In Hamburg, in the libertarian district of Sankt Pauli, which boasts of being home to the most progressive club in the world, a parallel Euro Cup is being played out. The cultural and charitable associations that coexist in its streets, graffitied with slogans against neoliberalism, fascism, racism and xenophobia, have organised activities during the Euro Cup that mix football with the idealism of building a better world. The idea was to use the loudspeaker of football to denounce the helplessness of the most disadvantaged classes.
The highlight of the programme was the Homeless Euro Cup, which was contested between 13 and 19 June by eight national teams of homeless people. All of them had travelled to the protest tournament from their respective countries. “With the image of committed and enthusiastic teams that they gave, the players were able to draw public attention to the problems of poverty and homelessness,” says Johan Grasshoff, one of the organisers of the eye-catching competition, which has a bigger sister in the World Cup organised every year. This year’s competition will take place in South Korea.
Grashoff is a social worker in St. Pauli and works with the non-profit Alexander Otto Foundation, formerly known as the Federal Association for Social Integration through Sport. “In addition to football, we organised various activities for the participants. For example, the Walking Football workshop (no running or crashing), there was cinema, live music, a round table discussion on homeless people, and we also organised sightseeing tours by bike and canoe through the city. All teams and participants were very grateful to be part of Homeless EURO 2024. They were able to share experiences, but also be in the spotlight for a week,” says Grashoff. The championship was one of 15 projects chosen from a total of 80 by the foundation and the City of Hamburg.
The charity championship was played in the vicinity of the fanzone The stadium is anchored at the foot of the charismatic Milerton Stadion, the home of Santk Pauli, which this season returns to the Bundesliga after five years in the second tier of German football. The ground floor of the stadium is surrounded by fences covered with graffiti art on fabrics on which slogans are printed that define the identity of progressivism and freedom that define the club. “Love sings louder than hate”, “Plurality wins over simplicity”, “equal opportunities defeat discrimination”, or “cosmopolitanism beats racism” are some of the legends that surround the endearing venue. In the upper part, outside one of the stands, attached to its old exposed brick cladding, a banner reinforces the club’s ideology: “culture before business”.
St. Pauli also helped organise Homeless Euro 2024. “We received a lot of positive feedback from the atmosphere that was created among the participants. It was particularly nice for them that the public perceived them as athletes and not as homeless people,” says Patrick Gensing, one of the club’s spokespersons.
After the tournament, won by the homeless from Lithuania, a rally was called on June 22 to show strong rejection of Javier Milei’s presence in Sankt Pauli. A provocation for the locals. The Argentine president was decorated by a neoliberal institution based in the no longer so bohemian neighborhood, now occupied in part by financial elites with aspirations of being labeled as cool. “No pasarán” (They will not pass) or “Milei out of St. Pauli” were some of the chants of the protesters, offended by the presence of the Argentinean boss in a place with which their political script has nothing to do. “We were not surprised that there were protests, but the club did not participate, although members and fans of St. Pauli did,” concludes Gensing.
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