International FC Union Berlin supporters - Berlin derby weekend

The score last time at the Olympiastadion

Union in Englisch

Firstly, the name is not serious. Thanks for the correspondence and feedback though. My favourite was that it should be 'English' not 'Englisch.' At present we have a facebook page and Twitter account. We're meeting before the next Union game to discuss website content and to start building the site. We're especially interested in articles on your visits to Union, why Union and of course any pictures. Post them on our page, drop us an e-mail (unioninenglisch@gmail.com) or send us a tweet to @unioninenglisch - it's always great to hear from people.

Stickers available on the day - limited edition

What is the point?

Someone asked me this the other day. I told them to jump. There is no point. You live. You die. Sorry, why have a fan club with information in English - everyone should speak enough German to sort out tickets or they should not bother attending. That's an interesting view but not a view we subscribe to. Firstly, we're made up of a bunch of people from the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Scandinavia. English is our common language. We all speak German to varying degrees of success. We all love speaking to the locals and learning about the history of Union. If we can then pass on what we learn to the English speaking world we see that as a good thing. No Dice Magazine has been a big success story recently. An English language magazine all about Berlin football. People told them they were mad. They proved the critics wrong. It's been a huge success.

The Launch

On Sunday at 17:00 we'll be launching the concept of an English speaking supporters group of Eisern Union. Details here about the exhibition. Union is about more than football. It's about community and it's also about the theatre (there is an Union play) and about art. The Eiserne Botschafter (Union Ambassadors) have kindly partnered with us to host our launch event. A massive coup and we're delighted as they have a Union Berlin modern museum which will open as well. It has numerous Union artefacts and is worth a visit in its own right.

The exhibition will feature 32 photographs dating back to 2006. We can exclusively reveal that the prints (300mm by 450mm - pretty big!) will be available to order on the night. They will be €10 each or 2 for €15 (excluding postage and packing). This is simply to cover the costs of the exhibition. Hopefully we'll have some cash in the kitty to fund the website too! If you live abroad (or in Berlin) we'll of course post them out to you in special tubes to protect the prints.

After the exhibition we will be going to an Union pub nearby. An experience in itself. Check out the event page above for details.

What else can I do over the weekend in Berlin?

Clearly there are a lot of international Union supporters in Berlin for the derby on Monday. If you're anything like us you'll be spending the weekend taking in a mixture of culture, football, average food and drinking. To help you with all of these things just read on.

Regular contributor Felix has put together a good list of games that are on over the weekend. Click here to read it. My personal recommendation is the Tennis Borussia game on the Friday night. A gem of a stadium and great club. If you want to see Union place twice during your stay, then it's Union Berlin II vs. Red Bull Leipzig (Regionalliga) at the Jahnsportpark for you!  Handy if you want to brave the elements and take in the legendary Mauerpark flea market prior to the game. For a traditional German breakfast I strongly recommend Entweder Oder which is also nearby. 

Derby Day

As well as our launch event we'll be meeting for a few pre-match drinks on Monday afternoon. Whether you are an Unioner or a Hertha fan, we'd love to see you for a beer. This is a friendly city derby and we're keen to enter in to the spirit of things. We're hopeful the UK Hertha fans will join us as well!

We've decided to travel to the game from Friedrichstraße via the S-Bahn. We needed a pub in close proximity and have opted for an Irish boozer - Oscar Wilde. It serves food, alcohol and is an ideal central meeting point. The plan is to be in there from around 15:00 and depart just before 18:00. If you can't find us then ask at the bar or look for 10 Swedish lads!

Eisern!!!