An evening, intended to unite

The evening was actually intended to work in various working groups to develop solutions and approaches for an even better match day experience. However, due to the events after the home game against FC Augsburg, the process was adjusted during the week. With the help of fan representatives from the south stand, the A block and the back straight, the club worked through Saturday afternoon piece by piece. An apology was made on behalf of the south stand because individuals from this area had sought the way to the back straight to engage in a physical altercation. The club clearly condemns any kind of violence among lily fans.

It was the start of an honest, critical, but also extremely constructive discourse about the match day and the Lilies‘ home games in general. Misunderstandings surrounding the speech at the end of the game were cleared up. In particular, the gestures, which were not in line with the actual motivating content of the message, were explained again. In addition, errors were admitted in the lack of communication of the planned sequence of events towards the back straight after the end of the game. On the other hand, an apology was made on behalf of the verbal abuse during the speech. Everyone involved agreed that violence among lily fans was an absolute no-go.

Afterwards, those present discussed numerous other things relating to the stadium experience. For example, the effects of the stadium renovation on the matchday atmosphere or the loudspeaker box installed in front of the back straight. It became clear during the exchange that all sides need to have greater mutual understanding that every stadium visitor has different goals and expectations of a stadium experience. Despite sometimes different positions on the topic, this Thursday demonstrated that the direct exchange between the fan groups helps them to pull together even more closely in the future.

The topics originally planned for the evening were of course still discussed. This part was divided into three sub-points: ticketing, security and catering. While Robin Bechold, head of ticketing at SV 98, explained the type of advance sales procedure for home and away games as well as the composition of the pricing structure for ticket prices at the Bölle, fan representative Erik Eichhorn gave information about the issue of away fans and away colors in the home area. Various aspects were highlighted that show how difficult and detailed such problems are and that solutions such as general bans on guest colors in the entire home area (currently only applies to the south stand and Gengenstraight) would not fully solve the problem. Many of the approximately 150 participants in the event were also unaware of the fact that SV 98 was forced to give around 100 main stand tickets to the visiting club due to regulations. Everyone involved unanimously criticised the fact that overall too many tickets intended for lily fans were being passed on or even sold by club members to fans of opposing clubs.

Managing director Michael Weilguny also explained the application process when looking for a stadium caterer and gave insights into the catering organisation. Various improvements have been made in recent months. There are now significantly more stands and staff – around 50 percent more compared to the situation before the stadium renovation. The choice of food has been expanded and above all, a lot of emphasis has been placed on quality management in the last few months and, for example, a continuous evaluation process on the subject of waiting times has been set up. It was also emphasised that we continue to work on improvements and that fans‘ feedback should be asked again and again.

The fan evening lasted around three and a half hours. This illustrates how great the need is for discussion and improved communication at all levels. In their closing statements, Weilguny and Vice President Markus Pfitzner emphasised that this evening should only be seen as the start of a series of further rounds of discussions with the different target groups around the club. Because one thing became particularly clear that evening: SV 98 thrives on its colorful culture of participation, in which every voice and comment is heard. The lilies are a lively association, but this diversity should not be taken for granted. This asset needs to be looked after. From the club, from the members, from the individual stands. From every person who has the lily in their heart.