Today we travel to the Flemish coast to view KV Oostende – Standard Liege and the Bruges City derby between Cercle and Club. This is an ideal combination to visit, because it’s just a 30 minute drive from Ostend to Bruges.

Due to the good weather we left in time. Ostend is a tourist attraction because of the many street art and its location. It is perfect to stay with a temperature of 20 degrees or higher. You can enjoy a beer with a sea view, so that’s what we did including some nice seafood before we went to the Versluys Arena. The Standard supporters traveled to Ostend in large numbers and the home team presented a tifo in return.

It was a good game to watch with opportunities back and forth, the halftime score was therefore in balance 1-1. The second half showed Standard why they play at the top of the Jupiler Pro League and scored no less than 3 goals. The game ended in 1-4. Great support from the Ultras Inferno and a good awayday for them.

After the game, it was time to drive from Ostend to Bruges for the Bruges City Derby. Cercle was playing at home and we had tickets between the ultras.

When we arrived at the Jan Breydel Stadium, where Cercle and Club both play their home matches, the atmosphere was already pumped. The Club Brugge fans are having a party on the parking lot before entering the sold-out ‘away’ section. While the home fans having some drinks in front of their main stand. About 15 minutes before the start of the match most fans entered the stadium, you could already feel the tensed derby atmosphere. And when the players arrived on the pitch, the Jan Breydel Stadium was lit on fire by lots of pyro.

After 12 minutes, the Cercle supporters came back with a pyroshow again and showed a stolen banner from their rival Club Brugge. This banner was set on fire and then thrown into the stands.. This led to a number of burnt seats, which also caused the stand to burn.

The Cercle supporters took the opportunity with songs like “Cercle on fire, your defense is terrified, Cercle on fire!” The fire brigade was involved to extinguish the fire.

In the end there was a reason for a party in the away sector, the supporters of Club Brugge were the happiest this evening, as their team played a solid game and won the derby with 0-2.

A beautiful Bruges city derby that exceeded expectations due to the enormous amounts of pyro!

This derby was on fire! 

For this episode of UB on Tour  we’re in Krakow for the “Holy War” between Wisla and Cravovia. With high expectations we travel to Poland.

We arrive in Krakow on Friday afternoon, after we checked in to the hotel we headed to the Main Square of Krakow. While enjoying a couple of beers we check out some videos of previous clashes between Wisla and Cracovia, so we know what we can expect. Cause of the good-tasting beers and our plans to go to Auschwitz then next morning we kept it easy for the night.

The next morning we got out early to have a look at the Kościuszko Mound, a hill in Krakow where you have a great view over the city and you can even see  the stadiums of Wisla and Cracovia.

When you visit Krakow, you’re just 60km away from Auschwitz, everyone knows what happend here but to actually experience it is a “must” for everyone. It is fierce, impressive and it gives a big impact, but to get a good idea of the awful things that happend here, you really have to see it by yourself.

Saturday night we were able to experience the nightlife of Krakow. After 1:00 AM you will be approached after every 20 meters to come in to a strip club for free shots and beer. Many of these strip clubs are a big scam, as we did not know wich clubs were legit we did not took the risk. We spend our night in a few bars and had a very pleasant evening. Before we knew it was 6.00 AM so it was time to go to bed to get some rest for the big day.

Matchday!

Finaly the time has come, the “Holy War”. Unfortunately without away fans, because during the derby in March, the Cracovia fans demolished Wisla’s stadium by breaking down toilet pots and sinks. This resulted in a ban for 2 matches for the Cracovia fans during the derby at Wisla. For us this was a minor downside but after a good schnitzel and some beers, we were really looking forward to the derby.

The supporters of Wisla did not disappointed. An incredible noise came down the stands. We had secured a spot among the Wisla ultras and that was noticeable. We were kindly ask to don’t make any video’s or pictures. At the start of the match a beautiful choreo was displayed by the ultras, what was also the highlight of the entire first half. It was a true battle on the pitch, although Wisla dominated the match, it could not be expressed in the score.

At the start of the second half a banner rolled down the stand. After the banner appeared, it was time for the ultras to change. Shoes were taken off, pants and sweaters were changed, the pyros came out of the backpack and the balaclava’s went on! Time for an insane pyroshow! While we were still recovering from the show, the next one appeared the stand was totally covered with smoke in the colors of Wisla Krakow! After this the ultras rapidly changed their clothes again. 20 minutes of the second half were played.

After a silly fold by Wisla defenders, Cracovia scored the 0-1. Lighters and other objects were thrown towards the Cracovia players. But the ultras recovered fast and remaind behind their team by making a lot of noise, but it was not enough. The Holy War ended in 0-1. What an experience, an intense atmosphere and a great tensed derby. Even without away fans, our expectations were exceeded!

Do you want to read more UB on Tour experiences? Click here

Source: Ultrabible &  uisf.de

On this episode of UB on Tour we are heading  to the Capital of Denmark; to see the “Slaget om Kobenhavn” the city derby between FC Copenhagen and Brondby IF!

We arrived in Copenhagen on Saturday morning, the day before the big clash. Obviously we started the trip with some beers before we headed into the city to explore some of the highlights of Copenhagen and drink some more beers.

Maybe the most special part of Copenhagen is the neighborhood Christiania. Christiania is like an island in the city. About nine hundred to a thousand people, young and old, live in this neighborhood. They live in squatted, rebuilt and sometimes self-built houses. In the beginning the Danish government tried to remove these self-built houses, but from the end of the seventies Christiania was tolerated as a “social experiment”. However, disagreements persisted regarding non-payment of water and electricity, drug trafficking and missing catering and building permits.

It was pretty clear to see that drug trafficking was tolerated. Every day there is a market where all kinds of different types of weed and hashish were sold.  Of course we couldn’t resist to test some of the good stuff ourselves. We can safely say that the quality was pretty good 😉

Matchday!

After a tough night we waked up hyped in the  morning as it was time for the derby between FC Copenhagen and Brondby today. This time not only for the honor of the city because FC Copenhagen can become champions if they manage to beat arch rival Brondby.

Once arrived at the stadium it was already very busy in front of the entrance to Sektion 12, the grandstand where the Ultras of FC Copenhagen (Sektion 12) manifest themselves. We took place in the upper section of Sektion 12  to see have a good view on the spectacle.  The expectations for this match were of course very high as the championship was at stake in this city derby.

Our high expectations were therefore exceeded. At the start of the match, a large choreo was deployed by the Copenhagen fans spread over 3 grandstands. A few moments later a big ammount of smoke bombs were released wich covered the whole stand in smoke. The away fans also prepared an action for today’s derby.

After the smoke disappeared we saw that Brondby took the lead within 6 minutes.. But FC Copenhagen reacted with 2 quick counter goals in the 10th and 12th minutes, which made it 2-1. Wich was also  the half time standing.

At the start of the 2nd half 100’s of torches were lit in Sektion 12 wich resulted in a beautiful image. Also the away-end was lighted up by a lot of pyro!

Early in the second half  Brondby came in 2-2 right away with an own goal from FC Copenhagen. This putted the championship in danger but in the 64th minute, Copenhagen took the lead again and this also became the final score, resulting in an outburst of joy!  FC Copenhagen became Denmark’s  national champion for the 13th time. In  a match against the arch-rival Bronby, can it be any better?!

Overall we had an amazing trip to Copenhagen. A great city with enough to do and to explore. We would recommend a trip to Copenhagen in combination with a visit to FC Copenhagen to experience a bit of the Danish football passion!

Do you want to read more UB on Tour experiences? Click here

Source: Ultrabible & uisf.de

Our trip on this day went to the capital of Belgium, Brussels. A city well known because of its famous specialties like chocolate, waffles and the most important one, some pretty good beers. But off course all of these things are not the reason for our visit (except the beers).
 
Brussel
 
The city Brussel counts 3 football clubs in the 3 highest national leagues.
The biggest and most famous club from the city is RSC Anderlecht, who are playing in the highest division for 84 years in a row. The club on the second level comes from the district “Saint Gilloise” and therefore carries the name Union St. Gilloise. And then we have the third club and directly our destination for this Ultras Bible on tour : RWD Molenbeek!

RWDM History

The club was founded in 1973 after a fusion between Racing white and Daring Club de Bruxelles. Their absolute top times were directly after the fusion, with a 3rd place in their first season and the title in 1975 as their highlights!
After some years with successes (including some uefacup II matches) the club went down and down.. which resulted in a bankruptcy in 2002.

In 2003 a new club was founded called Racing Whitestar Daring Molenbeek. After a few rumouring years the club changed their name in 2010 to Racing White Daring Molenbeek 2003. After four more years of playing in the lowest provincial league the club again failed and were declared bankrupt again.

In 2015 the club re-astablished again as Racing White Daring Molenbeek. This was the start of a better period. The first season they ended on 9th place in the next 2 seasons they managed to win the league title twice wich resulted that they are currently playing in the 3th Belgium League.

Ultras Brussels Power 2005

Everything started during the end of the 2004-2005 season. Some fanatic supporters wanted to enhance the atmosphere in the Edmond Machtens Stadium. Initially based on a few atmospheric actions and drums that set the mood in Block A. Soon everything became very concrete and BP05 was formed.

 

We asked a few questions to one of the members of UB95; 

How many members does the group contain?
“We started in 2005 with +\- 10 members. Nowaydays the group contains 55 members”

Do you have any friendships?
“SCO angers (ligue 1 France) +\- 1990”
“Helmond ( 2nd division holland) 3/4 years ago”

Worst memory?
Our club was dead in 2015 … an other club played in our stadium : white star brussels .. but we Didn’t follow them.. so our group was sleeping during one year … we back in 2016 in 5th division …. so the group was Alive Again after 1 year

Best memory(s)?
the comeback of RWDM in 2016 ….
the title last year in Charleroi (Olympic)
We were +\- 1700fans in an away game, best atmosphère of my life … for a 4th division team its amazing .. now we are in 3rd ! 😉

Check out this video of their trip to Olympic Charleroi here

Biggest rivalry?
BP05 us not defined by its rivals. Last years, RFC liege matches have created the most tensions. Bruxelles and liège is one of the biggest rivalry in belgian football. This year we were not allowed to go in liege because we riots during home match. Last year they attacked our buses and throwed stones. Union Saint-Gilloise is another rival, located in Brussels team. However, we don’t play in the same division. Anderlecht used to be the biggest rival of RWDM in the 80s but nowadays there is mutual respect.

What do you think of the Supporters Discrimination in football?
We think Belgium is not the worst country for the supporters although the repression is worsening. Climbing up the divisions, we faced first problems with the cops but it not similar to other countries. We have more problems with traveling to visit our friends in Angers.
We are convinced that a constructive debate between the Belgium football executives could lead to a better way of respecting our football culture. Repression and stadium bans will never stop our way of life. Solutions are easy: split stands for ultras and stands for families. We should have a zones where its possible to make pyro and tifos in each stadium… If someone joins, he knows what to expect and that the party will be intense!

MATCHDAY

This evening, RWDM played a homematch against Lierse Kempenzonen. The ultras had announced a boycott for tonights match. During the first 15 minutes of the game, a part of the grandstand will remain empty to send a message to the group of players who have shown too little commitment during the last matches according to the ultras.

After 15 minutes, the ultras came up in the stand with a lot of noise and pyro was ignited and the singing was started. Singing that would last until the finalwhistle.

Brussels Power ensured a good atmosphere in the stands with the necessary pyro throughout the match, which also spread to the field. It seemed that the players had received the boycott’s message.

Despite the efforts of the players and supporters in the stands, RWDM did not get further than a 1-1 draw. After the game, the players expressed their gratitude to the supporters for the effort in the stands on which the players group was also thanked by the supporters!

The supporters of Lierse Kempenzonen came to Brussels in large numbers this evening to support their team in this match. Also the necessary pyro in the away end!

Overall we had a great time visiting RWDM and we want to thank UB95 for their hospitality. 

 

 

Do you want to read more UB on Tour experiences? Click here

 

On this episode of UB on tour we went to another big match in Europe: the Coppa Italia final between Atalanta BC and Lazio!

It was a 1 day trip so our day begun early as we arrived in Rome at 11 in the morning. From the moment that we arrived until the moment we came back in the appartment it has rained, so the first and only thing we could do during the day was close ourselves in a bar/pub and have some drinks. (which was perfect for everyone)
After some beers and food at a bar 2/3 kilometers from the stadium we made our way to the Olimpico.

After a 15 minute walk we saw the first police buses and vans, we were on the right way. For this final we had tickets for the Atalanta sector so we joined the tifosi in a bar near to the stadium.
In this area there was a pretty calm atmosphere without any riots or troubles. Just drinking some beers ,singing and laughing.. a good way to prepare for the match. Instead a part of the Lazio tifosi had some troubles with police ahead of the match.. resulted in two burned police cars, and few other complaints.

For Atalanta it was the 4th coppa final in the history of the club, the first time in 23 years. On their journey to Rome they”ve faced Juventus at home in the quarter final, who they beated with 3-0! After that they won the battle over 2 matches against Fiorentina with 5-4 in the Semi Finals.
More than 22.000 tifosi made the 600km long journey to Rome. Huge numbers if you consider that Bergamo, the city of Atalanta only has 120.000 inhabitants. And also the cheapest tickets were arround 50 euro up to 150 euro for the main stand.

Instead of Atalanta, Lazio tifosi are more used to win titles. In their rich history they’ve won the Coppa Italia 6 times. The last time was in 2014 were they beated their rivals of AS Roma 1-0. Lazio beated the 2 teams from Milan in their journey to the final. Both AC Milan and Internazionale could not stand against Lazio and so they moved into the final.
As expected Lazio sold out all their 35.000 tickets and probably there were around 40/45.000 ” Laziali ” present in the Olimpico this night.

After we drank the necessary beers we went to the stadium, after 3 security checks we finally came up the curva. Atalanta’s curva was all ready almost filled up 1/1.5 hour before the match and the atmosphere was buzzing already. You could feel that this was a special day for all atalanta tifosi!

The Curva Nord of Atalanta had prepared arround 15.000 flags for this night which they handed out at the entrance of the curva. This resulted in a nice choreo ahead of the match.
The Lazio tifosi did not prepared any choreo this time, but the curva was filled with huge flags and banners which also made a nice view.

Overall both tifosi made up a great athmosphere throughout the match. On the field it was quite a tough match which could have ended in all directions. For a long time it looked like the match would end in 0-0. But in the 82th minute there was Sergej Milinkovic-Savic who scored the 1-0 and some minutes after the first goal it was the young Joaquin Correa to score the 2-0 and decided the match.

So unfortunately it wasn’t the evening the Atalanta tifosi had hoped for. Still no price since 1963.
But instead of sadness, pride took the upper hand in the tifosi from Bergamo. Proud on the team who fought until the last minute. And as Atalanta is still in the race for the Champions League spot their is still something to “win” this season!