Review of the event »Rückverzauberung«

After we had to postpone the long-planned and eagerly awaited event at the Alte Stadiontribüne from May 6 to May 27 due to the bad weather, all eyes were on the various weather services and forecasts on the weekend before the second attempt. One thing seemed certain, the new date would not be a mild summer night either, instead it was certain to rain, only the amount of rain varied from app to app.

Nevertheless, together with our numerous partners, we decided to go ahead with the event - if necessary, in "Fritz Walter weather". But it actually turned out quite differently: whether it was Fritz Walter himself or another football god in heaven - someone held a protective hand over us and the Alte Stadiontribüne that evening. The dark clouds passed us by left and right, and apart from a few drops, it stayed dry until the end of "Rückverzauberung".

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At around 8:15 p.m., the exciting presentation by sports historian Dr. Ansgar Molzberger (pdf download) began, taking us back in words and pictures to the early days of football in Germany and around Cologne. Even the less Football-affine members of the audience were as impressed as they were enthusiastic about the highly interesting sports history background, the political and social references and finally the one or other amusing anecdote in Ansgar Molzberger's lecture.

The audience shortened the long wait until nightfall by walking around the racecourse, exploring the stadium stands on their own or enjoying a Kölsch beer in the lovely beer garden of our catering partner Trink-Genosse.

Many visitors had brought their own stories and memories of this place, so there was plenty to tell and share.

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At around 21:30, the show started, Wolfgang Voigt 's music began and floated over the grounds, the first lights, programmed and implemented live by Antonia Melzer, flickered on - the stands awoke from their decades-long slumber. Cascades of LED flashes raced from left to right, sometimes reminiscent of pyrotechnics, sometimes of the waves of enthusiasm that once swept through the stadium.

Short excerpts from two silent films from the 1920s, "Elf Teufel" and "König der Mittelstürmer", appeared in the middle of the projection screen, hinting at the pioneering era of football in which the stadium was once built. Abstract patterns, which sometimes entwined the old walls like climbing plants or abstracted joy and euphoria like fireworks, immersed the audience in a wild journey through time made up of memories and associations.