When the state capital hosted a World Cup

Still in the Rheinstadion
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When Düsseldorf hosted the European Championship

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The opening ceremony of the EM 1988 in the Rheinstadion.
Photo: HORSTMÜLLER GmbH

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Düsseldorf It is an EM for all of Europe that has been going on since June 11th. However, this means that each country is only represented by one host city – for Germany that is Munich. But Düsseldorf also has a European Championship past.

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Germany has also been an EM host since late Tuesday evening. It took four days for the continental final round, which spanned almost all of Europe, to also reach our nation: With the game of the DFB selection against France, the tournament arrived in Germany. However, it will not reach any other city than Munich, because there is only one venue per nation.

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Düsseldorf, like the other cities with large and tournament-friendly arenas in Germany, will have to be patient for a while, but luckily not for too long: In three years’ time the European Championship finals will take place in Germany, and then Euro 2024 will be like that Tournament officially called, also make a stop in the state capital of North Rhine-Westphalia.

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This is by no means a premiere. To the chagrin of football fans, the German Football Association left out the 2006 World Cup in its selection of the host cities for the “summer fairy tale”, but Fortuna’s home town was present at the 1974 World Cup – including the two memorable games of the German team in the 2nd final round (which replaced the last sixteen and quarter finals) against Yugoslavia and Sweden. Fortuna’s left winger Dieter Herzog was also represented in the DFB team at the time.

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Fortuna Düsseldorf: That's how many kilometers the team has to eat in the new season — 36 pictures Fortuna has to eat that many kilometers
*Photo: Horstmueller / HORSTMUELLER GmbH*

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And when it comes to the European Championship, Düsseldorf has a lot to offer. In 1988 the opening game of the tournament took place in the Rheinstadion. Germany met Italy, and 62,552 spectators were in the stands. The German team featured greats like Lothar Matthäus, Andreas Brehme and Jürgen Klinsmann, while the opponents included stars like Paolo Maldini, Carlo Ancelotti and Roberto Mancini.

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In the end, it was Mancini who gave the guests the lead in the second half. With a curious free kick decision, the German team equalized by return of post. Italian goalkeeper Walter Zenga took more than four steps with the ball, which was prohibited until the rule was changed in 1997. Brehme transformed the due free kick to equalize 1: 1, which also meant the final score.

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Fortuna Düsseldorf: These celebrities are fans of F95 — 64 pictures These celebrities are Fortuna fans
*Photo: pfandtastisch.de*

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During the tournament there was a second game in the Rheinstadion – one that had given the law enforcement officers a little thought in advance. On the second match day, England met the Netherlands, two nations with an appendix that at the time was classified as problematic. The clearly superior Dutch won 3-1, and fortunately the greatest fears about rioting were not fulfilled.

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Since then, the willingness to use violence among stadium goers has drastically decreased. So when there is a reunion with Europe’s football elite and hopefully also their followers in Düsseldorf in 2024, the anticipation can be untroubled.

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