A Look Into The Rise Of Union Berlin:

The most well-known chant of Union Berlin supporters during the derby match against BFC Dynamo was, As would be predicted, this was noted, and in response to those words, numerous secret police and ruling regime figures were frequently detained.

You already know that politics and football go hand in hand, and that is especially true in the case of today's tale. BFC Dynamo, like most clubs in the East, was associated in some way with the ruling regime, some under the banner of the army and others under the banner of the Stasi. From the perspective of Union Berlin fans and others, BFC Dynamo was nothing more than a symbol of corruption in the nation, another puppet of the regime's puppets.

You may have already begun to feel sympathy for the Union Berlin team, simply because it is a characteristic of human nature to root for the underdog when they are up against the stronger opponent. We, who have no affiliation with this group and have never visited Berlin or East Germany, feel this way, but what about people who were born during that time period and saw it firsthand?

At the time, those who felt ostracized and abandoned thought they belonged in their small community. They were a part of Union, and Union was a part of them. For them, "Union" was more than just a club; it was a potent image of the oppressed's solidarity. Union Berlin was the king of all and a haven for every rebel against the might of the Stasi and the trickery of the dictatorship, whilst BFC Dynamo was the monarch of the Stasi.

Let's fast-forward a few decades now, to exactly five years from now. When Union finished third in the standings behind Cologne and Paderborn, the latter two automatically qualified for the Bundesliga, delaying Union's dream for two more games under the losers' exit system, in which the team scheduled a match against Stuttgart. Union was vying for promotion from the second division to the Bundesliga.

The squad had never been in this situation before, therefore this was the first time it had played in a crucial stage like this. Union had never played in the Bundesliga, but this time the dream was closer than ever.

At first glance of the match, expectations were not favorable for Union; Stuttgart, despite being in sixteenth place of the Bundesliga standings, had names in their ranks that were not to be underestimated, including Mario Gomez and Holger Badstuber, former stars of Bayern, in addition to Benjamin Pavard, the current star of Bayern and world champion at the time. Out of 10 efforts by Bundesliga teams since the system's adoption in Germany, second division teams have only succeeded in gaining promotion twice; the most recent attempt was seven years before that game.

With the benefit of their away goals, Union was able to snag a crucial 2-2 draw in the first leg, making it challenging for Stuttgart in the second leg. A scoreless draw or a tie of equal goals would qualify them, and that is exactly what happened in a game that Stuttgart would have won ten times in a row. The guest's star player, Union goalie Rafal Gikiewicz, was their highlight performer as they had a goal wiped out for them.

In a match when breaths were held until the very end, Bayern came dangerously close to killing the dream, but Gikiewicz's fingers saved the day and created history for Union. Then came one of Germany's most poetic moments in the previous ten years.

Fans quickly left the stands, but they didn't leave the stadium; instead, they all descended to the field in a magnificent scene that belied the importance of the occasion. The team's home stadium, An der Alten Försterei, trembled more than ever before!

Now that we know the answer, we can move on to discuss whether it is appropriate for the homeowners to protect their home.