Stranded on the autobahn: When BVB hitchhiked to Bayern

Stranded on the highway
When BVB hitchhiked to Bayern

Posted by Ben Redelings

45 years ago today, BVB almost missed its home game in Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion against FC Bayern Munich because the bus had broken down on the way – coming from Gelsenkirchen. But that’s not the craziest part of the story!

Gladbach’s stadium announcer Torsten Knippertz broke his collar a few years ago after his Borussia game against newly promoted FC Ingolstadt 04. Far too often and obviously, in his opinion, the Schanzer had stolen time. And so Knippertz said after the game, still audibly excited: “If the team bus breaks down as often as the players at the end, it will be a long journey home for Ingolstadt!” Truly a funny saying – but the subsequent return trip of the Ingolstadt to their Upper Bavarian homeland went completely without any technical difficulties.

However, the story of October 2, 1976 is completely different. At that time, after relegation in 1972, BVB completed its first season as a first division club in the new Westfalenstadion. Borussia coach at the time was the young Otto Rehhagel from Essen. And it was probably precisely this origin of the future German champions with Werder Bremen and 1. FC Kaiserslautern that played an important role in the selection of the accommodation in which the Dortmunders always spent the night before a home game. Because Rehhagel let his team sleep in the city of their arch rival, in the Maritim Hotel in Gelsenkirchen. This fact led to numerous wonderful stories – and to this wonderful anecdote from 45 years ago.

A sold out stadium is waiting

Full of anticipation for the game, the Dortmunders sat down in their team bus late in the morning after a light meal, in good spirits, to take the famous “Ruhrschnellweg” to the Westfalenstadion, 33 kilometers away. That day there was the game against the great FC Bayern Munich team, which for a few years was only allowed to marvel at the glorious Borussia from the second division. But now the time had finally come – and 53,800 spectators in the sold-out stadium were eagerly waiting for the kick-off for this very special duel.

But for the BVB players, the journey on that day should be completely different than usual. Because in the middle of the way to Dortmund, the bus suddenly stopped – and even after being persuaded, it didn’t move a single meter further. And to top it all, the time until the game kicked off was not too far away, because the second name of the legendary autobahn that runs right through the district had once again become part of the program: “Ruhrschleichweg”.

“Can’t you invent it!”

So what to do The unforgettable Bundesliga hero and then BVB star Willi Lippens still has tears of laughter in his eyes when he enthusiastically talks about these special moments on the autobahn: “We sleep in Gelsenkirchen and then don’t come to Dortmund. As Dortmunders. You can don’t invent! Then we’ll hitchhike. ” And that’s exactly what happened on October 2nd, 1976 in the heart of the Ruhr area. Suddenly the entire BVB team was standing with thumbs out on the shoulder of the autobahn, waiting for a lift. And this time it was useful that the traffic was extremely sluggish.

Willi Lippens remembers vividly: “Then I was sitting in a VW bus with Kostedde and Ackermann. Someone took us to Dortmund who wanted to go to the stadium himself.” It must have been unique scenes that took place back then between Gelsenkirchen and Dortmund – and despite the “chaos everywhere”, Borussia made it into the stadium just in time. There was not long torchlight there. Put your clothes on and go out into the field, because the relentless referee Volker Roth from Salzgitter – later he was chairman of the DFB referee committee for many years – had no mercy. The game started at 3:30 p.m. sharp.

Rehhagel uses experience

Ben Redelings

Ben Redelings is a passionate “chronicler of football madness” and a supporter of the glorious VfL Bochum. The bestselling author and comedian lives in the Ruhr area and maintains his legendary treasure trove of anecdotes. For ntv.de he writes down the most exciting and funniest stories on Mondays and Saturdays. More information about Ben Redelings, his current dates and his book with the best columns (“Between Puff and Barcelona”) can be found on his website www.scudetto.de.

And although the BVB players had already experienced so much that day, they managed to make up a two-goal deficit twice and in the end to get a hard-won 3: 3 after a turbulent encounter. Only after the game did the brave Borussia kickers really realize what had happened to them on the way to the Irres stadium. Coach Otto Rehhagel held on to his choice of hotel in Gelsenkirchen until his dismissal – after the legendary 12-0 win at Borussia Mönchengladbach in April 1978.

By the way: The coach from Essen was able to benefit from his very special experience shortly after the BVB bus breakdown on the “Ruhrschleichweg” in October 1976. Because as the coach of Arminia Bielefeld, he had to watch in the 1978/79 season how the team bus got lost in the last few meters to the SV Darmstadt 98 stadium. But when you saw a trailer of the lilies on the roadside in full fan gear, Otto Rehhagel reacted quickly and asked the young man to get on the bus. And indeed: the fan was friendly and happy to show the Arminia the shortest route to the stadium. Nothing stood in the way of a punctual kick-off of the game that day.

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