Jewish club in the main round: TuS Makkabi Berlin writes DFB Cup history

Jewish club in the main round
TuS Makkabi Berlin writes DFB Cup history

6/3/2023 7:53 p.m

When the final of the Berlin State Cup is over, the jubilation knows no bounds: TuS Makkabi Berlin wins and thus also writes German cup history. They are the first Jewish club to reach the main round. The trainer wants to drink, the captain looks back on the dark hours.

Premiere in the DFB Cup: For the first time in the long history of the German Cup, a Jewish club will compete in the 2023/2024 season. TuS Makkabi Berlin qualified with a 3:1 (1:1, 0:1) against Sparta Lichtenberg in the final of the Berlin State Cup. Both clubs had surprisingly advanced to the final, in the end the top-class TuS Makkabi had the upper hand against the sixth division team.

The fifth division team from the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf district struggled for a long time and only equalized in the second half after falling behind in the duel between the underdogs. In the first half of extra time, sixth division champion Lichtenberg also dominated the events in the packed Mommsen Stadium, where the 4673 spectators could fill up with great entertainment.

Fate later turned in the direction of Maccabi. In the 118th minute, a free kick from 20 meters fell off the bottom edge of the bar directly onto the back of Sparta player Lukas Noack and from there into the goal. In extra time, Caner Öczin pushed the ball into the goal to make it 3-1. After that there was no holding back.

“For me it was an even game, we were maybe a bit better in the end,” said Makkabi coach Wolfgang Sandhowe after the game and then recounted an incident from the day before. He had been approached by club board member Michael Koblenz about the historic opportunity to be the first Jewish club to qualify for the DFB Cup. “I told him that we’d do that if we went for a nice drink afterwards. Now we have a date to drink later. I never drink anything else, but that’s nice sometimes.”

Israeli Ambassador watches the historic game at the stadium

Koblenz had already spoken to the “kicker” before the game and was much more sober in his words. “For everyone associated with this club, it’s a huge emotional experience. For the Jewish community in Germany, the game has meaning that goes beyond the borders of Berlin,” he said: “What makes us particularly happy: “Finally, the club isn’t just reported on when there are anti-Semitic incidents. That makes us incredibly proud, it’s the fulfillment of a dream.”

Captain Doron Bruck was also happy after the game at the sports show microphone and pointed out the importance of the win: “It’s something historic for the club, we’ve come this far for the first time. Especially with the history that we have here: Before The club was banned for 75 years. It means a lot to us to create a sporting sensation with a multi-cultural squad,” he said euphorically after the game.

The Makkabi players celebrated their historic triumph under the eyes of the Israeli Ambassador, Ron Prosor, and the Governing Mayor of Berlin, Kai Wegner. They dove into the blue smoke billowing out of their turn across the stadium and grabbed their trainer. 69-year-old Sandhowe flew through the air and Makkabi dreamed of Bayern Munich at the Berlin Olympic Stadium. While the draw has yet to take place, TuS Makkabi can already plan with the fixed amount of almost 210,000 euros for entry into the DFB Cup main round. But that was only a minor matter on this historic day in Berlin.