still at home."
"Women are the best training camp"
However, in 2015, there was a particularly special announcement that caused a stir: The third-division MSV Duisburg had changed its training camp location to Turkey because, in the originally reserved hotel, a Russian model competition with 400 participants was taking place simultaneously. With a wink, it was announced: "We can prepare for the spring series in peace and quiet!" One has to get used to that. What paradise on earth would mean for every Kreisliga footballer of the present generation, if it was denied to them - out of fear they wouldn't have the necessary "peace and quiet"?
One can certainly be reassured: Such things would not have existed back then!
Back then, Hannover 96's youth player Rainer Zobel booked his training camp flight ticket - he was supposed to arrive late - even changed it himself, because he preferred to do something else instead of sweating on the field with his colleagues. After a three-day search, he was finally found. He had spent the time with his girlfriend instead. Faithful to the old maxim of Bremen's trainer legend Otto Rehhagel: "Women are the best training camp". The Werder manager Willi Lemke added this quote at some point: "... their own, of course."
In Stuttgart, the story of young Markus Elmer is not forgotten. The VfB player had properly checked in with his parents for a visit to the swimming pool in the afternoon, wearing only swimming trunks and a T-shirt. However, after two days, he still hadn't returned home, so his concerned father contacted the VfB and learned that the promising talent was in Greece with the team. But even there, Elmer was being searched for. His teammates finally found him late at night around 11:00 PM, sitting at a large family feast at a grand table and enjoying a large glass of Ouzo. Elated, Elmer told his colleagues the reason for the celebration. He was about to officially propose to the daughter of the house in just a few minutes. The teammates managed to lure the drunken lover away from the party just in time and kept him in his hotel room until departure.
Similarly, Schalke goalkeeper Jens Lehmann didn't want to miss out on some fun after a hard training session and so he sneaked out of the hotel in Florida at night, where Borussia Dortmund was lodging. Lehmann's nighttime escapade, however, came to an abrupt end on the balcony of his trainer Peter Neururer's hotel room - as the bedsheets he had tied together were not long enough.
Christoph Daum and "Miss Banana"
The times for footballers became even rougher when tabloids began publishing pictures from training camps. On one such photo, trainer Christoph Daum unfortunately got too close to the newly crowned "Miss Banana." The result was that his wife at home heard comments like these in the supermarket: "Ah yes, your husband is with the Cologne team in the training camp. He's working hard, we saw that!"
Meanwhile, at VfL Bochum, they tried to combine the pleasant with the useful. Together with the women, they went on a two-week trip to the beautiful island of Sylt. President Ottokar Wuest was pleased: "Westerland is already a hot spot. It's better for the men to be under the care of their women!" But this was to be a one-time exception. The team and trainer rebelled successfully after the trip. And that's still the case today.
- When discussing the harsh training methods of Rolf Schafstall, HSV board member Stefan Kuntz complained about the small size of the rooms and the astronaut-like food during his training camps with Hannover 96.
- In a story from the 80s, Rolf Schafstall's team caretakers were caught hiding behind a potted plant in the lobby as they prepared for potential disturbances during a player observation trip, which eventually resulted in the arrival of four foreign women.
- Former Bayern manager Reiner Calmund described a significant change in training camp culture, stating that players now resembled "little sausages," staying in their rooms, eating, and getting massages compared to the high-energy training campts of the past.
- MSV Duisburg, looking for peace and quiet during their training camp, chose to relocate to Turkey after a Russian model competition with 400 participants was held in their originally reserved hotel.
