Hamburger with a special plan
St. Pauli and Kiel are working on a huge promotion party
May 11, 2024, 10:33 a.m
Bye bye 2nd league, hello Oberhaus: The big promotion party could take place at Kiel and St. Pauli this weekend. Or will Düsseldorf get involved again? In Hamburg there is even a political plan just in case.
Historic floodlit celebration in Kiel, sofa celebrations from FC St. Pauli – or is Fortuna Düsseldorf getting involved as a party crasher? In the exciting race for promotion to the Bundesliga, the decisions could already be made this weekend. But no one wants to waste too much thought on possible celebrations; the players from Holstein Kiel preferred not to inspect the town hall balcony.
“I won’t see him until the time comes,” said defender Timo Becker with a grin. The excitement, Becker emphasized, wasn’t all that great. “We’ve been a relaxed group all year round. We’re always joking around and trying to keep things cool.” The starting situation is simple: one point is enough for Holstein against Düsseldorf to become the first club in Schleswig-Holstein to be promoted to the Bundesliga on the penultimate matchday.
If the storks win against the third-placed team on Saturday evening (8.30 p.m./Sky and Sport1), they will automatically take FC St. Pauli, who will not play against bottom team Osnabrück until Sunday (1.30 p.m./Sky), into the first floor as the second club. “I am absolutely convinced that we will get three points,” said Kiel’s coach Marcel Rapp: “We have a good energy level, good motivation and good support.”
Pauli is planning a party for democracy
Opponent Düsseldorf, for its part, is fighting to secure the relegation place – for which a win is enough – and the small chance of going straight up. If they win, Kiel would only be two points ahead and there would be a long-distance duel on the last matchday. “We are the last ones who can lose something there. So we are looking forward to it,” said coach Daniel Thioune. Regardless of the exact outcome of the season, “not too much went wrong.”
There isn’t much going wrong at St. Pauli, but the missed first match point at arch-rival Hamburger SV hurts. The return to the Bundesliga after 13 years should by no means be a nightmare. If it doesn’t work with Kiel’s help, a three-pointer against Osnabrück is enough. “It’s important that we have the chance to decide for ourselves. We can’t rely on others,” said coach Fabian Hürzeler.
Should this happen, St. Pauli wants to celebrate the promotion not just with a fan party, but with a day of action for democracy, against racism, anti-Semitism and discrimination. This political season finale is scheduled to take place on Whit Monday (May 20th) with several other organizations in downtown Hamburg.
There is also great belief in early ascent around 100 kilometers further north. “The goal is huge and not a given for a club like Holstein Kiel,” said Becker: “It would be the greatest success event for everyone in our squad.” Of course he has “a few scenarios in mind” for the possible party, the 27-year-old continued: “But first we have to play the game and then we’ll see what’s going on here.”