Can someone please explain to me why I have suddenly become a Hannover 96 fan? There is no good reason for me to count myself amongst the thousands of Hannover 96 fans, but for some strange reason I do!
It started for me last February when a friend asked if I wanted to go to Germany with him to visit a town near Hannover where he once lived. I agreed to go as it gave me a chance to practise the little German I had managed to learn over the past few years and because the beer in Germany is particularly good! There was also the promise that we would go to a Bundesliga match while we were there. The game we saw was Hannover against Werder Bremen. It was not a very good result for the home side, but the whole experience of watching a German football match was just magical! So different from football in England. The stadium was fantastic, the fans friendly and the noise and atmosphere in the ground was just wonderful.
Since then, I have kept in touch with Hannover 96 through the website and the very little coverage of German football in the British newspapers. But the question I keep asking myself is why? I have a season ticket for my home-town team in England (Crystal Palace) and go to all their home matches and several away games also. So why am I so excited about this club in Germany which I have only ever seen play once but desparately want to see again?
My theory is that there is something addictive in the water (or beer) in Hannover so that once you have experienced it you must have more! From what I saw of Hannover it looks like a very nice place with lots of green areas. The people were friendly and everywhere was very clean. It looks like a good place to live. Did I get the right impression or is there something I should know
My German is still very poor, so to find a Website in English which is dedicated to Hannover 96 is a dream come true! Thank you for going to all the trouble of setting it up for the benefit of people like me. I look forward to keeping in touch with the team through this forum and, more importantly, to making another trip to the AWD Arena.

Good luck in the new season.

I recognise your problem. I think it must be the Leine or the local beer (Herrenhäuser) something like that. I can't help it either .

Seriously: people often ask me why I'm a Hannover-fan, although I only lived three months in Hannover and vistited just a few matches of the club. I like the recent club-history (since I follow the club). For example they won the cup-final in 1992, relegation to the Regionalliga, promovation to the second division again (after four exciting promotion-matches) and promovation to the first division. And that's just recent history....When you ask the elder fans they know more great stories about the club.

I also liked the atmosphere during the matches. The fans played the drums, wich was very nice.

I think that's the beginning of an answer, at least for me....

I guess it is called the red virus.
And it is everywhere in this city. I assume it comes from a little bug in the Eilenriede forest, which infected the surrounding crop fields so the whole stuff ended up in the Herrenhäuser beer.
It is in the air we breath, the food we eat and the beer we drink. It is in the water we bath in and there is nothing we can di about it ;-)
It makes us wanted to be looked down at, because we know, that everybody else thinks that hanover is like the ugliest city in the world, but we all know how everybody else is wrong (actually Hanover is better than it's reputation).
Especially ppl speaking English are drawn to our city because of the ties with the British kings and queens.

Let's keep this thread interesting and hope we can put some more life in here when the season starts
wellcome Londoner ;-)

_________________
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Gegen Rassismus
Remember Lara!

well, perhaps it is that being a crystal palace fan, your expectations are very low!
sorry!
i first heard of hannover96 when i was on a ferry to germany and got talking to a H96 fan. he was of course german but spoke good enough english to convince me that hannover were the greatest team in german football - far better than any bavarian outfit or monchengladbachians.
he told me of their great history and how they have known very bad times recently but now are on the way up again (like your beloved crystal palace?)
i went to my first game there the following january. a 2-2 draw v hamburg. MAN it was COLD!!!
but even so the atmosphere was good, even in the old stadium which was not too modern.
since then i have been across a couple of times each year, and watched the new stadium take shape. the team is good and bad. but when they hit a good run it can last 2 months and they are fantastic. then comes the 2 months of what the germans call "Scheiss"
the fans are mostly good natured and the only problems i have ever had are more caused because i can't understand them when they speak fast to me,
the all round football watching experience in germany is like it was in england 10 years or so ago. i hope they can keep it that way and not ruin the game like in england
in the meantime, don't ask why. Just enjoy!!

What happened in those years? I was never so lucky to experience it first-hand, but I was under the impression that the match atmosphere in England is mostly great.

Other than that, it's great to see our little club branching out all over Europe. And if we could only climb one more place in the table next season, there is a fair chance that we will actually play in Holland or England in a UI-Cup match next year. Here's hoping!

_________________
Konjugation eines unregelmäßigen Verbs

Ich bin fest.
Du bist eigensinnig.
Er ist ein dickköpfiger, unbelehrbarer Hornochse.
(Bertrand Russell)

The atmosphere at most English games is now only average and I agree that it is not as good as it was. In my opinion it is getting worse. There are many reasons for this, but let me explain the main differences between watching games in England and in Germany;

In England, fans are not allowed to drink beer or any other alcohol while watching the game. Smoking is banned in the ground. Flags, banners and drums are forbidden by my club. ALL Premiership stadiums are seat only, even behind the goals. Nobody is allowed to stand up during the game (though some visiting disobay this). The cost of a ticket for one Premiership match is about 50 Pounds (75 Euros). My Season ticket for a team playing in the league equal to Bundesliga 2 next season is almost 400 Pound (600 Euro) for the cheapest seat in the stadium. So, if I want to take 2 children to an away match I would expect to pay over 100 Pounds for the 3 of us just to get into the stadium! Only the rich can now afford to watch football in England. These tend to be people who prefer to sit quietly and be entertained, rather than the more excitable young fans who will sing and join in with the chanting.

In Germay the football experience appears to be more about having fun. I have not been to many games, but the atmosphere is one of friendly rivalry between fans. Clubs even provide a special area for the more vocal fans to gather and create an atmosphere. This has never happened in England. I have some photographs of the Werder Bremen fans lighting a fire and shooting smoke bombs onto the pitch during their game at Hannover last season. This may have been a bit naughty, but nobody was hurt.

The general view here is that many clubs are exploiting the fans who have supported them all their lives. The danger is that new fans cannot afford to go to games, or will not bother when the team is not doing so well. Clubs are losing their identity with their local community and the common working man.

Anyway, I know this forum is intended to be about H96, but it makes me mad! Even worse is that I will be on holiday in Cologne on day 1 of the new season. I am tempted to get the train over to Hannover but my partner says she will kill me if I do. Should I risk it?

If anyone would like me to e-mail tham a copy of my photos of the Bremen fans at the AWD Arena do let me know.

Geez, and I complained when they raised the price for the stands to 13 Euro!

I think we are on the same track over here, though. There have been many complaints that the clubs are trying to exchange their traditional audience for a more affluent one. That might work in the short term, but who is going to support the club if it ever fell on hard times again? The yuppies? I think not.



Well, Hannover is a beautiful city. We have really nice royal gardens, a great Opera house, and the stadium is close to the inner city. Just bring your partner along! And did you know that King George I who appointed the first Prime Minister back in 16something was from Hannover? So a visit would be nice for historical reasons, too.

_________________
Konjugation eines unregelmäßigen Verbs

Ich bin fest.
Du bist eigensinnig.
Er ist ein dickköpfiger, unbelehrbarer Hornochse.
(Bertrand Russell)

well, londoner, you say everything that i believe is wrong with english football.
i (and my partner) had season tickets for our team for 20+ years but the prices have now got too much. in 2 years they went from 330pounds (about 500euro) to 506pounds this year (750 euro)
they do though have a new stadium to pay for which is full nearly every game and is 50% bigger than the old stadium.
on top of this they are selling all their good players - the centre forward went in january to Turkey and their best player in 20 years is now off to chelsea, now the season tickets have been sold.
like you say this forum is supposed to be about H96 though, but i have seen in the past couple of years more rules and policing coming into german football and prices edging up.
so i hope that you don't lose the fun out of watching your football.

oh and by the way, Hannover is a great place to visit for shops, bars and has a very beautiful lake. well worth a visit for your partner. certainly much nicer than cologne. and only 2.5 hours by train
but i would say that wouldn't i?

I believe it is obvious why people like you become 96 fans. first of all you had a good vacation in or near to hannover. so when you start remembering those days, you have good feelings. second of all you connect these good feelings with the team you were supporting. also it is a HUGE difference if you watch a game in england, where the anouncer tells you to sit down and be quit, or if you are in germany in a stadium were soccer acctually means more than just simply a sport. here the fans will celebrate anyway, because it is our weekend and we want our fun. our players are often found in the city and you can really life with them. for instance my neighbour is T. Christiansen. There are no superstars, who act like little sissis. they are real men, who have problems and needs like all of us. people like beckham, lampard and rooney are just spoiled guys, I could never relate to. If you want to experiance a really good atmosphere, go to games like 96-hsv or 96-bayern . that is just off the hook. forget about christal palace and come to hannover every weekend. there is a guy from the "POtt" who always travels to nottingham, to see them play. you could be our mascot like that^^ mfg jiggi

Thank you Herr Snake, the reason for my love for H96 is becoming a little clearer. I am not sure that everything you say is quite right as I have only ever spent 24 hours in Hannover. The Reds lost and it was bloody cold. That said, people I met were friendly the beer was very good indeed! My Crystal Palace have very little in common with people like Beckham, Rooney and Lampard, but that is part of the problem here. I can already tell you who will finish in the top 3 in the English Premiership next season.

I would very much like to be like your friend who travels to Nottingham every week. Sadly, I think he probably has a lot more money than me and can afford the air fare. But, I am studying the game plan for next season and hope to join you in Hannover before too long. Why this is so, I still do not know for sure. Perhaps it is in part because of the concern the good people of Hannover are showing for my problem.

I hope you continue to enjoy your football at Hannover, which is exactly the way it should be. Until I get the chance to join you in Hannover, I will do all I can to enjoy lower league football with Crystal Palace. However, I may not be travelling to home games on the London underground trains just yet!

Cheers!

Thanks for your tourist information advice, Jim. I have shown your comments to my partner and suggested we take in a match at Hannover during our holiday on the Rhine. Her response was interesting to say the least. The good news is that the doctors here thinks I should be out of intensive care quite soon now. The bad news is that she is "unlikely" to be coming to Hannover with me in the near future. Just out of interest, what are the women like over there?

Good luck to MCFC next year.

Your friend doesn't happen to be a Brunswick fan, no?
Our woman are less agressive, to say the least.

_________________
veni vidi vici
Gegen Rassismus
Remember Lara!

I am not familiar with Brunswick. Is it somewhere I should avoid? Sorry to be a bit thick, but I am keen to learn.

It's the 2nd biggest city in lower saxony (after Hanover) so the only real derby we have against them. We don't really like them, but they are in different leagues (have just been promoted to 2nd BL), so...
So what reason does your friend have to hate Hanover?

_________________
veni vidi vici
Gegen Rassismus
Remember Lara!

Brunswick (Braunschweig):

a) a city in the east of lower-saxony;
b) hometown of "Braunschweiger Turn- und Sportverein Eintracht" (BTSV), one of Hannover's oldest foes;
c) another word for hell.

The relationship between Hannover and Braunschweig is comparable to rivalries like Schalke-Dortmund or other notable derbies. In the 80s matches between 96 and Braunschweig were often effected by violent riots.

Meanwhile the clubs aren't at the same eye level anymore (if they ever were ). During the past years 96 made its way from the 3rd league to the Bundesliga while Braunschweig still is struggling in the lower leagues. They just made it to the 2nd Bundesliga (as they did in 2001/2002), but they will be one of the relgating teams in the next season (as they were in 2002/2003 ).

Oh! Now I get it! Love the description "another word for Hell". My friend, or should I say partner, doesn't HATE Hannover. What she is not so happy about is me spending money on trips to Hannover to watch football when she could be spending it on something far more useful, such as shoes, a nice frock or a new handbag. However, I have already thought of the answer to this particular problem. The next time I go to Hannover I will bring her back something of great beauty and top quality which she can wear on any occation and be the envy of all her friends. How much does the new home shirt cost?

hey, in the city of hannover you can go shopping very well. so let her go shopping and looking for shoes and something else. in that time you can watch a game from hannover and after that you catch her. and believe me: 3 hours will be not enough to go shopping through hannover for a woman!

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Wenn dir deine Träume keine Angst machen, dann sind sie nicht groß genug.

Believe me: You just don't want to know... Should be something like 70€...

btw: I'm member of the board of the 96 Supporters Club "Rote Kurve". If you ever come to Hannover, please try to get in touch with me (via email (dtriebler@rotekurve.de) or via PM). We could make a nice little story about you for our magazine.

Well, I guess your Missus would probably really like it over here. Great shops, nice cafés and restaurants and everything is so much cheaper than back in the UK. If I wasn't going to home matches myself I would have offered to take her round the shops, but I have come to the conclusion that seeing my team play is much more fun than shopping (and I am a bit of a shop-a-holic with a collection of Gucci handbags, so I guess that speaks for itself...).

By the way, the stadium is pretty close to the town center and on Saturdays most shops are open until 8 o'clock at night so you can meet her in town after the match...

But seriously, Hannover is a nice place. Not as big as London, of course, but our friends from abroad (UK,Canada, States) love it.

Apart from that women over here are about the same as in the UK, really.

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I'm underneath the sun
And I'm underneath the gun

i've been rumbled!
but thanks for your good wishes, and i hope that palace (and Jon Macken) can do well next season.

oh and don't worry about the new Hannover96 shirt, for some reason the german fans are quite happy to wear last years or even the year befores shirt.
on sunday i was at glasgow rangers v borussia monchengladbach (....its a long story....) and while all the rangers fans had the new 2005 shirt, many of the gladbach fans wore old shirts. i think in this way the germans are more concious of value than their UK counterparts
just another reason why i admire the german football