podcast
In 2009 a UFO landed in Markranstädt near Leipzig. It brought successful professional football and football commerce to the region – and with its RB Leipzig project it caused both great hope and decisive rejection.
The documentary podcast “Rasenball: Red Bull and modern football” from Undone and MDR tells the story in five episodes of the club’s bumpy yet rapid rise, which cleverly circumvented rules and traditions.
And at some point he said: Gerhard, I think I’ll play football now.
Gerhard Berger about Dietrich Mateschitz |
July 2, 2009: First appearance by RB Leipzig, then still in Salzburg jerseys.
A look into history and behind the scenes
The podcast hosts Katharina Reckers and Patrick Stegemann trace, among other things, how Red Bull got into football – not only in Germany, but also in Austria and the USA. How the company stretched the rules, alienated fans, and changed sports and business. Over six months, the authors looked behind the scenes at RB Leipzig, spoke to entrepreneurs and business people, such as Michael Kölmel and the inventor of the Champions League.
They come across one question again and again: What does fan culture mean? The hosts attended the game between 1. FC Union Berlin and RB Leipzig and spoke to Union and RB fans. A business journalist, those involved from SSV Markranstädt and Austria Salzburg, DFB managing director Andreas Rettig and the president of FC St. Pauli, who also received an offer from Red Bull, also have their say.
When and where can you hear it?
At the start of the podcast, the first two of the five episodes are now online, with the other episodes appearing every Friday. And that here with us, in the ARD audio library and everywhere there are podcasts.
The five episodes
1. Unknown football object
RB Leipzig is born in a small town. If you look at the background, the father is more likely Michael Kölmel than Dietrich Mateschitz.
2. The Lamborghini
The dislike for RB Leipzig is great. This is also due to the “original sin” of the Red Bull Group in 2005, which left a lot of scorched earth behind.
3. Pay to Win
RB Leipzig is the epitome of modern football. But what is that actually supposed to be? Explorations in the RB performance center and the inventor of the Champions League.
4. So-called fans
Are RB fans really that different? At the game 1. FC Union against RB we experience two fan camps that tell very different versions of what being a fan means. But there are also similarities.
5. Boss
After the death of Red Bull founder Mateschitz, the question arises: How long will the company continue to finance expensive top-class football? And can’t you sell a football club you founded?
There is nothing left of the money in the long term. Not entirely true, we bought a lawnmower with the RB money. We still have that too.
Olaf Brosius, coach of SSV Markranstädt |
