The football season in Germany runs from August until May every year and the first league consists of 18 teams. First thing you may have noticed was the term 'first league'. If you come from North America and are unfamiliar with the European relegation sports model, here's a quick break down.
Most sports in Europe are made up of several leagues stacked on top of one another. They all use a promotion/relegation system to reward performance. This means the worst couple of teams in the first league are relegated down to the second league at the end of the season. While at the same time the best teams from the second league are promoted to the first league to replace those who were relegated. This process is repeated all the way down to the amateur leagues.
In Germany, the two teams with the poorest record in the first league trade places with the two teams with the best record in the second league. The third worst in the first league and third best from the second league play each other in a two game play off series at the end of the season for the right to play in the first league. This is called The Relegation Match.
Another thing unique to Germany is that the football clubs are exactly that. They are sport clubs. There is a rule in the German Football Association stating that club members must have a majority stake in the club. This is known as the 50+1 rule. It's to prevent Russian billionaires or Arab princes from buying up German football clubs and doing as they please with them. Anyone can become a member by filling out a form and paying a small yearly fee.
Now if you're thinking of just turning on the TV to check out a couple games, I'm afraid you'll be out of luck. To watch Bundesliga in Germany you'll have to order specific packages from Sky in order to watch the games. This a lot different from North America where all the major sports leagues are shown on basic cable. If you not sure about television packages, check out this post about TV and entertainment in Germany. If you really don't feel like spending the cash on pricey TV packages you can also find a local pub or restaurant that has Sky. They'll show the games live.
As with most sports though, the best way to enjoy the Bundesliga is live in the stadium. Unlike North America tickets here are sold directly through the club and not via a central ticketing company like Ticketmaster. They can range anywhere from 30-60 Eruos. Premium seats can be as expensive as 90 Euros. Tickets for the more popular clubs like Bayern or Dortmund can be pretty hard to come by. This is because tickets are made available to club members before they are made available to the general public. It's a way of ensuring that the stadiums are filled with actual fans rather than just tourists.
If you manage to get your hands on some tickets, you'll notice some key differences compared to your North American sports experience. First one being, the away fans are segregated from the home fans. This is for security reasons. It also provides the away team with their own cheering section. As a general rule, teams must reserve 10% of their capacity for away fans. The next thing is that the fans are pretty loud. The fans are an active part of the team. They sing songs, perform choreography and in some cases light off fireworks (though this is prohibited in Germany, it is still a pretty common sight.). I often find myself watching the fans more than the game.
Perhaps you're thinking about going but you're still a little reluctant because you've heard stories about violent football hooligans. I can tell you from personal experience that this is pretty much a nonissue for the everyday fan. The first thing you'll notice when you go to a match is the overwhelming police presence. At any given Bundesliga match there will be 200-300 police in full riot gear. If it's a high risk match like Schalke vs Dortmund that number could be doubled. They take security at football matches very seriously.
The one downside to German football is its competitiveness. Although the quality is quite good, the fact remains that Bayern Munich win almost everything. I've been living in Germany since October 2012 and I have never seen another champion other than Bayern. It does get a little tiresome watching Bayern win everything but hopefully that will change soon. That fan experience and football culture is what keeps me coming back. So go join a football pool or just catch some games with some friends on the weekend. It's a great way to connect with the locals and makes for great fun. See you at the match!
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