UEFA Euro 2024
Round of 16
England v Slovakia
Arena Auf Schalke
Gelsenkirchen, Germany
30 Jun 2024
The official tournament programme covered all of England's Group games and the Knockout Phase up until the Semi Final and was very good quality with 98 pages of gloss and colour
ESTC tickets for this game were in high demand with a final allocation being the lowest of all England's games at 6662 (662 above the expected allocation). 2391 of these seats were available as Fans First tickets priced at 50 Euros. A total of 11378 members had pre-registered for this game but many had picked up tickets in the UEFA ballot or from touts/3rd party ticket sites. Again, we were located in the South Tribune opposite the end favoured by Schalke
Arena AufSchalke (Veltins Arena) is a fantastic stadium and home to Schalke 04. It hosted the 2004 Champions League Final and 4 matches at the 2006 FIFA WC, including the infamous 'wink gate' when Portugal beat England on 3-1 on penalties in the QF . It has a retractable roof and a capacity of 62,271 (seating and standing) but for the Euros it has been reduced to 50,000 all seated
During Euro 24 Arena AufSchalke hosted 3 Group games: Serbia v England (0-1), Spain v Italy (1-0) and Georgia v Portugal (2-0). It also hosted this Round of 16 match between England and Slovakia (2-1).
Declan Ricer makes the front cover for this game because they had to put someone on and Declan has been an ever present for the team, just needs to step up a bit
Attendance: 47,244
Day 1: Exploring Schalke.
My digs in Gelsenkirchen were located on Gewerkenstrasse in the beating heart of Schalke territory, in the shadow of the industrial ghost of the Consolidation colliery
Despite the outside appearance the flat is clean, comfortable and it has a beer fridge
A fully equipped kitchen with balcony
....stocked with beer, which the owner
confirmed I could help myself to
Consolidation Colliery (shaft No1) was the first shaft of the consolidation collieries that sprang up around Schalke in 1865 on Gewerkenstrasse. Grillo was the entrepreneur behind it all and is credited as the founder of the 'Schalke -Land'. All that is left is the slag heap known as the 'Schalke Pyramid' from here you can get a good vantage point of the area
Straight off the station you come to Bahnhofvorsplatz but all that it has to offer is Kebab shops and grills
Heading further afield towards my accommodation at Schalke I pass the MiR (Musiktheater im Revier) which is the most beautiful opera house in the Ruhr area
On Grillo Square there is monument to Friederich Grillo, the industrialist who founded Consolidation Colliery. Without the colliery there would have been no FC Schalke 04
Grillo Square - The heart of Schalke
St Jospeh's church was and is vitally important to the Schalke community. On weekdays, they would risk their lives in the mine and together with the Schalke players, they prayed for victory in the next match.
The window of St Aloisius emphasising the deep connection between the parish and the FC Schalke 04. Here the saint is wearing blue and white socks with a ball at his feet
The church is full of Schalke memorabilia and they are even watching a game of live football in the church when I visit
St Jospeh's marks the start of the Schalke Meile, the mythical street which was the heart of the pre-war mining community of Schalke. The area was bombed to ruins during the war but was re-born from the ashes and still thrives as a pre-match hub for Schalke fans
The Mythos Gorsmeier is also a vaccination Centre where you can get your anti Borussia tick shot 😁
The first Schalke pub on the Schalke Meile but not the best
Plenty of TV screens enable the locals to watch the Germans beat Denmark in a thunderstorm at Dortmund
It is a real community pubs with something for everybody
After it was reported in the german media that English fans thought that Gelsenkirchen was a shit hole, locals responded by selling T-shirts and other memorabilia with the slogan: "Travel Warning! there's nothing but beer and football -
Gelsenkirchen - an absolute shithole"😆
Rött and Weis Essen, ficken und vergesson
Day 2: Matchday. After a strange night, the next morning I head off over the Berlin Bridge across the Schalke Markt to meet with Ludi at the Schalke Fan Bar
I present him with a DCFC and an England members scarf
After a beer I head back into Gelsenkirchen to pick up a Free Lions. This is the Fan Meeting point at Heinrich-Konig-Platz. Not really me!
So I hastily grab tram 302 back up the Schalke Meile
Back in the pub to find Paul Drew of WHU
Squinting in the sunshine of the beer garden with Kerstin (Ludi's wife) and her 'bezzer' Nic
The Beer Garden is starting buzz
The bar staff are rapid!
And Ludi is controlling the sounds..
Joe Westcott DCFC
The DJ's office
Blackburn Rovers on tour
Ludi, Kerstin and Nic
On our way to the Veltins Arena
Matchday at the Veltins arena with just less than 2 hours to kill
Transport seems to be better this time with plenty of shuttle busses being laid on
The glass exterior of the main stand is classy
Heading to Block S4
A glimpse of the English and Slovakian team busses on the otherwise empty coach park from the concourse
The outer concourse
In position with 40 minutes to go
Flag waving to the Euro 24 theme
The Slovakian anthem
GSTK
And they've kicked off
I've just spotted Gav Dickerson in the crowd, an Ipswich fan who I work with
Slovakia stun England with a good move and take the lead when Schranz scores on 25 mins. The Slovakians have other chances to increase the lead in an even game
England leave it late before Jude Bellingham 's overhead kick saves England from an inglorious exit from the Euros
It is all square...
Moments later in the 2nd minute of extra time Harry Kane pops up to head England into the lead
England hold on and live to fight another day
Onto the Quarter Final in Dusseldorf
Heading back down the Schalke Meile for the last time
How we get there I don't care...✌
Some German techno to keep the mood going
The Derby Boys are in the building
Schalke's finest has seen the light
Ludi's on🔥
Day 3 - Going home
Verwaltungsgericht Gelsenkirchen - This delightful building near the Hbf is the Administrative court of Gelsenkirchen
Change at Cologne for the ICE to Brussels to catch the Eurostar and back to work
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