Construction began on the Stadion an der Gellerstrasse in July 1933, on former horseriding grounds to the north-west of the German city of Chemnitz. When it was opened in 1934 over 25,000 people crammed in to watch the first match there between PSV Chemnitz and SpVgg Greuther Fürth, which finished 5-1 to the home side. It now has an official capacity of 16,061 and is home to Chemnitzer FC of the 3rd Liga.
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Day 13 of the WSC advent calendar and we’re focussing on Santa. Not quite the rotund, red-clad, jolly fellow who brings presents and sells fizzy pop; instead the football-playing squirrel of Andorra’s UE Santa Coloma, as featured in our Weekly Howl on August 12, 2011.
Badge of the week ~ UE Santa Coloma, Andorra
It is possible to make a squirrel appear aggressive, or at least defensive, but the creature is largely ignored by those attempting to create an image of strength and power. One exception is the Swiss animated squirrel, Phou-Phou, who is friends with a Japanese attack dog and has strong views on European border controls. Santa Coloma have opted to depict on their club crest the legend of the Squirrel Gatekeeper. The story goes that there was an ancient tower in the mountains of Andorra that housed the most comely woman in the world. Many gallant knights journeyed hundreds of miles, braving almost impassable terrain and ambush by robber barons, just to get one glimpse of this fabled beauty. When, one by one, the knights encountered a squirrel with a football who was working as live-in security for the empty building while he “got his act together”, their embarrassment was such that, instead of exploding the myth, they elaborated on it. Santa Coloma clearly wanted to associate themselves with a perky little outsider, able to embarrass more illustrious visitors. And with a left foot like that, he could probably walk into the current England team. Cameron Carter
Between Dortmund and Dusseldorf in Germany lies to town of Essen, home to Rot-Weiss Essen and their stadium. Under construction since April 2011 and opened with an initial capacity of 13,500 in August of this year, the ground will eventually hold 20,000.
For day nine of the WSC advent calendar we have a stop-motion Lego Christmas football match for you. The Morgan family, from Stavanger in Norway, have been making these every year since 2010. This time it features Arsenal v Manchester United, a giant Lego figure dance and a football-playing Father Christmas. Enjoy.
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