At the European Championship, the whole of football Germany looks enthusiastically at the women. Now comes everyday life and with it the question: How much enthusiasm remains for World Cup qualification and the Bundesliga?
National coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg enjoyed the new glory after glorious days at the European Championships in Mallorca. On vacation on her favorite island, the 54-year-old processed the turbulent summer, during which the women’s national team not only reached the final in England, but also conquered many hearts in football Germany and found new fans.
“It felt like the final yesterday. It still hurts me when I think about the outcome of the final,” said Voss-Tecklenburg with a touch of disappointment – after a big fight, the final was lost 2-1 to the hosts after extra time .
How much of the EM swing remains in everyday life?
But the trainer not only has to tick off the exit, but also make the leap back into everyday life. 90,000 people in Wembley and almost 18 million interested people in front of the television, that’s history for now. Now it’s about what women’s football can draw from the spectacular weeks and how much of the summer hype remains when the European Championship is no longer played against England, but World Cup qualification in Turkey or Bulgaria – or the Bundesliga, which has been so far was not a big crowd puller.
“I’m still asked about this EM every day. Yesterday I sorted all my mail from the past few weeks for an hour,” reported Voss-Tecklenburg. You got “many nice messages”. Female players like Alexandra Popp and Lena Oberdorf were briefly celebrated during the tournament like their male colleagues used to be. The EM momentum should now radiate and ensure that women’s football gets a bigger stage all year round. Best with continuous growth.
Voss-Tecklenburg is optimistic about this. The former player said that the 1,300 registrations for the public training session this Tuesday in Frankfurt and the good forecast for the home game against France on October 7 in Dresden are encouraging. The game will be broadcast on ARD in prime time and, unlike many previous test and qualifying games, is intended to reach a wide audience. There is no lack of commitment, as the public training including autograph session and other planned campaigns around the start of the Bundesliga in September show.
After the European Championship comes the World Cup qualification
“The perception and appreciation have reached the general public – that makes me positive, at least as far as the national team is concerned. But that’s only part of it. We also know that we want to push many things forward,” said Voss-Tecklenburg. The Bundesliga should also be involved in this. The goals are clearly defined: More TV presence, live and in compilations. In addition, frequent encounters in the big stadiums, starting with the opening game Eintracht Frankfurt against FC Bayern Munich, which takes place on September 16 in the 2006 World Cup arena.
The everyday life of the national team means first of all: game on Saturday (2.45 p.m. / ZDF) in Turkey, on September 6th (6.30 p.m. / One) in Bulgaria. DFB Marketing Director Holger Blask firmly believes that the weeks from the EM summer can have lasting benefits. “The successful EM helps the visibility and presence of women in football enormously. The record ratings show that there is interest in society,” said Blask. Both the performance and the appearance of the women were “great advertising” for the sport.