World Cup 2006 Fan Fest Berlin

Attending the World Cup is a dream for many and being here in Berlin, one can sense the excitement. Getting tickets to games can prove difficult and very expensive. A 35 Euro ticket for a 1st round game might cost you 350 Euros from a scalper. For those who do not have tickets, your options are : Stay in your room and watch the game on TV, go to a bar, stand outside the stadium and trade atmosphere for watching the game, or go to Fan Fest.

Fan Fest is a designated area equipped with huge screens and speakers, allowing fans from all countries to gather and watch the game for free. Fan Fest Berlin is set up at the Brandenburg Gate, extending towards the Tiergarten. Fan is open all day and to get in you have to pass through security at one of the entrances. Access is free, but you are not allowed to bring in glass containers, aerosols or weapons. You can bring cameras and other electronic devices.

When a World Cup game is scheduled, Fan Fest starts to fill up 3-4 hours beforehand. The whole strip is lined with food and drink vendors as well as sounvenir stalls. Getting to Fan Fest early means you will spend only a couple of minutes getting in. Arriving at the start of a game
means a wait of 15 minutes and arriving at the start of a Germany game mean you might wait a hour.

In my experience, Fan Fest Berlin has been a place where fans from all over the world, not just teams playing or even teams that have qualified for the World Cup, have gsthered to watch the games. I’ve met Scottish fans, Turkish fans and Irish fans, along with Latin Americans and Asians. One thnig I have noticed is fans from one country wearing the colors of another. Brasil is an easy team to like, with the following football, samba atmosphere and beautiful female fans. Berlin locals have no problem in wearing Brasil shirts, face paint and hats. One of the fun things is wearing anothe team’s shirts and meeting their fans. I have been interviewed by a Japanese TV crew and cheered with some Argentine fans. Fan Fest is not for everyone though, it can get crowded, there is little shade and you will spend the whole game standing up.

Here are the pro’s and cons of Fan Fest Berlin:

Pro’s:
Its free
You get to see the game on a huge screen
Food and drinks, including beer are available
If you arrive early it doesn’t take long to get in
You get to mingle with fans from many countries

Con’s:
The screen is in direct sunlight and seems dim during the day.
Prices of food and drinks are inflated. A Lift apple juice is 4.5 Euro’s
If you arrive late it will take 20 minutes to 1 hour to get in.
There is not enough seating so you will stand for the wohle game.
When its crowded you wil get bumped continuously during the game
There is no shade
Too many drunk people during Germany games.

All in all Fan Fest is a plus an a gives fan without tickets a central place to meet for fun and games. I would not choose Fan Fest as the place to watch every game in the World Cup.