A German team will let its fans into the stadium for free

German football is proving to be one of the most open and revolutionary in Europe, especially when it comes to involving fans in club management and decision-making. An example of this innovative spirit is the initiative of Fortuna Duesseldorf, a club currently playing in Bundesliga.2, which will open its stadium to its fans for free at some matches next season, with the intention of achieving full availability in the coming years. A revolutionary project that could overturn one of the principles on which much of the financial equilibrium of football clubs has been based for decades, that of ticketing. Historically, income from stadium admissions is one of the largest sources of revenue for a club - think of the slump during the pandemic closures - and consequently Fortuna's abandonment is causing quite a stir.

On the other hand, ticket prices have risen rapidly in recent years, so that they have become a criterion for exclusion for various less affluent fan groups. Fortuna Duesseldorf has therefore decided to counteract this phenomenon and open its stadium to all fans. In the coming season, three matches will be selected to test sustainability and thus find new ways to cover the losses from non-ticket sales. In the current season, Fortuna Duesseldorf had an average attendance of 29,378 per match in a stadium licenced for 54,600 spectators, and the expected loss is around €8 million. This sum should be covered by the arrival of new sponsors, who would gain visibility through the club's strategy, and by income from the sale of fan merchandise and stadium sales, which should increase due to the rise in spectator numbers.

Priority at the stadium will, of course, be given to the club's members, who will be able to reserve five tickets for each match, while the 14,500 or so season ticket holders from the current season will be able to renew their tickets by receiving the next season's three matches for free. A solution that could change the paradigm of the European championships and revolutionise an old mechanism that is not aimed at the fans, the real protagonists.