interview
In an interview with Sportschau, Mats Grambusch, captain of the German national hockey team and player with Rot-Weiss Köln, talks about the World Cup victory in India, the start of the second half of the Bundesliga season and the goals for the upcoming European Championships in Mönchengladbach.
sports show: Mr. Grambusch, when did the last celebration of the World Cup title in India end?
Mats Grambusch: (laughs) As a farewell, we and the team rented a house in the Zillertal and spontaneously went skiing together. Then there were the last festivities.
After the win, you told Sportschau that the success was “gigantic” for hockey in Germany: How has public perception of hockey changed since the World Cup victory?
grambush: I can only speak for myself in Cologne, but it’s definitely the case that we’ve received a lot of invitations around here and a lot of cool ones Events were allowed to visit, where we were able to network well. The media are also more present, we have more and more traffic at the games and a few inquiries in between.
There are significantly more sponsor requests for the national team, also with a view to the home European Championship. I would be happy if this effect rolls off the youth work. And more boys and girls say, “Hey, I’m interested, looks like a cool sport, I’ll start hockey here at my local club.”
Preparations for the European Championship are already underway: In the FIH Pro League, the German selection recently lost three of the four games in India. You were only on the pitch for two games. Head coach André Henning had already announced in advance that he would give a few newcomers playing time. What conclusions did you draw from the games?
grambush: We were aware that we wouldn’t get four wins in four games there. We had a decimated squad because we are not professional athletes, but many boys still had to fulfill their professional obligations and therefore could not start the trip. Nevertheless, there was a powerful squad on site and we could certainly have won more than one.
Some youngsters have a lot of playing time, how important is it to gain experience as a young player on this stage?
grambush: Very important! Some guys could really show themselves. In the Pro League you measure yourself against good opponents and play at a high level. We played three of the four games there in India in front of 20,000 spectators. It is also an important experience for a young player to play in front of such a crowd. This is not common for us.
You yourself have im teenager– Having played in the English Premier League, what lessons have you learned over the years?
grambush: I have there at East Grinstead in the premier league played. It was an experienced squad, and of course some of the players were ten or twelve years older than me. That was very instructive for me. I was thrown in at the deep end and for the step from youth hockey to men’s hockey it was a very positive experience.
In football, people like to talk about English toughness, how does playing hockey in England differ from the Bundesliga in Germany?
grambush: The league starts there in November and ends in March. You sometimes feel like you’re playing on ice and there are very few rays of sunshine during training or games. That has a certain basic hardness. In the game itself, however, there are no major differences. The boys step on the gas and remain fair, even when things get serious in the games.
After her stay in England, she went back to her childhood club Gladbacher HTC. Two years later you switched to Rot-Weiss Köln, for which you are still on the pitch today. How did your own playing style develop?
grambush: You really have to ask someone else (laughs). I think I’m a pretty flexible person all-rounder and tends to be more offensively oriented. I’m not a specialist in any particular area, I do a lot of things fairly well. If I had to name a strength, it would be dribbling and my strategic mind.
Maybe you can ask your younger brother Tom, with whom you have been playing together for years at club and national level. How do you see its development?
grambush: Tom is a tough central defender and directs our build-up game with his flick balls. In this area I definitely see him among the best in the world. Defensively, he is difficult to overcome with his physique, his technique and his pace. As you can see, it’s much easier to talk about his qualities than mine (laughs).
Do you find yourself treating him or reacting differently on the field than the rest of the team?
grambush: That has changed over the years. Tom and I are actually very honest in all situations, sometimes confrontational, in our exchanges with one another. Not that much changes on the pitch.
When Tom came into the national team, I initially had the feeling that I had to protect him and was perhaps not quite as direct as with other teammates. But that has long since changed completely. I don’t treat Tom any differently than other players, that wouldn’t fit somehow either.
In addition to the two Grambuschs, five other players from the German World Cup squad played for Rot-Weiss Köln last season. How does this enormous quality of players come about?
grambush: This is primarily due to the construct set up by Rot-Weiss Köln. A dual system is practiced there. The hockey player is not only a hockey player, but can also be interesting for companies in their professional life.
There is a mentor program. Every player gets a mentor for their industry who can help and advise in professional life. These are mostly managers from large or medium-sized companies. This attracts young players because they are given a perspective.
But of course a lot is also possible in sport with us. We want to play for the title in the Bundesliga as one of the favorites, in the EHL (the equivalent of the Champions League) we’re in the quarter-finals. And logically there is a very pleasant atmosphere in the club.
Keyword professional life: you studied alongside your hockey career, later you worked in various companies, you currently work in the family business of a real estate company. How does the balance between professional sport, free time and work succeed?
grambush: Unfortunately, leisure time is often neglected. The fact is that we had to improve significantly in the national team, especially in terms of the number of training days. Other nations were much further along, have central training camps and are on the pitch together every week. We now have almost 120 days of training with the national team on our calendar.
On course days it usually looks like this: training in the morning, training in the evening and professional life in between. Then there are the training sessions and games with the club. Of course, leisure time suffers as a result and we won’t be able to get away from this system anytime soon.
Why is that?
grambush: There are still many, many sponsors missing who would push the remuneration of the players so far that one could take something back in professional life. This could become a problem in the national team in the next few years because it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain the top level in hockey and at the same time pursue a professional career. But that’s the life of a hockey player.
The European Hockey Championships will take place in Mönchengladbach in August 2023. How do you currently view the German national team?
grambush: Not that much has changed. We are no less hungry. It gave us confidence to win the world title after such a long time. We have young players who put pressure on the squad, that’s always good. The World Cup win also gave us a boost because of the way we got it. We always have in the back of our minds: “They have to beat us first and we always have a chance until the final whistle”.
What are your hopes for the tournament?
grambush: The home EM should bring success on and off the pitch. We definitely want to win the title, but we have almost the same competition as at the World Cup. This can of course go in all directions. We expect great games and a great atmosphere, although of course I always say that we’ll get the thing.