Interview With Our Pals: St. Pauli

By: Matt | October 8th, 2009

stpauli Since we’ve got some free time in the Celtic world and if you are like me in that international football falls somewhere in between getting a root canal and doing yard work in terms of excitement, I thought it would be a good chance to see how our German pals from St. Pauli were doing. First of all, did you know that The Offside has a St. Pauli blog? They in fact do, they have words on it and everything! Mike is the author over at the St. Pauli Offside. I’ve known Mike from the Tim-ernet for a few years know. I know Mike so much that I will from here on out refer to him by his Tim-ernet name, Keebs. Keebs does a good job over at the St. Pauli blog, so check him out. He is also apart of the East River Pirates in New York City. The East River Gang watch every Saint Pauli match, though sometimes tape delayed, at the East River Bar in Brooklyn. Look them up if you’re ever in the area. Anyways, I talked to Keebs about the state of St. Pauli, their history, the rivalry with HSV, and the upcoming Celtic-HSV matches. Enjoy.

Matt: Give us a brief history of St. Pauli.

Keebs: We were founded as a football club in 1910 (this is our 100th year in existence). We’ve always been a small club, never as big as our rivals, HSV. In the 80s and 90s, the club started to become associated with the punks and the antifascist movement, and we’ve became much more popular since then. Recent years have seen us come up from the regional leagues and compete in the second league, with an eye towards going up again if we can.

Matt: How have St Pauli been doing this season so far?

Keebs: As far as St Pauli goes, they’ve been doing excellent. Typically, we struggle away from Hamburg, but this year we’ve been going out and getting results.

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Matt: What is the HSV-St Pauli rivalry like? Is it just a city derby or is there more to it than that?

Keebs: It’s a bit of both, really. Before the punk movement, it was a simple city rivalry. In the 80s and 90s, HSV had problems with hooliganism, as with many teams back then did. Sadly, in Germany, hooligans sometimes are allied with the far right, politically. Our status as a left wing, liberal fan base made us a target for these hooligans, and it lead to some ugly times. It’s calmed down a bit now, though. It can be attributed to us not playing HSV constantly, I think.

Matt: How did the friendship between Celtic and St. Pauli develop? What do St. Pauli fans think of this connection?

Keebs: The origins are debated. If you ask St Pauli and Celtic fans, they’ll tell you it started with some Celtic fans who moved from Glasgow and bought the love of their team with them. From there, it’s lead to St Pauli traveling to Celtic’s European away games, in addition to a party every summer. St Pauli fans are generally proud to be considered friends with such a historical and good team.

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Matt: What was the St. Pauli fanbase’s reaction to Celtic drawing HSV in the Europa League?

It was a great draw for fans of St Pauli. It’s a great excuse to have a party on a Thursday night. Also that week, we play another one of our arch rivals, Hansa Rostock. It should be a great time.

Finally, what are you expecting from St Pauli’s season this year? Is promotion a realistic possibility?

Keebs: Asking at the start of the season, I would’ve expected St Pauli to be in the top half of the table. As of now, we’re 4th, one spot out of promotion. It’s very possible for us to be promoted, but at the same time, it’s early days yet, so we’ll be a little cautious with our optimism. Most fans don’t have a problem with the team playing in the second division, so winning promotion isn’t a total disaster.

Special thanks to Keebs for taking the time to answer some questions about the Bhoys in Brown. Hopefully, St. Pauli continue their winning ways this season. Be sure to check out Keebs (aka Mike) and the St. Pauli Offside out. Just make sure that if you are at a New York Red Bulls game and you see a scrawny kid who looks like he is 12 years old trying to buy beer, trust me when I say that he is actually 21. Just try and help him to the bus after the game, he will need it.