I am on holiday for a few days in Flanders and just before leaving I sent an email to the company of the local Ghent team, i.e. KAA Gent to find out how much the tour of the Ghelamco Arenaa stadium that since 2008 has hosted the internal matches of the aforementioned white and blue buffaloes.
I receive a prompt response from the company informing me that tours are not run on race days. What better occasion than an official championship race to be able to admire from inside what, according to online reviews, turns out to be the most beautiful facility in Belgium? So I access the team’s website and buy the cheapest ticket.
The race takes place at 19.15 and after taking a bus from the city center of Ghent I show up at the gates around 18.00. Once at the turnstiles, I discover that I have purchased the under 16 ticket and am thus kindly invited to go to the ticket office to pay the difference for a total of only €15.
Once inside (about an hour before the match) I notice how the stadium is still empty and it will be like this until a few minutes before the start of the match, this is because the stadium includes an internal area where many take shelter from the cold and you can refresh yourself with the many kiosks that offer sandwiches and the classic chips at really cheap prices.
About ten minutes into the match, the whole stadium begins to fill up, but especially the curve opposite mine, where I notice the patches Ultras Ghent 2014 e Gent Suburbwhile on my left I notice the few (about 30) visiting fans with the patch CN 21which I later discover stands for Crew Neau and not for any North Curve of Italian inspiration.
When the teams enter the field, known as during the announcement of the formations, that of the visiting team is presented in German and not in the Flemish one, this because Eupen is in fact the capital of the German-speaking community of Belgium.
The match begins and the home curve gathers behind the aforementioned banners and begins to incite the team with high-sounding chants, awakening the whole stadium a bit. Towards the end of the first half, they sing a dry chorus that is also answered by the fans of the corner where I find myself.
The away fans who are in the segment to my left hardly stand out except for the drum they use and for a yellow and red flag that is waved constantly.
Unfortunately, staying in Bruges, I have to run early to catch the train, missing the goal and risking missing the train too, since I was forced to leave my backpack at the shop at the start of the race, as it was forbidden to bring it inside the facility and Unfortunately for me, the shop was closed and only the help of a very kind security officer managed to make me recover it and return to the station in time. All very rushed, but the pleasure of a new discovery in terms of supporter still makes even a drudgery on the razor’s edge like this enjoyable.
Alan Hunter