- The Initial Start of the Bundesliga Two Decades Ago Transformed into a Horror Scenario for Schalke's Bus Chauffeur
The 2004/2005 Bundesliga season debut between SV Werder Bremen and FC Schalke 04 is the first day on the job as a permanent bus driver for the Schalke squad for 29-year-old Lars, a motorcycle enthusiast, AC/DC and Metallica fan, and drummer in a heavy metal band. He relishes the challenge, although he doesn't need it to be as intense as it was twenty years prior.
Lars, a die-hard supporter of the Royal Blues who still reminisces about his days cheering in Block 5 of the Parkstadion as a teenager and registering his four sons as S04 members on the day of their birth, chauffeurs the team to the opening game in Bremen. After trainer Jupp Heynckes and the team, including new recruits Ailton and Mladen Krstajic from Bremen, disappear into the Weserstadion locker rooms, he begins to prepare the post-match meal, usually frozen and transported from Gelsenkirchen for away games. To avoid idling and to provide power for the overheated ovens, he requests information on power outlet options from a security staff member.
"The staff member showed me a utility room filled with a sea of wires and a solitary open outlet. I plugged in my extension cord." Back in the transportation, the ovens are already warming up when a loud explosion sounds throughout the stadium, followed by the shutdown of the intercom, the scoreboard, and the floodlights. Lars questions himself, "why so many chaos ensued so suddenly, with people hastily fleeing past my bus." Once he gazes into the Marathon Gate, he witnesses the stadium in complete darkness. Power outage!
When he spots others inspecting the utility room from which his cable mysteriously leads into the bus, Lars fears the worst. Overwhelmed by guilt and nerves, "I then exited the vehicle, acted nonchalantly, and listened intently to determine the actual cause of the commotion."
A Wild Night in the Dark
As the lights go out in the sold-out Werderstadion, home to 42,500 spectators, fans light their lighters, sing songs, and the Schalke fans manage to deplete the beer stands in the visitors' section. Meanwhile, ARD viewers at home have to make do with a TV show, with Roberto Blanco performing "Ein bisschen Spaß muss sein" to keep things entertaining. The on-the-scene 'suspect' is less amused, potentially already worrying about his liability insurance and the fine print in his employment contract.
Since his cable goes unnoticed later and the distribution room inspection appears to be complete, the bus driver now proceeds to destroy evidence. He secretly unplugs his cable from the outlet and hides the extension cord in the depths of the bus, as if it never left Gelsenkirchen. With the agreement of the responsible parties, he starts his bus again, plays an AC/DC CD, and prepares the meals as planned.
The season opener between Werder and Schalke finally begins under emergency lighting with an hour's delay, and Nelson Valdes scores the latest Bundesliga goal of all time at 23:15 for a 1:0 victory for Werder Bremen.
After the team and coaches have been fed, and the bus heads back to Gelsenkirchen late at night, Lars learns from the radio that a digger during construction work is suspected to have severed a power cable, causing the power outage. The next day, the Bremen utility company announces that a high-voltage sleeve, now on display at the Werder Museum, was the culprit for the power outage in and around the stadium. "In the end," admits the now 49-year-old, "I didn't care who was responsible for the chaos. As long as it wasn't me."
During the chaos caused by the power outage at the Werderstadion, Lars becomes concerned about his involvement, as the mystery cable leading from the utility room to his bus is inspected by others.
Despite the power outage and the ensuing chaos, the 2004/2005 German Bundesliga season opener between Werder Bremen and Schalke 04 continues under emergency lighting with a delay.
