EM 2024 - From "pyrotechnics" to the national anthem: What the German fans are singing at the European Championship
Schalalalalalala! So good it's been for the German National Team for a long time. Happy fans celebrate, drink, and hop after Germany games late into the night. And they sing – on party miles, in small gardens, and in living rooms – German fan songs. But which ones are particularly popular among fans? What's the text like? And where do they come from? A brief overview.
"Oh, how beautiful. Oh, how beautiful. Something like this we haven't seen for a long time, so beautiful, so beautiful" Many football fanatics from the Bundesliga know this chant from the fans of FC Bayern Munich, who regularly sing it to celebrate the German Championship. However, in the year 2024, it remained silent among Munich fans – after all, Bayer Leverkusen had already secured their first Meisterschale on the 29th matchday. The lines of the Shunkel Song come from the pen of Hamburger Walter Rothenburg, who rewrote the popular hit "Oh, how beautiful you are" in the early 1950s. Not only Rothenburg's only contribution to German sports culture: He was also the one who organized the boxing matches of Max Schmeling. Today, Rothenburg, who died in 1975, is hardly known by anyone – but "Oh, how beautiful you are" is heard throughout the country.
"Pyrotechnics isn't a crime. We will fight for it and let emotions run free" The chant of the hour. It comes from the smoky throat of TikToker "The Balconultra". And he lives up to his name: From his balcony in Gera, the Balconultra, who is named Niko Thoms in civil life, sings football songs and posts videos online. So also with the Pyrotechnik Song, which he wrote to the melody of Bonnie Tyler's "It's a Heartache". The Mallorca stars Ikke Huftgold and Marc Eggers took notice of him, and they recorded the Pyrotechnik Song again with him. Now, Thoms' fireworks-friendly song is not to be forgotten from the stadiums – and the trained carer tours through Germany and Mallorca with it.
"Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh" "Seven Nation Army" by the band The White Stripes. What did it need to become a football hit? A few fans of the Belgian club FC Brugge and an Italian bar where the legendary riff was heard. Later in the evening, their team played in the Champions League group stage against the towering favorite AC Milan. Brugge won the game 1:0, and the fans reminded themselves of the catchy melody they had heard earlier in the city and sang it through the entire stadium. Now it is the anthem par excellence, which doesn't even need a text. And that's why it is sung worldwide in the arenas by fans.
"Berlin, Berlin, we're going to Berlin" - So simple and catchy. This was heard from the Dortmund Tribunes, after the National Team eliminated the Danes from the EURO 2024 championship with a 2:0 score in the Round of 16. Originally used as a battle hymn of the club fans, whose teams are still representing in the DFB-Pokal. The final of the competition takes place in the Berlin Olympic Stadium, where they all want to go with their heart teams. Just like the fans of Musiala, Havertz and Co. - because the Home-EM final is also being held in the capital city. This song was invented by the fans of Bayer Uerdingen 05 on Good Friday 1985 after their DFB semi-final win against 1. FC Saarbrucken. And in the final, the Uerdingers actually defeated the mighty FC Bayern with a 2:1 score and took home the golden trophy. The fans of the German National Team hope for the same, but in silver.
"One goes, one stays in." If mockery were a song, it would be this one. This classic song was already suitable for taking on the opponent during Germany's 7:1 victory in the semi-finals of the 2014 World Cup against Brazil. This song comes over the fans' lips whenever their own team scores many goals against the opponent. The German fans' song is popular – and it has even made it to Hollywood recently. The two actors Will Smith and Martin Lawrence can now sing it. The German National Players Ilkay Gündoğan and Antonio Rüdiger introduced it to them during a PR event for the new film of the two American superstars.
"Unity and justice and freedom" - The National Anthem belongs to football just like the whistle to the referee or the shin guards to Florian Wirtz. While some compatriots, like the Italians, sing their hearts out before the match even starts, the national anthem plays a role in the actions on the field for other nations. The English sing theirs when their team is behind, to spur them on. The French sing the Marseillaise throughout the entire match, as they don't have many fan songs. And the Germans pay homage to their fatherland after the match, when their team has won. The EURO Final is on July 14th - maybe the Germans will sing it again then. That will be enough for the next two years, until the World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the USA comes along.
Fans enthusiastically gather at public viewing areas across Europe to cheer for their teams during the European Championship, setting the stage for exciting soccer matches. As the national anthem plays, a sense of unity and pride fills the air, momentarily pausing the excitement for a moment of shared identity. Post-match celebrations often include pyrotechnics, adding a thrilling and visual element to the atmosphere.
