Even before the game began, the situation in the Oswiecim ice rink became uncomfortable. When the Polar Bears Berlin When the German national anthem was played, there were whistles from the spectators. In addition, the anthem was apparently accompanied by techno beats by the stadium director.
But that was still relatively harmless compared to what the fans of the Polish ice hockey champions had already shown in the stands before the Champions Hockey League (CHL) game. On one straight there were huge banners reading: “Welcome to the city of your biggest crime.” In between was a black, red and gold banner with the inscription: “German Death Camps.”
One of the greatest crimes of the German state took place around six kilometers from the hall of the Polish champions, which is only six kilometers away from the memorial: the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp was the largest German extermination camp during the Nazi era until 1945. The city of Oswiecim (Polish for Auschwitz) has almost 40,000 inhabitants, ice hockey is the number one sport and it was the first time since the Second World War that a professional team from Berlin came to the Polish city.
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The Berlin club was well aware that there could be background noise around the game on the day itself. The Eisbären had previously given their fans “travel recommendations”.
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As far as the team is concerned, there were ten players on the ice on Saturday who are not of German origin, as well as eleven German professionals. They approached the game with humility. The Eisbären team had visited the memorial site together the day before.
In the stadium itself, visitors from Berlin were surprised by the mix of Polish fans. One wrote on a picture with the banner on an “X”: “Under the block flag, people with hardcore Nazi shirts and “proud Silesian” on their backs. Difficult.”
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The CHL itself has not yet commented on the incidents from Saturday. The topic was omitted from all match reports, and the reporter on the live broadcaster “Magentasport” was slightly critical of the botched German anthem.
It might have been a sensitive decision for the league to refrain from playing the anthems before this game. However, from the CHL’s point of view, it seems advisable to address the issue: On October 9, the Straubing Tigers will play in Oswiecim.
The Eisbären won the game on Saturday 4:1, after a decent performance, this was the first three points for the German champions in the Champions League on the second match day. Unlike in the stands, there were no incidents on the ice during the game.
