On the terraces: Eintracht Frankfurt banners at St. Pauli raise questions

In a weekly Newsletter, Matt Ford keeps an eye on the action off the pitch in the Bundesliga and German football, explaining what’s going on from fan protests to finances.

Eintracht Frankfurt have been an outstanding advert for German football in recent years, both on and off the pitch. In 2018, Eintracht's German Cup win sent the Eagles off on a European journey which culminated in Europa League glory in Seville in 2022. En route, their supporters dazzled the continent with a series of spectacular choreographies at the Waldstadion while taking huge numbers away to Rome, Milan and, most memorably, Barcelona. And all the while, Germany’s fourth biggest club appeared to be singing with one voice socially and politically, with the ultras celebrating the diversity of their city and club president Peter Fischer frequently hitting out against the far-right AfD.

So why, then, were two homophobic and right-wing conspiracy theorist banners displayed so prominently at the front of the Eintracht end away at St. Pauli at the weekend?

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Matt Ford's "On the terraces" newsletter will continue to appear every week throughout the 2024/25 Bundesliga season. Last season, the newsletter featured exclusive and in-depth coverage of the Bundesliga's private equity plans and the political intrigues at VfB Stuttgart, among other things. If you like what you see, please consider taking out a paid subscription.