VELTINS-Arena — Attraction in Gelsenkirchen

THE MINERS Schalke 04 is one of Germany’s most popular football teams. Formed in 1904 as a result of the coming together of a number of sports clubs, the club drew many players and supporters from the coalmine workers of Gelsenkirchen, hence their nickname The Miners. Their greatest successes came in the 1930s and 1940s, but nearly 70 years later they were on the cusp of a momentous triumph. On 19 May, 2001, the Parkstadion in Gelsenkirchen erupted. Ebbe Sand had just slid in his 22nd goal of the season, deciding the home fixture against the League’s bottom team Unterhaching in the 89th minute. The league title was now almost theirs, the first since 1958. Schalke 04 just needed Hamburg to triumph over Bayern Munich, and with the northern Germany club leading 1-0 in the 90th minute, Schalke’s players and some of the officials began to celebrate while several fans ran on to the pitch. But the match in Hamburg wasn’t quite finished and just as those in the Parkstadion were celebrating Schalke’s first title for 43 years, Bayern Munich were awarded an indirect free kick 8 metres (26 feet) from goal. Patrik Andersson scored with the last kick of the game. The score was 1-1 in Hamburg, and the Bundesliga shield ended up with Bayern Munich instead. The joy of the Schalke fans dissolved into sadness and tears. Their much longed-for League triumph had been cruelly snatched from them. The hunt for a league title has continued and since 2001 Schalke have four times finished runners-up in the Bundesliga. In recent years, the club has become known for its youth academy, which has produced world class talents like Manuel Neuer, Mesut Özil, Benedikt Höwedes and Julian Draxler. Such a production line of talent would suggest that the long-sought league title may well be achieved one day.

CLUB: FC Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 NICKNAMES: Die Königsblauen (the Royal Blues) and Die Knappen (the Miners) FOUNDED: 1904 STADIUM: Veltins-Arena, Gelsenkirchen (62,271 capacity) HISTORIC PLAYERS: Klaus Fichtel, Norbert Nigbur, Klaus Fischer, Gerald Asamoah and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar

Ilyas Tüfekçi action for Die Knappen (the miners) in 1982/83. The blue mining hammer design is the same as today’s crest but note that the badge carries an extra...

The Worst Service Ever ! We booked Concert tickets 🎫 ( last minute ) so when UPS international had arrived late at our house with the Tickets we had already left for our German Concert Trip. The first Concert at the Merkur - Spiel - arena Düsseldorf to see AC/DC went fantastic at the ticket office The Helpful Fellow was so understanding about our situation when we showed him our original emails and the photos of the Original Concert Tickets he said no worries no issues he used the Barcode Number to reprint our official Ticket 20mins Sorted new Tickets and in to a fantastic gig great night. However when we arrived at the VELTINS arena to see Iron maiden the Eventim Guy Was No Help what so ever he just kept shrugging his shoulders and saying he couldn't help even when we explained the situation 10 times that we left Scotland and the Tickets got Delayed we showed all the original proof of purchase Documents and told him what the guy done in Düsseldorf to help us he just kept saying he couldn't help ! This Fellow had terrible customer service manners and it was a very bitter end to a Wonderful Trip But I Would Definitely NOT Recommend Anyone using this Ticket office Shop it's a Complete Joke and Extremely Poorly Managed a very very upset customer ...

Visited the Veltins Arena for a concert and had a terrible experience. From being told by Veltins Arena staff beforehand that a breast pump was not allowed in the stadium, to struggling to find the right exit as the signposting at the Arena is very unclear, to standing in line at the entrance in the burning sun for half an hour, to then waiting for the bathroom in the arena for 1.25 hours (!) during the whole support act's set until the opening of the main act, which we missed. Even asked the Arena staff if I could quickly go out and back in, explaining that we'd been standing in line for the bathrooms for an hour and pointed to where there were no lines for the bathroom outside, but wasn't allowed to. Arena staff didn't seem to be prepared well in general. Granted, concerts are not the purpose of this venue - but if you are going to sell concert tickets at this price range, you cannot be so poorly equipped that people miss major parts of the show.

For people visiting this arena: make sure you have cash with you if you want to grab food outside of the stadium; go to the bathroom beforehand; look up a map of the stadium on Google beforehand and navigate using Google Maps, the signposting at the Arena is very unhelpful; don't park your car at the arena's parking lots, as people waited in line to leave for more than 2 hours...