Road to the World Cup

Focus: Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, Hanover

The World Cup is right around the corner, so we’re picking up the pace. Here’s your ultimate guide to three more host cities.

Dortmund
After the required adjustments, Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park will hold about 66,000 fans, as teams like Brazil and Trinidad & Tobago look to pick up some points here this summer. During the last phase of construction and modernization, eight external steel pylons replaced the old roof supports inside the stadium to provide all fans with a clear view of the matches. Experts from Switzerland traveled to Dortmund to re-hang the venue’s roof, as the new yellow suspension structure now makes the Signal Iduna Park a widely visible landmark.

But even without tickets, fans will still be able to experience the World Cup firsthand, as two locations will be hosting the much anticipated “Fan Fest.” Come June, visitors will have a choice between the soccer-specific entertainment program on the city center’s Friesenplatz and the live concerts and comedy of the event halls Westfalenhallen. While each location is certain to provide a big screen for fans to cheer on their teams, the Westfalenhallen also offers sleeping accommodations as a part of the “Fan Camp.” For information, visit www.FanCampDortmund.de.

If you’re in Dortmund and looking to kill some time between matches, “Fußballregion Ruhrgebiet,” an exposition on the soccer history of the Ruhr area, is awaiting you. Or simply hang out on Hohe Straße, Dortmund’s designated World Cup street. Here, 150 shop windows will be turned into museum showcases as part of “WM-ShowFenster.” Topics dealt with will include football in England, the 1954 World Cup, Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund and many more.

Some of Dortmund’s most popular pubs and eateries are Bierhaus Stade, Op de Tenne, Klönschnack, Alex Café and Solendo. To dance the night away, check out the Nightrooms Dortmund.

Gelsenkirchen
Stiftung Warentest, Germany’s well-respected organization for product testing, recently criticized the safety of Gelsenkirchen’s World Cup stadium, but this announcement was angrily rejected by the Arena auf Schalke’s operators. What remains certain is that the 4-year-old venue is of the highest technical standard, featuring a retractable pitch and a closeable roof—both remote-controlled. Other highlights include, for example, the moveable south stand and a high-resolution video cube. On June 12, the U.S. will take on the Czech Republic here. Among the other teams playing in front of 55,000 at Gelsenkirchen’s World Cup venue will be Argentina, Mexico and Portugal.

Aside from the Arena, maybe the best thing about Gelsenkirchen is that even fans without tickets will be able to follow the action inside a stadium here. The Glückauf-Kampfbahn, home to the legendary FC Schalke teams of the 1930s and 1940s, will play host to the “Fan Fest” with its big screen and room for 22,000 soccer nuts. In addition to catering areas and a free daily entertainment program, the Glückauf-Kampfbahn will feature spectacular concerts on non-matchdays. Among the artists performing in Gelsenkirchen will be Simple Minds, Status Quo, Gipsy Kings and Bryan Adams. Tickets will be about $20.

Meanwhile, some of the city’s most popular bars and eateries are Fliegenpils, Der Schalker, Kronski, Hibernia Brauhaus and Restaurant Schloss Horst. Many people turn the night time into day at the Venetian Danceclub.

Gelsenkirchen was formerly dominated by the coal and steel industries and it is a highlight for anyone interested in the mining history of the Ruhr area. While it is far from being a tourism hotspot, the home of FC Schalke is very centrally located to many attractive cities such as Essen, Dortmund, Düsseldorf and Cologne.

Hanover
After a two-year modernization process that finished in early 2005 and cost approximately $75 million (U.S.), Hanover’s AWD-Arena now meets all FIFA requirements. The 45,000 seat venue originally opened in 1954, but a lot has changed since then. In 1987, new security measures and a partial roof were added while the stadium also received a new scoreboard. Today’s all roofed AWD-Arena features brand-new stands, field heating and state-of-the-art VIP boxes. Teams like Italy, Ghana, Mexico and Costa Rica will enjoy doing battle here.

With or without tickets, Hanover’s city center will be the place to go. From the main train station, a 20-minute walk will get you to Waterlooplatz, the designated “Fan Fest” and public-viewing area next to the stadium. During your walk, you will come across impressively decorated shop windows, exotic pub events and tons of action for fans to participate in. Musical artists from the guest nations will perform at the nearby “Global Village,” while the “Gourmet Festival” is looking to impress with its international dishes.

The “Fan Fest” itself will feature a 645 sq ft big screen. It was originally planned for about 20,000 fans, but a June 2nd concert featuring The Scorpions, Fury in the Slaughterhouse and others (free of charge!) has brought about demands for increased seating capacity. Consequently, talks about an additional big screen for another 20,000 visitors are currently ongoing. On the outside, the area of the “Fan Fest” will be decorated with soccer-related banners. A colourful supporting program has been planned for the duration of the World Cup.

Some of Hanover’s eating and drinking hotspots are Bismarck-Bahnhof, Bar exSenza, Coyote Cafe and Paulaner am Thielenplatz. To shake your body, check out Brauhaus Ernst-August.