ANPD German officers in front of the football stadium in Hannover
NOS Voetbal•vandaag, 06:14
The Dutch national team will play the classic against Germany for the 48th time tonight. But really it should have been the 49th. The edition of November 17, 2015 was never played.
About an hour and a half before the kick-off of that practice match in Hannover, police vans drive around the cleared Heinz-von-Heiden-Arena. Supporters around the stadium are called to leave through megaphones: ‘The Germany-Holland game has just been canceled.’
The match is canceled due to a terrorist threat. German security services evacuate the stadium and all of Hannover is crawling with soldiers with large guns around their shoulders.
And while the Germany-Netherlands match on November 17, 2015 should actually have sent a signal: even four days after the terrorist attacks in Paris, including at the Stade de France, the match should have been played in a full stadium.
Bus turns around
While the Dutch ministers Schippers and Hennis are escorted from the stadium and put into a police van with fear in their eyes, the Dutch team bus turns around.
The Dutch internationals are on their way from the hotel to the Heinz-von-Heiden-Arena. PSV players Luuk de Jong and Jürgen Locadia are sitting quietly on the bus, when disturbing messages suddenly trickle through.
Reporter Grueter: ‘Major impact, but everything continued’
Jeroen Grueter would report on Germany-Netherlands on behalf of the NOS in 2015. “We were already in the stadium when we were suddenly asked to leave. I remember that some colleagues did not even have time to take their things outside.”
“I then returned on foot to the center of the city. In a park I saw how a man was held at gunpoint by police officers. What exactly happened to him and what exactly the terrorist threat entailed never really came out. “
“Everyone was very shocked that evening, especially with ‘Paris’ in mind. It had a huge impact. But on the other hand, everything quickly continued as normal. A few days later I was reporting on Premier League matches in full stadiums again.”
Before they know it, the bus changes direction and they find themselves in a parking lot at a Hanover police station.
“It was scary at that moment,” De Jong said at the time. “You are suddenly at the mercy of the German security services. You then try to get in touch with your family and inform them that everything is going well with us. Because of course they also receive everything.”
Locadia is in the Dutch national team of national coach Danny Blind for the first time. “I saw hundreds of soldiers standing there, then you know it is a state of emergency. Later I thought: you see that the world is slowly going backwards.”
Police search Hannover stadium
Blind is impressed by the actions of the German authorities. “But you notice the impact that all this has on players. The uncertainty, the tense atmosphere on the bus, it has had a lasting impact. And that seems very human to me. You all become very small when this happens.”
The German player bus is also picked up from the road and sent to the same place as that of the Dutch team. De Jong has just completed a period at Borussia Mönchengladbach and still knows a number of players The team. “I have had some contact with Max Kruse,” said De Jong. “Of course they were there in Paris. That was something terrible.”
Permanent change?
The fact that the cancellation of Germany-Netherlands caused such a stir had everything to do with the attacks in Paris four days earlier, in which a total of 130 people were killed.
During France-Germany, three terrorists blew themselves up at the Stade de France. Other terrorists shot at cafes and carried out a massacre at the Bataclan concert hall, where 89 people were killed.
Germany-Netherlands at NOS
The Nations League match against Germany (Monday 8.45 pm) can be followed on NOS. The match can be seen on NPO 3, NOS.nl and the NOS app. The preview starts at 8:20 PM.
The match can also be followed via a live blog on NOS.nl and in the NOS app and via Along the Line and Surrounding Areas on NPO Radio 1. The competition for the blind and visually impaired on NPO 1 extra (channel 81) will also be provided with audio description.
The match was completed, but after the final whistle the Germany players were not allowed to leave the stadium. They stayed overnight at the Stade de France.
The fact that Germany-Netherlands had to be canceled a few days later felt like a defeat, Minister Hennis said. The duel should have symbolized ‘freedom and democracy’.
After the events in Paris and the cancellation of the Germany-Netherlands, there was a feeling that mass events and football matches in full stadiums would come under pressure. But nine years later, that sentiment has largely faded away and the 48th edition of the Western European football classic will again be played in a sold-out stadium.
