Kaiserslautern to host 20,000 live fans for Monday Pokal match
Third division side 1. FC Kaiserslautern announced on Tuesday that they had received approval from the city for an additional 5,000 spectators for Friday's Pokal fixture against Frankfurt.
The Betzenberg will thus play host to a stately crowd of 20,000; one of the largest German football audiences since the onset of the pandemic.
As the Bundesrepublik prepares for its treasured Pokal weekend, not all of the news is good. The postponement of the Bayern-Bremer SV match reminds football lovers all across the country that the pandemic remains far from over.
The Betzenberg will thus play host to a stately crowd of 20,000; one of the largest German football audiences since the onset of the pandemic.
When one compares the crowd statistics with those from the opening domestic cup round last year, however, the state of progress becomes quite clear. Most German stadia prepare to welcome thousands, not hundreds, of live supporters through the turnstiles.
Football remains a religion in the Pfälzer city of Kaiserslautern, even after the club slid into the third tier. The Palatinate Red Devils hosted 15,000 spectators into the Fritz Walter Stadion for their 3. Liga home opener against Eintracht Braunschweig on July 24th. On Tuesday, the club announced that they had received approval for 5,000 more.
"We are very pleased with the exemption granted by the Kaiserslautern city council and the [Palatinate] Ministry of Science and Health," FCK head of stadium operations Jörg Wassmann said in confirming the approval on the club's website.
The club also announced that entrance to the stadium would be governed by Germany's "3G Concept".
"Geimpft" (vaccinated), "Genesen" (recovered), "Getestet" (tested).