When you love German fan culture, this is your place, with thousands of jumping ultra's on the Nordwestkurve. At Eintracht Frankfurt they prove that a modern arena doesn't have to be cheerless. After a Saturday afternoon at Eintracht you come home with ringing ears guaranteed.
Already almost 100 years there's has been played here, since in 1925 here, in the deep forest south of Frankfurt, the Waldstadion was opened. In the first decades it was used just for international matches and special matches of Eintracht Frankfurt, but since 1963 it's their permanent home. It has been renovated for several by Germany organized tournaments, and the next metamorphosis is already on the line: for EURO 2024 the capacity will be increased from 51.000 to 60.000.
It's an atypical location for such a big stadium, quite hidden in the forests. From the outside it'll surprise you how big it is, also because it's a little bit higher than the surroundings. Far from ugly, also from the inside. Eye-catcher is the cloud-like roof, from where tens of cables go to the videocube above the centre spot.
In het stadium of Eintracht Frankfurt is since a couple of years also the museum of the club situated. Here you'll find the biggest trophies won by the club, but especially the pieces from the very early days of the club are remarkable. It's open everyday (except Mondays) and also open on match days.
In the Riederwaldstadion hasn't Eintracht Frankfurt played home matches for years, but it has always kept being an Eintracht place. The first team kept training here at the Alfred Pfaff-Straße till 2002, and still today the club is present here: there's a fan store and club restaurant Diva - sometimes, the club is called a whimsical diva - still attracts fans to the Riederwald.
This beautiful square with its historical buildings is the place where Eintracht always celebrates its trophies wit the fans, when the players appear on the balcony of the Frankfurter Römer (the town hall). In 2018 there were so many to celebrate the DFB-Pokal with the players, that the Römerberg was already closed for more fans hours before: there was simply no room anymore for more fans.
Special is this place too for the German national team. For decades, Die Mannschaft came to the same balcony after big tournaments, for example when they became world champions in 1990, and also when the Germans became Vize-Weltmeister in 2002.
Unfortunately for Frankfurt, the DFB - who even have there head quarters here - chose after the world title of 2014 for capital Berlin.
The heart of Frankfurt's bank district is the Willy-Brandt-Platz, with the giant Euro Sculpture, well-known in the financial world. But our favorite piece of art you'll find in the underground station, the 'Säulen der Eintracht'. In the metro station are the eleven best players in the history of Eintracht Frankfurt portrayed on pillars in the metro tunnel.
We simply love football related street art. In Frankfurt, there's several pieces visible in the streets. A short summary.
On the sidewall of the building on the corner Grüneburgweg/Unterlindau there's a giant DFB-Pokal portrayed, a reference to the five cup victories of Eintracht Frankfurt, with the club's name and in place of the DFB crest, the crest of Eintracht.
At Werrastraße 22 you'll find the most prestigious cupe that Eintracht Frankfurt has ever won: the UEFA Cup of 1980, safe in the hands of captain Charly Körbel, now still attached to the club as the director of their football academy.
Opposite Heidestraße 120 hangs sinds 2020 a giant mural of the old Waldstadion, as it was til the beginning of this century.
By far our most favorite piece of art is to find at Melibocusstraße 86, not far from the Deutsche Bank Park, and is a mural with a special story. In the nineties, Eintracht went over the moon and played for the top spots in the Bundesliga, with eye-catchers wizard Jay-Jay Okocha and top striker Anthony Yeboah. Two African players, who suffered a lot of racism from opposite fans and their own fans. To memorize this disgrace there's has been created a mural of five-stories high, with a slogan against racism and the image of Yeboah who gives you a penetrating look. Because of the location opposite station Frankfurt-Niederrad you have an amazing view on this mural from the platforms.
You can buy tickets for home matches of Eintracht Frankfurt on the official website of the club. Apart from the real top matches there will always be some tickets available in general sale, but you have to be quick.
Because of the location in a forest and right next to train tracks, it's usually a traffic chaos on match days in the Deutsche Bank Park. Don't try to park your car as close as you can get to the stadium, because after the match it can take quite a while until you're able to leave. We recommend one of the bigger car parks, the Waldparkplatz or the Isenburg Schneise. You have to walk a little bit further, but it'll save you from most traffic jams afterwards.
By public transport you can get quite easily to the Deutsche Bank Park: train station Frankfurt am Main-Stadion is a 10 minute walk from the stadium. The station lays halfway Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof and Frankfurt Flughafen, two of the biggest stations of Germany, which makes the stadium good reachable by train from the whole country.
You can also go there by tram: from Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof with line 21. From the tram station to the Deutsche Bank Park is a nice walk with a wonderful view of the stadium.
Images: Shutterstock, BSR Agency, SANTOS
