Chapter 64
***
‘…This probably won’t work, will it?’
I have some sense, too. Using this would be a surefire way to get beaten up by Union Berlin fans.
Of course, that was a shame.
What's more, Union Berlin also had its own connection to the word “Stalin.”
The slogan that symbolizes Union Berlin was Eisern, and Stalin’s name also came from stál (сталь), which means steel.
‘…Anyway, it’s the mustached bastards who are the problem. They use all the good names themselves and leave nothing for the next generation.’
For reference, Adolf was also originally a good name meaning “noble wolf.”
‘But we can’t use it now, can we?’
Strictly speaking, it isn’t legally banned, but it’s a name people avoid. It’s because it immediately brings Hitler to mind.
In Korea, it would be similar to naming your child “Wan-yong.”
‘You’d walk into school and immediately get branded a traitor and bullied.’
Actually, in Germany’s newborn-name statistics, “Adolf” was effectively close to 0 percent.
In neighboring countries such as Spain, it’s still used because it has a good meaning, but people definitely wouldn’t look on it kindly.
Anyway.
I kept thinking about the home stadium name.
Something connected to Union Berlin’s symbol, Eisern.
A word symbolizing strength…
And at that moment, one person came to mind.
‘Aizen Sōsuke?’
‘…From now on, I’ll stand at the top?’
Well, he does have that “strongest” image.
Though I’d probably get sued for copyright infringement first.
‘…No, maybe I should give it a shot when we go to Japan for pre-season?’
While I was still mulling it over,
Chairman Dirk Zingler put it to a vote with the fans.
The question was whether they would use the new stadium name I’d come up with or the existing one.
And the result was an overwhelming victory for the existing home-ground name, Stadion An der Alten Försterei.
“Germans are boring.”
***
Union Berlin fans decided on Stadion An der Alten Försterei as the home stadium name.
Well. Fine.
If I think of a better name later, I can change it then.
Unlike Chairman Dirk Zingler, who breathed a sigh of relief, I still hadn’t given up.
As long as I’m alive, opportunities will come someday.
Anyway, even while I was worrying about the home-stadium name, Union Berlin steadily prepared for its next match.
August 11. The 2. Bundesliga was about to kick off.
Union Berlin’s first league opponent was 1. FC Köln.
Their mascot is a goat, and their rivals are the clubs along the Rhine.
It’s commonly called the Rhineland derby, and it includes clubs such as Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Mönchengladbach, and Fortuna Düsseldorf.
And the club Köln got along worst with was naturally Leverkusen.
In fact, Köln was also the most delighted when Union Berlin beat Leverkusen in the DFB-Pokal.
‘We’re getting back-to-back rival teams.’
Union Berlin would go on to face the Rhineland derby’s mainstays, Leverkusen and Köln, back to back.
[Union Berlin, after beating Leverkusen, can they also beat Köln, Leverkusen’s ‘rival’?]
And this unusual matchup drew quite a bit of attention.
‘…Why are you doing this to us?’
Especially the fans supporting Köln were overflowing with the determination to beat us and mock Leverkusen.
I don’t know what beating us has to do with mocking Leverkusen.
‘What if they get wrecked doing that?’
Well. I guess looking down on us was understandable.
Union Berlin and Köln.
The difference in weight class between the two teams was obvious.
Right now both teams belonged to the same second division, but if Union Berlin was a startup, Köln was a large corporation.
Köln had Germany’s sixth-largest fan base and used a 50,000-seat home stadium.
‘Bourgeois bastards.’
It couldn’t be helped.
Germany’s industry developed along the Rhine, after all.
In fact, Germany itself felt far too unfamiliar to me, someone born and raised in the Republic of Seoul.
‘No, isn’t it common sense that the capital is supposed to be the richest place?’
But surprisingly, Germany wasn’t like that.
Munich, where Bayern Munich is based, is the wealthiest region.
Berlin was below Germany’s average.
‘So that’s why housing was cheap.’
By the way, Berlin’s resident population is only about 3.4 million.
Truly the descendant of the Holy Roman Empire.
‘No wonder rebellion is practically a hobby.’
If you keep a tight grip on Hanyang, even rebellions in the outlying regions can be crushed with ease. The greatness of Joseon shines through. Our ancestors’ wisdom was that remarkable.
Let’s set aside the trivial matters of rising real-estate prices and low birthrates.
Well, the reason the capital city Berlin couldn’t develop was probably the existence of East Germany. More precisely, it was the Soviet Union behind East Germany.
Honestly, a country with over ten million people living near the border is weird.
In fact, Berlin’s population only started to rise gradually after German reunification.
Even the German government made efforts to grow Berlin, the capital, by supporting startups and new businesses.
That was also why our family’s messaging app business was being pushed so hard.
Well. I don’t know the details of my younger sibling’s business, but it does seem to be doing well.
***
Time passed quickly.
Union Berlin’s first 2. Bundesliga match was an away game.
It had been two years since we were directly relegated from the second division to the fourth.
In just two years, we grabbed hold of a dying club by the collar and dragged it back up.
Though Thomas Tuchel had run off like a traitor, joining hands with the illustrious Bayern Munich.
Still, we had memories of having gone through those hard times together.
“2. Bundesliga, we’re back!”
For reference, Union Berlin fans were preparing for a grand comeback celebration at the next home game. In other words, they were planning to set off flares.
‘The flare fines are being paid through the fans’ donations, anyway. Well….’
Regrettably.
Unlike other clubs, Union Berlin had no such thing as carefree indulgence.
At least for now, we still needed the voluntary help of Union Berlin fans.
Anyway.
We headed to Köln’s home ground, RheinEnergieStadion.
[Coach Park Chan-hyeok, ahead of the Köln match… “Köln is a good team.”]
└ Why is this guy suddenly acting so polite?
└ Chan-hyeok, have you lost your touch?
Köln and Union Berlin were not on bad terms.
Since it wasn’t a team I knew well, there wasn’t much I could talk smack about.
[The Union Berlin match led by Coach Park Chan-hyeok! Watch with SBK.]
Apparently, in Korea they bought the second-division broadcasting rights for Union Berlin matches.
The broadcasters were surprised that they were much cheaper than Premier League broadcasting rights.
We had also signed a contract to appear on variety shows when we went to Korea for pre-season.
‘…Do I have to go to the army again?’
By the way, was it because Union Berlin’s variety show was a huge success?
For a while, in Korea, making foreigners experience military life was all the rage.
‘The one to normalize variety shows is me, Dae Chan-hyeok.’
Well…. At this time, hard-hitting variety shows were still mainstream.
Maybe people miss the variety shows from this period because they had that desperate, human feel.
Anyway, the DFL (German Football League) and the DFB (German Football Association) were trying to win over Korean fans by scheduling Union Berlin’s matches at lunchtime.
But Dirk Zingler and I ran over and stopped them.
Berlin’s climate isn’t especially hot, but lunchtime matches still put you at a physical disadvantage.
“Sorry, but Korean football fans aren’t fans of the Bundesliga or Union Berlin—they’re my fans.”
Dirk Zingler and the high-ranking officials of the German Football Association did make sour faces at my words.
‘This is the truth, so what are you gonna do about it.’
Looking at the fact that the match time was restored to normal, it seems the bigwigs understood too.
Anyway.
Before kickoff, the players started warming up.
“Levy! Come here!”
Roberto Lewandowski once again took the field as an attacking midfielder.
He looked full of complaints since he wasn’t playing as a striker.
But he didn’t openly show his dissatisfaction.
“Levy! Focus on link-up play, and watch Yannick’s movement closely and learn from it.”
“…Yes.”
And a moment later.
The match began.
We pressed Köln hard the moment the game started.
Union Berlin kept hammering away at Köln’s goal without pause, but couldn’t break through.
Then, in the 15th minute of the first half.
The first goal of the match went in.
It was scored by Köln’s midfielder.
From Union Berlin’s perspective, it was unlucky in several ways.
Because the ball punched away by Manuel Schmidt went straight to Köln’s midfielder.
‘…Hm.’
Well. It’s not like our team can always score first.
“It’s okay, there’s still plenty of time! Take it slow!”
I clapped from the touchline and shouted at the players that it was fine.
“Jaaaaaaa─!”
But then came the Köln player’s celebration.
Swoosh─!
That irritated me a little.
“Ah. That’s not how you do a knee slide.”
I guess I’d better show them the class of the original.