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Even tireless helpers with leaf blowers made the Saarbrücken lawn no longer fit for play in the DFB Cup.
Photo: Andreas Schlichter / Getty Images
The floodlit game was sold out. Despite bad weather, more than 15,000 fans made their way to Saarbrücken's Ludwigsparkstadion to celebrate a football festival against Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach. Their displeasure was correspondingly great when the game was canceled. Some supporters whistled from the stands, others set off pyrotechnics.
Persistent rain had caused the already battered turf in the third division stadium to suffer even more. A DFB Cup quarter-final - unthinkable under such conditions, the responsible team around referee Florian Badstübner decided shortly before the planned kick-off on Wednesday evening. Now the search for a catch-up date begins between 1. FC Saarbrücken and Borussia Mönchengladbach.
“The pitch was unplayable like that.”
Gladbach's Roland Virkus
What was the problem before the cancellation?
The lawn simply couldn't cope with the amount of water. There is no professional drainage that could have helped for the greenery in Saarbrücken. Before the cancellation, helpers had tried to clear the field of water using leaf blowers and small rollers. The stadium announcer had already read out the lineups and the teams had warmed up. But a few minutes before kick-off the decision was made against the game. Seeing “how broken the pitch was” was “confirmation for us,” said referee Florian Badstübner. Gladbach's Roland Virkus also saw it this way: "The pitch was unplayable - and the risk of anyone getting injured is simply too great." The players and those in charge also showed understanding for this.
Why does the place in Saarbrücken keep causing trouble?
There had been repeated discussions about the space in the past. A league game against Dynamo Dresden at the end of October had already been canceled - and the cup game against FC Bayern had also been hanging in the balance for a long time. It was only the day before the planned Gladbach game that the city council finally decided on measures to improve the lawn. Mayor Uwe Conradt said in the evening: "We can only apologize to the clubs and the fans of both teams as well as to everyone who was in action on today's matchday for the inconvenience." They now have to "solve the turf problem."
What options are there for rescheduling?
Both teams want to find a new date together with the German Football Association (DFB) as soon as possible. However, given the weather forecasts, it seems unlikely that the event will take place in the next few days: it is expected to continue to rain. And Saarbrücken already has a catch-up game the week after next. The DFB has nevertheless decided to set a new date “as quickly as possible”. Gladbach's sports director Roland Virkus announced that “everyone will now put their appointment calendars on top of each other. Both teams don’t play internationally, so we’ll find a date.”
What else will happen in the DFB Cup?
The draw for the semi-finals will take place on Saturday in the ZDF sports studio. Bayer Leverkusen, Fortuna Düsseldorf and 1. FC Kaiserslautern are already in the draw pots after qualifying - in addition, according to the DFB, there will also be a double draw with Saarbrücken/Mönchengladbach. If this is drawn as an away team, the opponent would not know whether they are actually playing at home until the remaining quarter-finals are played. If they progress, the lower-class Saarbrücken team would have home advantage.
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