Chapter 322: Chapter 76: Matching a Legend, Half-Season Champions, Football Faith and the Hundred-Year War

Everyone knew who Plas was.

Wang Shuo had also seen him a few times. Apparently, he was the one who had organized this Christmas party.

"Doesn’t Westfalen Stadium rent out its facilities for things like Christmas parties, corporate events, fan birthdays, or even weddings?"

Wang Shuo and the others all nodded.

"If someone rents our stadium for an event, they can pay an extra fee to have our players make an appearance."

’Isn’t that just like a celebrity making a paid appearance?’

’The key must be to attract more companies and individuals to hold events at Westfalen Stadium.’

"Is the appearance fee high?"

When Foyelner asked, everyone burst out laughing again.

The guy’s train of thought was truly bizarre.

As players, everyone’s first reaction to hearing about this was resistance.

After all, players, especially Dortmund players, were highly respected and had high social standing.

But this Foyelner’s first reaction was about how high the appearance fee was.

"Actually, it’s very low. The highest was Mertesacker, I think it was only 15,000 euros back then. That’s why we all said he ran off to Real Madrid just to stop doing these kinds of events."

"What about you? What was your appearance fee?" Foyelner once again asked a question that made everyone curious, but also amused.

"Mine was only 7,500 euros," Weidenfeller said, not seeming to mind.

It was all in the past now.

"So, did you get any business?"

When Foyelner asked that question, even Wang Shuo felt the urge to punch him.

But he was also genuinely curious.

Weidenfeller found it funny himself. "Of course. Actually, a lot of players didn’t accept gigs like that, but we were really struggling back then. And our rates were much lower than high-end hotels, so business wasn’t bad."

"I remember one time, there was a Christmas event for the fans organized by the club. At its peak, over a thousand people attended, and it was 60 euros per person."

60,000 euros!

Wang Shuo was starting to understand why Dortmund was so stingy now, pinching every penny.

Because they had been truly poor!

Dirt poor!

"Look out the window. This is Borsigplatz."

Wang Shuo followed Weidenfeller’s gesture and looked out the window, just in time to see a large traffic circle where six roads converged. In the center of the circle was an open patch of land.

"This is where the club celebrates after winning a championship?"

"That’s right. Every time we win a title, we start from Westfalen Stadium and have a parade through the city all the way to Borsigplatz."

As he said this, Weidenfeller’s expression darkened.

"But the last time we came here to celebrate was back in ’02."

Seven or eight years might not seem that long to the fans.

But for a professional player, that’s half a career, or even more.

Wang Shuo sensed the change in Weidenfeller’s mood and immediately gave a confident smile. "As long as we all work together, I’m sure we’ll be back here celebrating in May!"

Dortmund was currently the half-season champion with 42 points.

Bayer Leverkusen, in second place, only had 35 points.

A seven-point lead was nothing to sneeze at for Dortmund.

So, when Wang Shuo said this, he was full of confidence.

And inside the car, the other players, including Subotic, Weidenfeller, and Foyelner, all strongly agreed.

"By the way, why do we choose Borsigplatz as the place to celebrate our championships?" Subotic asked curiously.

Looking out the car window, it was called a square, but it was really just an open patch of land, and not a very large one at that.

There was nothing special about it at all.

Weidenfeller smiled. "It’s simple. Back in 1909, Dortmund was founded right here on Borsigplatz. Back then, there weren’t any roads or a traffic circle, just a field where people played football."

Only then did it dawn on Wang Shuo and the others.

No wonder the team and fans always traveled from Westfalen Stadium in the southwest all the way to Borsigplatz in the northeast to celebrate after every championship.

After exiting the traffic circle to the north, they immediately pulled over and parked.

They had arrived!

The school was a bit old and didn’t look any different from any other.

"This is the elementary school Markos Mihalek attended," Weidenfeller explained.

Wang Shuo had noticed this legend when he was learning about Dortmund’s history.

Markos Mihalek, the most influential legend in Dortmund’s history. He was born near Borsigplatz, was loyal to the club for 31 years, and passed away in 1985.

"In the early days, many of our Dortmund players came from the surrounding area. But after a hundred years of development, times have changed. Very few of the old schools are left, but we make a trip here every Christmas."

The school and the students seemed to be used to Dortmund’s visits.

They had already prepared all sorts of activities.

The club had also carefully prepared many gifts for the young fans.

The gifts weren’t expensive, but Wang Shuo felt that this kind of event was very meaningful.

Just as before, he couldn’t understand why the more than 20,000 fans in Dortmund’s South Stand were so die-hard.

But now, looking at the elementary school students in front of him, each wearing a Dortmund jersey, he finally understood.

It was this immersion from a young age that made them, through constant exposure, fall in love with football, and fall in love with Dortmund!

Wasn’t Reus just like that?

After an afternoon of activities, Wang Shuo was surprised to find that he had become the elementary schoolers’ favorite player.