Cheap tickets, an atmospheric stadium and a load of football clubs in the area: there's absolutely no reason not to go to VfL Bochum. Football culture as we believe it's meant to be, and the Bochumer Jungs are back in the top flight too.
Ruhrstadion (officially Vonovia Ruhrstadion) is a stadium just how we like it. It feels compact, even though it has more than 27.000 places. The seats are in the club's colours, there are four amazing floodlights and a terrace behind the goal. It's a real football stadium, where the noise of the Bochum crowd keeps boasting around because of the enclosed corners.
From the outside, there are a lot of concrete tentacles which hold the stadium in a grip. Not really beautiful, but the longer we look at this strong piece of brutalism, the nicer it gets.
Biergarten! Walk behind the Ostkurve along the Castroper Straße away from the stadium, and at your left hand, you'll see a white with grey building. It's Ritterburg, a well-known hotspot for Bochum fans before and after matches. The Biergarten behind the pub is probably even more famous than the pub itself.
Between the main stand and the offices, you'll find the 'Legenden-Elf'. Bochum's best-ever XI, chosen by the fans. If you walk through the tunnels, you'll walk along the eleven players, who are displayed on eleven pillars, with Dariusz Wosz as the biggest club legend.
The Lohrheidestadion at the Hollandstraße is actually the stadium of neighbours SG Wattenscheid, who was briefly active in the Bundesliga in the nineties. In the past, the former reserve squad of VfL Bochum played in this typical German stadium with a running track, terracing around and a giant main stand too.
One of the hidden gems of the Ruhr is this stadium at the Westring in Herne, the city adjacent to Bochum. VfL Bochum plays some friendlies here every now and then, and they also used it when their own Ruhrstadion was under renovation. The permanent home team Westfalia Herne might not be a big name in German football anymore, but the 110-year-old stadium still has a capacity of 32.000 fans. A wonderful main stand and terracing, nothing makes us happier.
You can buy tickets for VfL Bochum's home games on their official website at a remarkably low price. For less than 20 euros you can visit a Bundesliga match here.
Motorway A40 runs right next to the Ruhrstadion. Take exit 36 (Bochum-Stadion) and turn left at the first traffic lights, and you'll drive directly into the parking garage Stadionring. For just four euros you have a parking spot here on matchdays, within walking distance of the stadium at the Castroper Straße.
If you come to Bochum by public transport, take a tram 308 or 318 from train station Bochum Hauptbahnhof and within three minutes you'll arrive at Vonovia Ruhrstadion, right in front of the stadium.
Images: BSR Agency, Shutterstock
