“Salzburg-Sturm showdown: Bundesliga championship race heats up with limited fan attendance”

Will Salzburg make everything clear against the storm on Sunday (from 5 p.m. in the Sport24 live ticker) or can Graz make the championship really exciting again with three laps to go? Around 17,000 fans witnessed the Bundesliga showdown in the Red Bull Arena. But that’s exactly what caused a stir before the summit. Because in Wals-Siezenheim there would even be room for almost 30,000 spectators, but the cops don’t want to increase the ticket contingent.

The Styrian fan sector was sold out in no time at all with 1,600 tickets. The Blackies are still trying to persuade their league rivals to open up the top tier to the country’s soccer fans, or at least increase the ticket contingent for the pursuers. But the series champion does not give in.

Officially, Salzburg Managing Director Stefan Reiter said in the “Salzburg Nachrichten”: “We played all of our top Bundesliga games under these conditions and will not change the set-up because it works well and is successful. We are happy about the great fan interest and the increasing number of viewers.”

Example: Cup final

This means that the arena is officially reported as sold out as soon as 17,218 tickets have been sold. And that although 12,300 seats remain empty. The second tier will only be opened for the Champions League games. One hears from Sturm circles that the Bulls are afraid of an away game in their own arena. Because the demand from Styria is enormous. Graz is in football fever and dreams of its first championship title since 2011.

At any other league club, a similar showdown would have been sold out for days, not so in Salzburg. Here, according to Reiter, the 10,000 season ticket holders have the right of first refusal before they can go on sale. So far there are still places available, Sturm fans who also want to travel to the city of Mozart and want to support a possible coup still have the chance, even if they can’t stand by the hard core.

How atmospheric a top game in domestic football can be has been known since the cup final between Rapid and Sturm two weeks ago. The pictures from Klagenfurt caused an international sensation. Everyone who was in the stadium. still gets goosebumps when he thinks about it.