Munich is the capital and largest city of the German state of Bavaria, on the banks of River Isar north of the Bavarian Alps. Munich is the third largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Hamburg. The name of the city is derived from the Old/Middle High German term Munichen, meaning "by the monks". It derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who ran a monastery at the place that was later to become the Old Town of Munich; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat of arms. In 1175, Munich was officially granted city status and received fortification. The city was heavily damaged by allied bombing during World War II and was hit by 71 air raids over a period of five years. Munich is famous for its breweries and the Weissbier (or Weizenbier, wheat beer) is a speciality from Bavaria. Helles with its translucent gold colour is the most popular Munich beer today, although it's not old (only introduced in 1895) and is the result of a change in beer tastes. Helles has largely replaced the Munich Dark Beer (Dunkles), which gets its dark colour from burnt malt. It was the typical beer in Munich in the 19th century, but today it is more of a speciality. Starkbier is the strongest Munich beer, containing 6–9 percent alcohol. It is dark amber in colour and has a heavy malty taste. It is available and popular during the Lenten Starkbierzeit (strong beer season), which begins on or before St. Joseph's Day (19 March). The beer served at Oktoberfest is a special type of Märzen beer with a higher alcohol content than regular Helles.
FC Bayern was founded in 1900 winning its first national championship in 1932. They won the European Cup three times in a row from (1974–76) and have reached ten European Cup/UEFA Champions League finals, most recently winning their fifth title in 2013 as part of a continental treble. Bayern has also won one UEFA Cup, one European Cup Winners' Cup, one UEFA Super Cup, one FIFA Club World Cup and two Intercontinental Cups, making it one of the most successful European clubs internationally. Since the formation of the Bundesliga, Bayern has been the dominant club in German football with 25 titles and has won 7 of the last 11 titles. After much discussion, the city of Munich, the state of Bavaria, FC Bayern, and TSV 1860 jointly decided at the end of 2000 to build a new stadium. While Bayern had wanted a purpose-built football stadium for several years, the awarding of the 2006 FIFA World Cup to Germany stimulated the discussion as the Olympiastadion no longer met the FIFA criteria to host a World Cup game. Located on the northern outskirts of Munich, the Allianz Arena has been in use since the beginning of the 2005–06 season. Its initial capacity was 66,000 fully covered seats, but this was increased 71,000 in 2012 and again to 75,000 after receiving approval by the city council in January 2015. The most prominent feature of the stadium is the translucent outer layer, which can be illuminated in different colours for impressive effects. Usually, red lighting is used for Bayern home games, blue for TSV 1860 München games and white for German national team home games.
On arrival at Munich Airport, a three day tourist ticket for two people (can cover up to five) was purchased for less than £40:00. This covered the train to and from the airport/city centre. It also covered us for all other train, metro, tram and bus journeys within the extended Munich region. This proved to be extremely good value and was also used to get us to and from the stadium on both match days. To reach the Allianz Arena from the centre of Munich, Line U6 (blue) from Marienplatz is direct. On alighting at Fröttmanning it is less than a 10 minute walk to the stadium.
Throughout the three days spent in Munich it was extremely hot. Accordingly, large glasses of cold beer became a requirement and were most welcome. The Audi Cup is a biennial two-day pre-season tournament that features four teams. The first Audi Cup in 2009 was organised and promoted by car manufacturer Audi AG to celebrate their 100th year of trading. Bayern Munich and AC Milan have taken part in all tournaments to date. This year Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur made up the quartet of participants.
Bayern Munich defeated AC Milan 3-0 to reach the final of the Audi Cup. The highlight for me being the third goal, Robert Lewandowski's volley, having been set up by Thomas Muller. Real Madrid defeated Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the earlier match.
The following day saw Tottenham Hotspur ease to victory over AC Milan. The highlight being Nacer Chadli's first half strike, curled into the net. The final was won by the host club, defeating their Spanish rivals by the only goal of the game, scored at the death by Lewandowski.
I was impressed with the speed with which we were able to access the station after the second match on both days of the tournament. Bayern Munich featured in the second match on both occasions and the majority of the 70,000 crowd were leaving the stadium at the same time. To be able to continuously walk from the ground on to the platform and on to a train was not something I had anticipated.
FC Bayern was founded in 1900 winning its first national championship in 1932. They won the European Cup three times in a row from (1974–76) and have reached ten European Cup/UEFA Champions League finals, most recently winning their fifth title in 2013 as part of a continental treble. Bayern has also won one UEFA Cup, one European Cup Winners' Cup, one UEFA Super Cup, one FIFA Club World Cup and two Intercontinental Cups, making it one of the most successful European clubs internationally. Since the formation of the Bundesliga, Bayern has been the dominant club in German football with 25 titles and has won 7 of the last 11 titles. After much discussion, the city of Munich, the state of Bavaria, FC Bayern, and TSV 1860 jointly decided at the end of 2000 to build a new stadium. While Bayern had wanted a purpose-built football stadium for several years, the awarding of the 2006 FIFA World Cup to Germany stimulated the discussion as the Olympiastadion no longer met the FIFA criteria to host a World Cup game. Located on the northern outskirts of Munich, the Allianz Arena has been in use since the beginning of the 2005–06 season. Its initial capacity was 66,000 fully covered seats, but this was increased 71,000 in 2012 and again to 75,000 after receiving approval by the city council in January 2015. The most prominent feature of the stadium is the translucent outer layer, which can be illuminated in different colours for impressive effects. Usually, red lighting is used for Bayern home games, blue for TSV 1860 München games and white for German national team home games.
On arrival at Munich Airport, a three day tourist ticket for two people (can cover up to five) was purchased for less than £40:00. This covered the train to and from the airport/city centre. It also covered us for all other train, metro, tram and bus journeys within the extended Munich region. This proved to be extremely good value and was also used to get us to and from the stadium on both match days. To reach the Allianz Arena from the centre of Munich, Line U6 (blue) from Marienplatz is direct. On alighting at Fröttmanning it is less than a 10 minute walk to the stadium.
Throughout the three days spent in Munich it was extremely hot. Accordingly, large glasses of cold beer became a requirement and were most welcome. The Audi Cup is a biennial two-day pre-season tournament that features four teams. The first Audi Cup in 2009 was organised and promoted by car manufacturer Audi AG to celebrate their 100th year of trading. Bayern Munich and AC Milan have taken part in all tournaments to date. This year Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur made up the quartet of participants.
Bayern Munich defeated AC Milan 3-0 to reach the final of the Audi Cup. The highlight for me being the third goal, Robert Lewandowski's volley, having been set up by Thomas Muller. Real Madrid defeated Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the earlier match.
The following day saw Tottenham Hotspur ease to victory over AC Milan. The highlight being Nacer Chadli's first half strike, curled into the net. The final was won by the host club, defeating their Spanish rivals by the only goal of the game, scored at the death by Lewandowski.
I was impressed with the speed with which we were able to access the station after the second match on both days of the tournament. Bayern Munich featured in the second match on both occasions and the majority of the 70,000 crowd were leaving the stadium at the same time. To be able to continuously walk from the ground on to the platform and on to a train was not something I had anticipated.
Attendance: 70,000
Admission: 35 Euros (40 Euros day two)
Programme: Free (Different edition issued each day)
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Other matches attended at Allianz
Arena
4 August 2015 – Real Madrid 2 Tottenham Hotspur 0 – Audi Cup
5 August 2015 – Tottenham Hotspur 2 AC Milan 0 - Audi Cup
5 August 2015 – Bayern Munich 1 Real Madrid 0 - Audi Cup
11 December 2019 - Bayern Munich 3 Tottenham Hotspur 1 - UEFA Champions League, Group Stage - Attendance: 70,000
4 August 2015 – Real Madrid 2 Tottenham Hotspur 0 – Audi Cup
5 August 2015 – Tottenham Hotspur 2 AC Milan 0 - Audi Cup
5 August 2015 – Bayern Munich 1 Real Madrid 0 - Audi Cup
11 December 2019 - Bayern Munich 3 Tottenham Hotspur 1 - UEFA Champions League, Group Stage - Attendance: 70,000
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