The last weekend before the winter break in the Bundesliga season is usually marked by a festive mood. But the events in Magdeburg, where a car plowed into a Christmas market, killing five people and injuring 200 others, affected matches across Germany.
As the 1.FC Magdeburg players walked towards the fans who had come to watch them win 5-2 in Düsseldorf, the news was just beginning to come in. Players, coaches and fans looked disappointed. “When football becomes a secondary concern,” said the statement on the club’s site where a match report is usually kept, “our club won the game at Fortuna Düsseldorf 5:2, but to be honest So we are also finding it difficult to do so.” find the words. So the match report ends here.”
Christmas goes back
A few hours later, on Friday night, tragedy struck in the top-flight match between Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig. “It’s almost impossible to talk about football tonight. Right now the people of Magdeburg are in our thoughts,” Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said after his team’s 5–1 win. His opposite number, Marco Rose, struggled to process the news, while Bayern canceled their Christmas party scheduled for later that evening. Instead, fans sang “Silent Night, Holy Night” with the local Tolzer Boys Choir.
German handball league and cup champion SC Magdeburg also canceled its Bundesliga home game against Eisenach.
On Saturday morning, as the scale of the devastation became somewhat clear, the German Football League (DFL), which runs the Bundesliga, advised clubs in the top two divisions (which they control) to observe a minute of silence. Gave.
Support in top divisions
“German football is shocked by this attack and its thoughts are with the victims and their families at this difficult time. We also wish the injured a speedy recovery,” the DFL wrote on its website.
Many clubs stepped forward with floral displays and messages of support. The banner carried by the players in the 2. Bundesliga match between Paderborn and Karlsruhe read, “Much power to Magdeburg.” This is the same league in which Magdeburg plays.
In the top division, the emotions and performances were similar. Freiburg player Christian Günter summed up the general mood, saying, “There are always more important things than football.”
Edited by: Pascal Jochem