Colin Wachholz: On tour around the soccer stadiums of Europe

April 11, 2022

Groundhopper takes in some of the biggest clubs in Germany, while also focusing on some of England’s traditional big guns.

Anfield stadium, Liverpool football ground. — Anfield, the home of Liverpool Football Club, capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Goodison Park stadium, Everton football ground, view from Anfield — Local rivals: Goodison Park, home of Everton Football Club seen from Anfield. Goodison has been the home to Everton F.C. since 1892 and is located 2 miles north of Liverpool city centre. It has capacity of 39,414. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Colin Wachholz’s pictures draw a contrast between the older traditional grounds and the super stadiums of today.

Bramall Lane. Sheffield United football ground. — Bramall Lane, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, the home of Sheffield United. Capacity 32,050. Bramell Lane opened it;s doors in 1855. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Hillsborough, Sheffield Wednesday football stadium — Hillsborough Stadium, Owlerton, Sheffield. It has been the home of Sheffield Wednesday since its opening in 1899 Capacity 39,732. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Barnsley, Huddersfield, Middlesbrough and the Sheffield rivals United and Wednesday provide atmospheric backdrops, and Wachholz has a soft spot for the English grounds he has seen.

“I like the old fashioned football,” he says.

Stamford Bridge, Chelsea football stadium. — Under the Lights, Stamford Bridge, Chelsea 2 – 2 Burnley, April 2019. Stamford Bridge is situated in Fulham, adjacent to the borough of Chelsea in West London. With a capacity of 40,834, it is the ninth largest venue in the Premier League. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

“Here in Germany many old stadiums are being replaced by modern grounds that all look nearly identical. That’s why I like English stadiums so much; many haven‘t changed much for decades and are run down. You can feel the history and nostalgia there”.

Signal Iduna Park, Borussia Dortmund — You’ll never walk alone: Westfalenstadion the home of Borussia Dortmund. Officially called Signal Iduna Park for sponsorship reasons and BVB Stadion Dortmund in UEFA competitions. The stadium was opened in 1974 and has a capacity of 81,365, the largest in Germany. Borussia Dortmund 3 – 2 Union Berlin, October 2018. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Rote Erde Borussia Dortmund — The past: Stadion Rote Erde was the home of Borussia Dortmund until 1974. Rote Erde translates to Red Soil, The Red Earth Stadium. The stadium is currently used for athletics and reserve team matches. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Allianz Arena Bayern Munich — Allianz Arena, home to FC Bayern Munich. Capacity 75,024. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Olympiastadium Munich — The not forgotten past: The Olympiastadion Munich was built for the 1972 Olympic games. With an original capacity of 77,000 for the Olympics, the stadium also hosted many major football matches including the 1974 FIFA World Cup Final, 75,000 seats, and the UEFA Euro 1988 Final. It hosted the European Cup Finals in 1979, 1993 and 1997. Until the construction of Allianz Arena for the 2006 World Cup, the stadium was home to FC Bayern Munich and TSV 1860 Munich. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Olympiastadium Berlin — The Olympiastadion Berlin was originally built by German architect Werner March for the 1936 Olympic games. During the Olympics, the record attendance was thought to be over 100,000. Since renovations in 2004, the Olympiastadion has a permanent capacity of 74,475. Since 1963, it has been the home of the Hertha BSC. It was renovated for the 2006 World Cup, when it hosted six matches, including the final. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Elland Road stadium, Leeds United football ground — Yorkshire dusk at Elland Road, Leeds. Elland Road football stadium is situated in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire. It has been the home of Leeds United since the club’s formation in 1919. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Old Trafford stadium, Manchester United football ground — Old Trafford, Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,140 Old Trafford is the largest club football stadium in the UK. The ground was nicknamed The Theatre of Dreams by former player Bobby Charlton. Old Trafford has been United’s home ground since 1910, although from 1941 to 1949 the club shared Maine Road with local rivals Manchester City as a result of Second World War bomb damage. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Currently on a university gap year, Wachholz, from the Black Forest region of Southwest Germany, has supported Karlsruher SC since childhood.

He has seen some big names live, Eden Hazard, N‘Golo Kante, Robert Lewandowski and Manuel Neuer among them, but prefers football in the lower divisions.

“Nothing beats the excitement of going to a match with your family and friends, ” he says. “Eat and drink something, be on that emotional rollercoaster during the match, and in the end celebrating a win together”.

Steven Gerrard of Liverpool takes a corner at Carrow Road stadium, Norwich football ground — Steven Gerrard of Liverpool takes a corner away at Carrow Road versus Norwich City, April 2014. Norwich City 2 – 3 Liverpool. Carrow Road has a capacity of 27,244. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

John Smith's stadium Huddersfield Town ground — Huddersfield Town match day versus Cardiff City, The John Smith’s Stadium, Huddersfield. Kirklees Stadium is a multi-use stadium in Huddersfield in West Yorkshire. Since 1994, it has been the home ground of football club Huddersfield Town and rugby league side Huddersfield Giants. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Oakwell Stadium, Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Home to Barnsley Football Club since 1888. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

West Brom Riverside Middlesbrough — West Bromwich Albion players warm up at the Riverside Stadium, prior to kick off against Middlesbrough, August 2018. Middlesbrough 1 – 0 West Brom. The Riverside Stadium has been the home of Middlesbrough since it opened in 1995. Its current capacity is 34,742. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

His ground hopping pictures come together on his awaydayphotography Instagram posts.

“I started awaydayphotography in early 2021,” he said.

“During the pandemic I was bored, and I had a lot of good football pictures from earlier years, so I decided to start posting them.

“I like to capture different pictures of the match and later on put them all together in a certain order, like a visual story that I can tell my followers.

“My pictures often focus on what happens outside of the pitch – the fans, the atmosphere or the stadium itself.

Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahnsportpark Berlin — Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark. The stadium is the third-largest stadium in Berlin with a capacity of approximately 20,000. BFC Dynamo used the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark from the 2014-15 season until March 2021. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

“Football photography combines my two biggest passions. I can be really close to the action and it gives me the feeling of freedom, as I can shoot so many different things and perspectives throughout the course of a football match.”

MEWA-Arena Mainz — MEWA-Arena, Mainz, October 2021. Mainz 05 4 – 1 FC Augsburg. Mewa-Arena was first opened in July 2011 and is the home of the German Bundesliga side Mainz 05. The stadium has a capacity of 34,034, 19,700 seated, and replaced the Bruchwegstadion. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Bruchwegstadium Mainz — Abandoned: Bruchwegstadion, former home of Mainz 05. Pictured in 2017. Copyright: Colin Wachholz

Next up for Wachholz is widening his football and photography horizons.

“I want to grow awaydayphotography further on Social Media and inspire more people with my photography. Maybe one day I‘ll release a book with my pictures of different stadiums and clubs.”