BAYERN FAMILY
Mia san rot: Tyler( left) founded the fan club in 2013. Chris( right) came to love the Bayern internationals – and FCB – during the 2014 World Cup.
“ CLEOS“ SPORTSBAR
CHICAGO AIRPORT
N inety minutes before kick-off, Tyler is standing outside the Allianz Arena drinking a beer. He‘ s wearing scarves, a red Bayern jersey and a cut-off US Army waistcoat with lots of patches, red and white woollen threads on the sleeve openings and a large FCB logo on the back. Tyler looks like thousands of other fans streaming into the Arena. But he has travelled a few more kilometres than the others, a good 7,000 in total, because Tyler is from Chicago – and this is his ninth visit to the Allianz Arena.“ Bayern,“ he says with a gleam in his eye,“ that‘ s my club.“ Tyler comes from a country where sport is not dominated by football, but by the“ Big Four“ – basketball, American football, baseball and ice hockey. In spite of that, he founded the“ Chicago Supporters of FC Bayern Munich“ in 2013. The fan club has its headquarters in a cosy sports bar,“ Cleo’ s“, where a jersey and team photo of the record champions have been given pride of place. Tyler has created a little piece of Bavaria in the middle of Chicago. Why? In Germany, you often become a fan of a club because family or friends infect you with their passion. But what if you live in a country where football is not the number one sport? When oceans and language barriers separate you from FCB? How do you become a Red?
A new world
Tyler had a go at soccer once himself at pre-school age, as he recounts with a laugh:“ The coach said:‘ Don‘ t bother coming back!’“ Despite that, the sport never let go of him. He sat in front of the television watching the 2008 European Championship as a fan of the Germany national team. A German exchange student told him about the Bundesliga.“ Bundeswhat???’“ Tyler exclaimed. A new world revealed itself,
The fans meet up in Cleo’ s sports bar every matchday – and mark their territory.
WHEN I STOOD IN THE SÜDKURVE FOR THE FIRST TIME, IT WAS SIMPLY UNIQUE!
94 FC Bayern Magazine