Thirty years after the fall of the
Berlin Wall, Copa90 travelled to Berlin to discover what makes the city’s football clubs tick
Nothing in Berlin is black and white. The city has been moulded and remoulded over time to represent a vast spectrum of German and international culture. It’s a bit like New York’s cooler, younger brother: not as glamorous or clean, but more bohemian, gritty and unpredictable. It is as varied as any capital in the world and every aspect of the city reflects a strand of its identity: the unapologetic architecture; the forest; the vibrant arts scene; the never-ending nightlife.
Berlin’s football is no different. When the German football association was established in 1904, nearly a third of the 86 founder clubs were from the capital city. Berlin hosts the German Cup final every year and it has hosted the finals of the
World Cup final and
Champions League within the last 20 years. Yet no club from Berlin has ever won the Bundesliga or reached the final of a European competition.