‘Ghost games’ steal spirit of German soccer

DORTMUND, Germany — German soccer is normally a riot of color and noise. No longer.

The Bundesliga season resumed Saturday with what German fans call “ghost games,” played without spectators, and in Dortmund it was hard to tell that the city’s beloved team was playing at all.

Instead of thousands of fans chatting and drinking beer outside the stadium, there were only a few locals out for a weekend bike ride as Borussia Dortmund hosted Schalke in a usually fierce local rivalry.

On the field, there were fireworks as Erling Haaland scored in a 4-0 win after two months of no games. Outside the stadium there was near silence. Passersby occasionally asked whether a game was actually going on.

Police relaxed as it became clear that fans wouldn’t gather outside — a concern for authorities ahead of the game — and potentially spread the virus.

“It is really very calm in the city and regarding the virus dangers I can only praise the Dortmunders and the fans,” police spokesman Oliver Peiler said.

The song “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” a favorite of Dortmund fans as well as Liverpool supporters, echoed around the stadium ahead of kickoff. It was so quiet that the starting whistle could be heard outside — unthinkable at a regular game.

The arena has an 81,000 capacity but league rules permit just 213 people, including players, to be inside for the game, none of them supporters. Players tried to keep contact to a minimum, even during celebrations and the traditional salute to the — now empty — stands at the final whistle.

In the city center ahead of the match, longtime Dortmund fan Marco Perz sat outside the German Football Museum in a jacket patched with club emblems. He said he hasn’t missed a home game since the 1990s.

“I’d normally be on the South Stand right now, in the yellow wall,” he said, referring to the vast terrace which underpins Dortmund’s reputation for passionate support. Now Perz is planning to watch the game with a friend over food and a beer. “The main thing is to see the game,” he added.

On the next street, face masks were on sale in Dortmund’s yellow and black, with the stallholder saying they were the most popular on offer.

Local authorities had pleaded with fans not to mass outside the stadium.