Olympiastadion, Hertha BSC

Overview

Club name: Hertha BSC
Ground name: Olympiastadion
Year ground opened: 1936
Capacity: 74,500
Web Site: http://www.herthabsc.de/

The Olympiastadion

The Olympic Stadium is a real old-school stadium but unlike other stadiums, for example Nürnberg's Grundig-Stadion, it still shows and in a good way. Before the present stadium, there was another stadium built for the 1916 Summer Olympics, the Deutsches Stadion, but it was replaced by the the present stadium which was built for the 1936 Summer Olympics. The stadium underwent a massive reconstruction in time for the 2006 World Cup, where the stadium hosted a total of six games, among these the final between Italy and France where Zinedine Zidane headbutted Marco Materazzi. Nowadays, the stadium has a roof made of transparent panels, which basically covers all seats, though you might still get wet in the front rows of the lower tier. Architecturally the stadium is quite impressive and still shows that it was constructed in the Third Reich, featuring lots of natural stone.

The new Olympic Stadium is, quite unsual for Germany, an all-seater and though it is not the biggest stadium in Germany, currently second to Dortmund's Signal Iduna Park, has the highest all-seated capacity, allowing 74,500 spectators. The stadium features two tiers running around the whole stadium, with the exception of the Marathon Goal in the weast, which has a view on the Bell Tower above it. In between the tiers, there are 113 executive boxes. In general, you can see the pitch well from all places, but due to the stadium still having a race outer track, especially the places in the front of the lower tier are not that great. Due to the terraces not being overly steep, the places on the back of both tiers are quite far away as well. The best view, thus, can be had from the front rows of the upper tier.

Berlins's supporters are situtated in the east (Ostkurve), blocks Q, R, S and T as well as parts of blocks 37 and 38 in the upper tier. Visiting supporters are accomodated in the west, blocks G and H and, if needed, additionally in block f.

How To Get There...

By Car & Where To Park

If you come by car, the address of the Olympiastadion is "Olympischer Platz 3, 14053 Berlin, Deutschland".

There is actually a big parking lot directly east of the stadium, it is called 'Olympischer Platz' (address: 'Olympischer Platz 3, 14053 Berlin') and it is usually free of charge. As usual, this might get quite busy before and after the game, so you better be there early and not be in a rush after the game.

By Public Transportation

The Olympiastadion is connnected very well by public transportation and your ticket can be used to travel inside the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (Berlin Transport Company, BVG), so this is the easiest option and the one I recommend.

The U-Bahn (underground) U2, direction Ruhleben, crosses the whole city center, with stops at Alexanderplatz, Potsdamer Platz and Zoologischer Garten and then stops at the Olympiastadion. The trip takes, however, just a couple of minutes short of an hour from Alexanderplatz.

The S-Bahn (light rail) offers you a faster connection, from Alexanderplatz to the Olympiastadion in only around 25 minutes. At Alexanderplatz, take the S5 direction Spandau or the S75 direction Olympiastadion and exit at the aptly named stop Olympiastadion.

Both from the U-Bahn and the S-Bahn you are just a couple of minutes walk away from the stadium.

Walking directions

The stadium is about 8 miles outside the city centre. If you are inclined to attempt this walk, have a look at the route on Google Maps.

Admission price

These are normal ticket prices for Bundesliga matches, just for your orientation. Top games have slighty higher prices and prices are of course subject to change.

Standing places:
- Ostkurve Unterrang (East lower) (standing space) - 15 €
Seats:
- Westkurve (West) and Ostkurve Außen (West and East outer) - 17 €
- Westkurve / Ostkurve Mitte (West and East) - 21 €
- Haupttribüne and Gegentribüne (main and opposite main) - 26 to 51 €

Last updated 23.01.2014

Average Attendance

The Olympic Stadium has the highest all-seated capcaity in Germany. This fact combined with Hertha's not overly great performance in the last years means that games are rarely sold out, the usual exception being visits from Bayern München and, recently, Borussia Dortmund.

You should be able to get a ticket via Hertha BSC's ticket shop. If a game is sold you might of course still try your luck on Viagogo but Hertha BSC does not officially cooperate with Viagogo.

Season 2010/11: 46,131 (62,1%)*
Season 2011/12: 53,449 (72,0%)
Season 2012/13: 40,021 (53,9%)*

* Berlin was playing 2. Bundesliga (2nd divison)
Last updated 23.01.2014, Source: http://www.transfermarkt.de/