A day before the World Cup finals kicked off in Brazil, final preparations continued at the 'World Cup living room' in 1. FC Union Berlin football stadium, the Alte Foersterei Arena.
The organisers - not the second division club Union Berlin itself, but a local event agency - have called on local football fans to bring their own sofas to the stadium pitch.
Chris Lopatta, a fan of 1. FC Union Berlin, transported a sofa from the balcony of his flat in Berlin's district Friedrichshain all the way over to the ground by rickshaw.
"I think it will be nice, presumably very relaxed with some action in between, but I think it will rather become pretty calm and nice," said Lopatta.
Most of the 780 registered sofas were already positioned, allowing fans to watch all of the World Cup game while resting comfortably on their own sofas.
Organisers were still working to fit some 3,500 square metres of living room wallpaper around the giant screen inside the stadium in order to create a cosy atmosphere.
Asked how he had got the idea for the event, Gerald Ponesky, the inventor and organiser of the "WM Wohnzimmer" (World Cup living room), said he has "listened to what the fans were singing, which was something like "my home" and "my living room" and somehow it made click."
12,000 fans are expected to watch the World Cup opening game - Brazil versus Croatia - on the big screen in the stadium on Thursday, with 3,000 supporters watching the game from their sofas.
SNTV
source: newshub archive
