Fans were amazed when Stefan Raab stepped into the ring fit and full of energy on Saturday evening in Düsseldorf. Many in the hall were looking forward to the TV comeback and the announced new show.
Stefan Raab’s boxing match against Regina Halmich was a box office hit: 13,000 spectators came to the PSD Bank Dome in Düsseldorf to see the entertainer’s return live. However, like millions of viewers in front of their TV sets, they had to be very patient until the fight started.
What was shown to bridge the gap and which took up significantly more space than the actual boxing match was actually quite entertaining. The best moments from Raab’s TV career were shown again, including scenes from “TV Total” and “Schlag den Raab”, but also from the chancellor’s duel before the 2013 federal election between Peer Steinbrück and Angela Merkel, in which he was one of the moderators.
In the films that were shown before the fight, numerous celebrities appeared: In addition to presenters such as Anne Will, Markus Lanz and Thomas Gottschalk, comedians such as Helge Schneider, Oliver Welke and Michael “Bully” Herbig and also singers such as Herbert Grönemeyer, Udo Lindenberg and Campino from the “Toten Hosen” had their say – in other words, all of Raab’s colleagues.
Other celebrities in the audience included streamer “Knossi”, drag queen Olivia Jones and Lutz van der Horst from the “Heute-Show”. The event was moderated by Frank Buschmann, Laura Wontorra and Raab’s former “TV Total” sidekick Elton.
During the entertainer’s long-awaited entrance, Raab once again showed his musical skills and performed the song “Pa auf’s Maul” together with rappers Sido and Ski Aggu, which was subsequently released.
Raab finally lost the boxing match that the spectators had been waiting for so long to defeat Halmich on points, but most of his fans had expected that anyway. According to a survey in the hall, only 36 percent of those present believed that Raab would win. Quite a few were surprised that he even lasted six rounds.
- Raab against Halmich: Fans hope for more than just a boxing match
Viewers like Carsten and Christiane from Gütersloh, who describe themselves as fans from the very beginning, were astonished by Raab’s good fitness level.
Mark from Frankfurt had a similar view: “I already knew that the fight would end like this, but I was surprised that Stefan Raab looked like this.”
“I was surprised that Stefan Raab had lost so much weight. I was very happy to see him in great shape on stage,” added Roberto from Heidenheim. He also enjoyed the show itself. “Seeing Stefan Raab again after so many years and having the same feeling as back then was simply indescribable,” he enthused about Raab’s comeback.
Heinrich from Castrop-Rauxel, on the other hand, was annoyed that it was all about Raab and that there was no film for Regina Halmich: “She has statistics like no other. They could have shown something.” Regarding the debate about whether Raab’s humor is still contemporary, Heinrich says: “It’s not just contemporary, it’s missed.”
Juri from Villingen-Schwenningen, however, is skeptical about Raab’s TV comeback: “He was at his peak. It will be difficult to build on that. The sense of humor has changed. Now everyone watches YouTube. Television is dying out.”
When Raab announced after the fight that he had signed a five-year contract with RTL and would be starting a new show the following week, there was still great jubilation.
Whether the new format works will be seen in the coming week. “You won’t win a million here” is the name of the new show, but you will need a subscription to RTL+ to watch it.
