BVB – BVBLA

When is A Fan Not A Fan?

Had to stop following the Borussia Dortmund Fans Worldwide Facebook group last week. Too many negative posts. The group was invaded by “fans” who really seemed to have no love for the team at all and very little grasp of the English language. Here’s where I draw the line:

“Burki out!” – this has been ongoing for quite a while, but after Köln it exploded in that group. It was posted no less than 20 times, some demanding that Hitz take over, some demanding that we buy a “better” Goalkeeper. Hey people! He is the Goalkeeper for Borussia Dortmund! He is very good. We are not buying anyone else and he’s been starting ahead of Hitz for Dortmund and Switzerland for years.

“Favre out!” – This was the call after the Union match. I’ll admit that I’ve posted the same thing jokingly, but these idiots are serious.

“Good Riddance!” – I read this sentiment tossed at Abdou Diallo, Omer Toprak, Andre Schürrle and Maxi Phillip. That’s when I knew that these were not Dortmund fans. We support any player that puts on the uniform, and when they leave we wish them well. That’s it. That’s all.*

*OK, this may not apply to Dembélé, but you all know why.

OK…sorry to rant, but needed to speak out. If you are looking for a team that tosses out €100M on a backup striker, Dortmund is not for you. If you are looking for a club that gives up easily on players and coaches, Dortmund is not for you.

There is a reason why Sancho, Witsel, Brandt and others come to Dortmund. It’s because Echte Liebe is not just a marketing slogan. It is the foundation of everything.

All About Notre Dame

South Bend

Thursday, 18.07.2019

Public Training @ Notre Dame Stadium. 6:30pm. Free of charge. All are welcome.

Friday, 19.07.2019

Tailgate – 2:00pm – Let’s make the area black & yellow together!

We are aiming to have a great Tailgating before the match and will come over with our Legends Weidenfeller & Owomoyela!

Therefore, pick up all your tailgating stuff and join us @South Bend!

Preferred parking-slot area is Stadium/Joyce (S/J)

Parking-tickets can be purchased online: Notre Dame Parking

Parking-Slot will be open at 2:00pm on matchday.

Match against Liverpool FC @ Notre Dame Stadium – Kick-off: 8:00pm

Tickets: Ticketmaster

You can filter for the BVB Supporter Section!

Saturday, 20.07.2019

12:00 – 2:00pm @ Puma Store // Meet BVB players // Exact address will be provided soon.

All About Seattle

Monday, 15.07.2019

Arrival at 11:55am (LH 490 flight)

Looking for a warm welcome at the airport. Emma will be there as well!

Tuesday, 16.07.2019

Public Training @ Seattle University. Free of charge. All are welcome.

Time slot between 5:00 – 8:00pm. Kick-off will be provided soon.

Fan training session @ Seattle University.

Want to train like a BVB player? Here’s your chance:

Directly after the A-Team training we are offering our fans a “Train like BVB” – session for our fans as we have two coaches from our BVB Football Academy with us.

We are envisioning two groups. One for ages 7-13 and an adult group. Free of charge. Max attendees 40 in total.

You want to take part? Application at email hidden; JavaScript is required and I put you on the list. First come – first serve. Please bring football equipment with you.

Wednesday, 17.07.2019

Legend-Touchpoint & Raffle: Start around 3:00pm.

Meeting point for all BVB fans around the stadium. Venue will be provided soon.

Match against Seattle Sounders @ Century Link Field – Kick-off: 7:30pm

Tickets: SeatGeek

You can filter for the BVB Supporter Section!

Dortmund at Bayern! Match of The Year!

This is it. It’s all come down to this. The incredible start, the nine point lead, the injuries and disappointments. We were knocked out of Pokal, finally pushed out of the Champion’s League, but here we are, still standing and ready to prove it.

Join us at the Red Lion Tavern on Saturday, April 6 at 9:30am.

The Red Lion Tavern
2366 Glendale Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90039
323-662-5337

Get there early to get a Raffle ticket. Grand Prize was signed by every member of the USA Touring Team of 2018.

We Did It! Thanks Everyone!

We did it! First contacted in January and hosting Borussia Dortmund in May. Thanks again to Sebastian Schneider, Carsten Cramer, Annika Gollub, Benedict, Rich Orosco, Patrick Aviles, and everyone in BVBLA. We turned out quite a crowd.

Three Years

It was the Winter of 2014 and two of us got together to watch a match. The team was headed for the Relegation Zone and Klopp would soon announce his leaving. Nobody could accuse us of being bandwagon fans.

We’ve met at Wirtshaus, The Cock ‘n’ Bull, The Scarlet Lady and Ye King’s Head; but we’ve always considered Wirtshaus to be our home.

We’ve sent our Roster to Dortmund with all of our club information for three years. We never heard back from them…until this year. This will be the year that Borussia Dortmund breaks into the USA.

Borussia Dortmund and LAFC

Carsten Cramer with BVBLA — Carsten, Deike, Steven, Marion, Liam, Dmytro, Joseph, Julia

We were contacted in January by the BVB Fan Department. They were planning an event with LAFC to announce a partnership. Could we get our Club to turn out? Of course we could. So we all went downtown and got some wonderful news.

Three Days

From there we waited. We would get our own section, but when? We would get a chance to meet the players, but what would that be? Most importantly: when will the match be scheduled? At first we were expecting July, during a break in the ICC schedule. Then we were told late May, but the Pokal Finale date had to be reserved.

When the date was finally settled we had three weeks to plan, with dates and times not yet settled for flights, parties, training or ticket sales.

Meet The Flight

We had to meet the flight. We were prepared for 3pm on a Sunday. Then the flight was delayed for four hours. Could we still get out a crowd?

Of course we could. Banners, singing and pestering Mario for autographs.

Monday

Monday started at 11 with a Public Training at UCLA. Every player was there and we turned out 400 or so fans. The players were open to autographs and took the time to meet everyone.

Next was Niky’s in Santa Monica. Originally planned for 40 people, everyone got in eventually and (I think) dropped some cash on some BVB gear while watching a Q&A with Lars Ricken, Roman Weidenfeller, Marcel Schmelzer and Mario Götze.

Monday night was the Fan Party hosted by LAFC and Dortmund. At least 100 of us made it to watch Alicia play Foosball with Schmelle. They didn’t win, but it was OK. We all had a few beers and got to chat with Schmelle, Roman and Patrick Owomoyela.

The Match

Finally, the day of the Match. No events, players all surfing or wandering around in Venice. Before the match the 125 and 126 sections were full. Steven Boll had prepared the megaphone and the chanting began. At 6:51pm it was “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and at 7pm it was game time. How was the match? Best game ever!

Thanks again to everyone who helped make this happen!

This Is It: Borussia Dortmund @ LAFC

Sing-a-long Lunch was great. Thanks to everyone who attended. Besides “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” “Heja BVB!” and “Olé, Jetzt Kommt der BVB,” we have nine simple chants and songs for the match. Steven Boll will be leading from section 122, so join in! The full list will be posted on Facebook tonight.

All the Events

May 20, 3:05pm – Team Arrival at LAX

PLANE DELAYED! 7PM!

Meet at Arrivals, International Terminal by 7pm. Bring flags and scarves and anything you want a signature on. Be ready for “Olé, Jetzt Kommt der BVB” when they appear.

May 21, 11am – Dortmund open training at UCLA

This will be at the North Soccer Field, just north of the John Wooden Student Center. Park in Parking 4 underground (free event, paid parking). 70 minute training scheduled. Once again, bring the kids and anything you want signed.

May 21, 3pm – Meet The Team at Niky’s

Hosted by Puma. If you’re not on the list, you can show up anyway and eat at the BVB food truck. Photos, jerseys for sale and a player Q&A. This is the only place in LA with all the latest BVB gear.

May 21, 6:30pm – BVB – LAFC Fan Party – Boomtown Brewery

Tickets not necessary. Just be there early. Only room for 200 and expecting 300. Meet some of the players and watch Liam go all Fanboy over Emma. I swear: anytime I’m anywhere near Emma, somebody has to take my picture. That is an order.

May 22, 7pm – LAFC vs Borussia Dortmund – Banc of California Stadium

We have sections 125 and 126 in the South Corner. The visitors entrance is in the Southeast corner. Less than 20 tickets left. Buy tickets here. We get one Megaphone (Steven) one drum (John) and 15 flags. If you’re bringing a flag, it must be on a PVC pole no longer than 5 feet and you must enter in the visitors gate.

Food Truck

The PUMA – BVB Foodtruck is touring around LA:

May 19 – 5:00pm – 9:00pm – Fontana Concert in the Park
May 21 – 11:00am – 1:30pm – Ocean & 31st – 2929 31st St., Santa Monica, CA 90405
May 21 – 2:30pm – 4:00pm – Niky’s Santa Monica
May 22 – 11:00am – 2:00pm – Tri Centre Food Trucks – 650 E Hospitality Ln, San Bernardino
May 22 – 5:00pm– 10:00pm – Banc of California Stadium
May 23 – 11:00 – 2:00 pm – Heritage Corporate Center – 10350 Heritage Park Dr, Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670
May 23 – 4:00 – 10:00pm – Common Space LA – 3411 W. El segundo Blvd., Hawthorne CA 90250

Borussia Dortmund Partners With LAFC

The Borussia Dortmund Los Angeles Fan Club wants to thank everyone involved in last nights festivities: Carsten Cramer (BVB), Annika Gollub (BVB), Rich Orosco (LAFC), Patrick Aviles (LAFC) and especially all the members of the 3252. Thanks for all the drumming and singing!

So…what was all the excitement? Borussia Dortmund has arrived in the US and are looking to make a big splash. They have worked with LAFC from the beginning; from Stadium design to team culture. With the Banc California Stadium almost finished and LAFC acquiring players (and a Manager) for the next MLS season, the time was right for the big announcement:

Borussia Dortmund will play a friendly with LAFC to open the new stadium.

Of course, there’s even more:

There will be Fan Events to meet the players
Emma and Nobby Dickel will be here
Dortmund will play two matches in the US ICC (TBA)
The BVB U19 will be in Los Angeles for a mini-Tournament

…and BVBLA will be in the middle of all of it. Please sign up for the mailing list and like us on Facebook to be kept up to date as these events unfold.

When the date is announced we will be preparing a list for tickets. The LAFC fans will fill the North Wall. Fittingly, we’ve been offered the South Wall. We’ll need 2000 or so dressed in Yellow and Black, and ready to rock!

This will be fun!

BVBLA – Echte Liebe in Los Angeles

The Borussia Dortmund Los Angeles Fan Club. It started when two strangers asked on Reddit: “Where can I watch the match in LA?” Now a year later, we’re had our largest event to date, over 30 Fans at Wirtshaus for Der Klassiker 2 on March 5.

Scottish Breakfast Club – The Hardcore

We all love Wirtshaus and the owners are Founding Members of the club. Unfortunately, most Bundesliga matches happen at 6:30am or so, and Wirtshaus cannot open for us. Enter the Cock’n Bull in Santa Monica. They are all EPL fans, mostly for Liverpool, but they have helped us get together for matches that happen before sunrise. Only a handful of us get there for every match and the Scottish Breakfast with Guinness is the preferred order.

We Like the Bayern Fans…Really!

The FC Bayern München Los Angeles Official Supporters Club were here before us and they have been helpful in every way. Our largest turnout in 2015 (20) was at Tom’s Urban for the first Der Klassiker of the season. That was a crappy day, we must admit (5-1

How Lucky We Were

We were hoping to get to 50 likes on Facebook and 20 fans out for a match before the end of the season. As I write this, we are at 97 likes and looking to break all records for attendance this weekend. Are we organizational masterminds?

The real reason seems to be that Borussia Dortmund is having one of their greatest seasons in decades. Thomas Tuchel now looks brilliant. Major injuries have been avoided (knocking on wood). Rotation players are starting to show what they can do. Our Club favorite Henrikh Mkhitaryan* has emerged as one of the top players in Europe. It goes on and on.

*Götze? Reus? Dembele? Who can say.

Every Match

We’re going to try to meet up for every possible match in 2016 and 2017. Early morning Saturdays and Sundays will be at the Cock’n Bull. Select Champions League matches (11:45am Wednesdays) also at the Cock’n Bull. BVB vs. Bayern is usually at Wirtshaus.

Rückrunde Begins

First Match of the Rückrunde Tomorrow

Whether you’ve been paying attention or not, it’s time to get behind Borussia Dortmund again. The first match of the Rückrunde will be away against Borussia Mönchengladbach. We’ll be hosting a get-together tomorrow morning, 9:30am, at the Cock ‘n’ Bull in Santa Monica at 2947 Lincoln Blvd. If you can’t make it down to SM, you can watch the match on Fox Sports 2.

Gladbach is arguably the most dangerous team in the Bundesliga right now. After a slow start, they’ve been climbing the rankings and now are set at #4.

BVB News

Not a lot to report from the Winter break. Many see that as a good thing. Ilkay is not going to Manchester, Papa is not going to Liverpool, Ramos is not going to China. Miki wants to stay and Dortmund put a 70M price tag on Auba.

Jonas Hofmann was sold to Gladbach for an exorbitant fee. Adman Januzaj was taken back from loan by Man U. Passlack and Pulisic were brought up to the first team, but no idea if they will see any time on the pitch.

Birthdays

Big week for Birthdays: Ramos, Schmelle, Bonmann and…Miki!

Bonus interview with Miki in English!

Huge Turnout Leads to Best Saturday Ever!

With Gladbach destroying Bayern, the day was already started on a happy note. Most of us had been up early to watch and we were revved up for Wolfsburg. But how would the team react? Five starters out with the flu. Wolfsburg undefeated at home for 29 matches. Optimism was hard to come by.

Of course, Tuchel had it all worked out. The CB combination of Subotic and Bender were up to the task, and the usual possession game was thrown out in favor of a constant midfield press.

Still, our bad luck streak seemed to continue: from the crossbar hit on Ilkay’s free kick right up to a soft penalty call at the 90th minute. It felt like things could not go our way until a completely “against the run of play” pass from Miki to Shiji in the last minute. The curse of the away jerseys is broken!

Thanks to everyone who turned up. Our biggest turnout yet in Santa Monica. See you all next week for Frankfurt.