Celebrations for Hoffenheim's heroes

The players arrived at the stadium on the team bus at 17.00 CET. They were met by enthusiastic, singing fans, who got the chance to get autographs and photos with the players and manager Markus Gisdol as they made their way around the stands. The players' names were constantly being chanted – it was the perfect afternoon in perfect weather for anyone who supports TSG.

Gisdol praises the TSG fans

Manager Markus Gisdol had earlier thanked the fans in a conversation with stadium announcer Mike Diehl: “Your support over the past weeks has been superb. To have seen so many of you both in Kaiserslautern and in Dortmund was incredible. You've been a massive part of the reason we're standing here today.”

The Hoffenheim manager, who took over on April 2nd, was continually cheered. “We want Gisdol on the fence,” shouted the Bitburger Stand. The brewery provided the party with its season promise of 50 litres of beer for every TSG goal – Bitburger even generously added to that.

“TSG's third miracle”

Shareholder Dietmar Hopp and president Peter Hofmann were also in the stadium on Tuesday. After greeting the entire team on the bus, Hopp spoke to the press. “We experienced TSG's third miracle on Monday,” explained Hopp. The first was the German Cup win against Bayer Leverkusen in 2003 and the second was promotion to the Bundesliga and the amazing start to the club's first top-flight campaign that saw them top of the table at the winter break.

“I'm really pleased that we've stayed in the division, particularly for the fans. They always believed in us. 3,600 fans in Dortmund, 4,600 in Kaiserslautern – that's great,” said Hopp. The season, especially the last few weeks, has been very tiring for him. “We've all made mistakes this season, but the path that we're on now with Markus Gisdol and Alexander Rosen, is one we want to continue along. It's the right one.”

“Courageous and outstanding”

Dietmar Hopp described Gisdol's work so far at TSG as “courageous and outstanding.” He's particularly pleased to see the manager making use of the talent in his own youth setup. After 45 minutes, the players left the stands but there was still a special moment for the TSG fans. Dietmar Hopp joined them in the Bitburger Stand, signing autographs and taking photos with the many supporters that came to celebrate their team. An extraordinary end to an extraordinary afternoon.

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