Derby Days: Austria Salzburg vs Pink Bull Salzburg

The Athletic is attending a few of the most ferocious derbies throughout Europe, charting the historical past of the continent’s most deep-rooted and unstable rivalries. The sequence started final season, overlaying 10 flamable fixtures from Athens to Anfield. We attended De Klassieker and the Derby della Capitale, the Everlasting Derby and the Previous Agency.

We resumed our journey with a visit to Copenhagen. Now to Austria and the primary staging of a derby that divides Salzburg.

The Austria Salzburg followers had been out in pressure.

They gathered behind the purpose with flags and banners, most clad within the historic purple colors of their membership. They sang — screamed, maybe — their songs, pink flares had been lit and purple smoke was launched, quickly obscuring the stand for these watching from elsewhere within the stadium.

For a membership with a fairly energetic ultras group, it was all comparatively customary stuff for a giant sport.

Solely this wasn’t for the sport. This was for coaching, the night earlier than the large sport.

The large sport in query was in all probability the most important since this iteration of Austria Salzburg was fashioned in 2005. For the primary time in 18 years, they had been about to play Pink Bull Salzburg, the membership who took over and basically cannibalised the previous Austria Salzburg, starting the power drink’s community of groups that now stretches over 4 continents.

A couple of days earlier than the match, numerous banners had appeared on the terraces of different golf equipment round Austria. “Salzburg bleibt violett” learn one from the Sturm Graz followers — Salzburg stays violet. One other learn “Scheiss Pink Bull!”, which suggests… truly, we in all probability don’t have to translate that one.

On the similar sport, one other banner appeared within the Fast Vienna finish, studying, “In Salzburg nur die Austria” — in Salzburg, there’s solely Austria.All of which emphasised simply how massive this sport — which, when stripped of any context, was merely a second-round Austrian Cup sport between a workforce within the third tier and the champions from the earlier 10 seasons — was not only for the golf equipment concerned, however within the nation extra broadly.

That is AFC Wimbledon vs MK Dons, multiplied by about 50. It’s about one thing greater than only a cup tie; a conflict of ideologies, of two utterly completely different interpretations of what soccer is for.

“It’s not simply Pink Bull Salzburg towards Austria Salzburg,” Austria Salzburg’s midfielder Rene Zia informed The Athletic earlier than the sport. “It’s Pink Bull Salzburg towards the remainder of Europe. We aren’t simply enjoying for ourselves, however we’re enjoying for Austria and perhaps another conventional golf equipment round Europe.

“Everybody desires us to win.”

The house help make their emotions clear (Austria Salzburg)

The primary iteration of Austria Salzburg was based in 1933.

The primary 40 or so years of their existence had been comparatively unremarkable. They first reached the Austrian high flight in 1953, they completed runners-up a few instances, they reached the UEFA Cup a few instances.

It wasn’t till the mid-Nineteen Nineties that issues began to get actually good, after they received the Austrian Bundesliga thrice and reached the 1994 UEFA Cup closing, shedding 2-0 on mixture to an Inter Milan facet that includes Giuseppe Bergomi, Dennis Bergkamp and Ruben Sosa.

Nevertheless, by 2005, the nice instances had been over. The workforce had completed second backside of the Bundesliga and the membership was in monetary bother, however a sickly candy saviour appeared.

Pink Bull was initially a Thai power drink referred to as Krating Daeng — which suggests, surprisingly sufficient, pink bull — till an Austrian marketer referred to as Dietrich Mateschitz got here throughout it and its livening qualities within the Eighties, in the end shopping for half the corporate and introducing it to the Western market. As you’ll know, it caught on fairly properly. Based on firm figures, Pink Bull offered 11.58billion cans worldwide in 2022 in a post-pandemic surge.

When discussions first started with Austria Salzburg 18 years in the past, Pink Bull was welcomed. It was an area firm, and the impression was that it merely needed to sponsor the membership, offering much-needed monetary help. Even when a reputation change was on the playing cards, that was not unprecedented: at numerous factors of their historical past, Austria Salzburg had been generally known as On line casino Salzburg and Wustenrot Salzburg, for sponsorship causes.

Nevertheless, it quickly grew to become clear that Pink Bull’s plans had been just a little extra intensive than that. It had a full takeover on their minds, fairly than simply help. Pink Bull needed to alter all the pieces: the stadium, the membership colors, the crest and, after all, the title.

Some efforts had been made to appease the followers — who, by this level, had been largely furious that the historical past of their membership was mainly going to be worn out — however the nature of the ‘concessions’ Pink Bull supplied does recommend these efforts weren’t enormously critical. After one prolonged assembly, Pink Bull executives mentioned that, as a nod to the membership’s previous and traditions, they might permit the goalkeepers’ socks, the captain’s armband and the emblem of equipment producer Adidas to be violet, the membership’s conventional colors.

Supporters took this as an insult however it grew to become clear Pink Bull had little curiosity in truly listening to the followers and even acknowledging that there was a membership there earlier than 2005.

So, confronted with the prospect of Austria Salzburg changing into basically a advertising and marketing train for a fizzy drinks firm with little to no recognition of something that made them proud to help their membership, the followers determined to arrange their very own.

Inter’s Giuseppe Bergomi and Austria Salzburg’s Heribert Weber shake fingers earlier than the UEFA Cup closing in 1994 (Steve Morton – PA Pictures by way of Getty Pictures)

Technically, each golf equipment are continuations of the previous Austria Salzburg. However, whereas the brand new Austria Salzburg maintain up their pre-2005 historical past with satisfaction, Pink Bull Salzburg maintain it as a canine walker would possibly the contents of a poo bag.

After the takeover, they tried to say that this was a model new membership, based in 2005, earlier than being informed in no unsure phrases by the Austrian soccer authorities that they may not do this. Prefer it or not, this was the identical membership that had been round since 1933.

“Pink Bull didn’t need to begin on the backside of the pyramid,” says Lee Wingate, co-host of The Other Bundesliga podcast, which focuses on Austrian soccer. “They needed to simply purchase their approach straight to the highest. So as soon as they’d executed that, they didn’t want the historical past.”

Since then, Pink Bull have received 14 of the final 17 Bundesliga titles, eight of the final 10 Austrian Cups and, for the final 5 seasons, have performed within the Champions League group levels.

They’ve additionally turn out to be a rare proving floor for expertise. Sadio Mane, Erling Haaland, Dayot Upamecano, Dominik Szoboszlai, Naby Keita and Marcel Sabitzer have all performed for them, and even their harshest critics can not deny their astonishing scouting community.

A lot of these gamers have ‘graduated’ to RB Leipzig in Germany, though the membership are at pains to level out that RB Salzburg are not technically owned by Pink Bull following a restructuring that might permit each them and Leipzig to compete towards one another in European competitors. Pink Bull is now merely a sponsor, albeit a sponsor whose title adorns the membership, the stadium, the coaching floor, their academy, a restaurant on the stadium and the children’ play space on the stadium. It’s a very good sponsorship deal.

“There’s a begrudging respect, amongst a minority, for what they’ve executed for Austrian soccer,” says Wingate, “as a result of they broke floor by stepping into the Champions League, dragging the coefficient up and thus permitting different Austrian golf equipment to get into Europe.

“However whereas they’ve helped Austria on a European degree, (via their dominance) they’ve utterly decimated the home sport.”

Anti-Pink Bull sentiment is prevalent (The Athletic)

Austria Salzburg, in the meantime, began from scratch within the Austrian beginner leagues.

They ultimately clambered their approach as much as the second tier in 2017-18 however the cash they had been obliged to spend on the required infrastructural enhancements very almost despatched them out of enterprise. They’re now within the Regionalliga West, the extent under the second tier, and just lately introduced that they’re utterly debt-free.

However it mainly stays a labour of affection. A lot of the employees are volunteers. Within the run-up to the Pink Bull sport, one member of employees labored a 45-hour week, on high of their day job. It has not been unusual for workers and supporters to mortgage cash to the membership to maintain the lights on and assist keep some type of steady monetary footing.

Their stadium, out to the west of the town and never removed from the airport, has a capability of just a little greater than 1,500 and was deemed insufficient for the Pink Bull sport, which befell on the Untersberg Area in Grodig, about 20 minutes south of Salzburg, which may accommodate 4,000. The membership have made efforts to construct a brand new everlasting dwelling, however the newest proposal — which might have seen a brand new stadium as a part of a housing improvement simply outdoors the town centre — was rejected by the native authorities.

There’s a view amongst some supporters of different grassroots golf equipment in Austria that the years of wrestle have made a few of the Austria Salzburg followers just a little pious and too simple to reject something that smells of commercialism. However this isn’t a charitable train: their dwelling stadium is known as the Max Aicher Stadion, for sponsorship causes. A number of employees needed to keep late in Grodig the night time earlier than the sport as a result of a big promoting board from one other sponsor was being delivered.

This season sees them have fun the ninetieth anniversary of the unique membership’s formation, one other indication that they see themselves as the brand new model of the previous membership. Their web site has an in depth rundown of their historical past going again to 1933, together with their very own account of occasions in 2005.

“The phrase it makes use of is ‘todesstoss’, which suggests like a ‘demise blow’,” says Wingate. “They declare the entire historical past, however go very robust on the emotive language to elucidate.”

“We don’t criticise Pink Bull in any respect, we merely reject it,” says Christian, an Austria Salzburg fan.

The Austria Salzburg president Claus Salzmann with the ahead Christoph Bann (Austria Salzburg)

A technology has handed for the reason that takeover and although many will declare they don’t essentially hate Pink Bull, there’s a sense that this encounter, 18 years within the making, is about one thing extra. Austria Salzburg are enjoying for an ideology, a rejection of the hyper-commercialisation that you could possibly fairly simply argue is summed up by a community of golf equipment getting used as a advertising and marketing train for an power drinks firm.

In some respects, the eventual end result of the sport does probably not matter to Austria Salzburg. Their very presence is the victory — the truth that they began from scratch not that way back, and are actually right here not solely to play Pink Bull in a aggressive fixture, but additionally present instant proof {that a} completely different approach of doing issues is feasible. “The story we’re telling is we’ve already received,” says Stefan Schubert, who was one of many followers there at floor zero in 2005. He’s now a board member.

The pinnacle coach, Christian Schaider, tells The Athletic: “It reveals which you could’t purchase all the pieces. In my coronary heart, I’ve a distinct ideology. My coronary heart burns for Austria Salzburg and my gamers. It offers you a heat feeling.”

It’s a sport of fierce rivalry, however each golf equipment are mainly proud of their lot. Austria Salzburg have executed what they’ve executed. They exist with out excessively compromising their rules and stay true to their historical past. Pink Bull Salzburg are the dominant pressure in Austrian soccer, aggressive in Europe and have a repute as skilled talent-spotters.

For the second, aside from Tuesday’s transient encounter, they exist in utterly completely different universes.

In some ways, this was a sport each side might have executed with out. Austria Salzburg president Claus Salzmann mentioned when the fixture was introduced that this was “not a dream draw for us” — being paired towards the perfect workforce within the nation didn’t enhance their possibilities of making it via. For Pink Bull, it revives debate in regards to the takeover and enhances their broad unpopularity, though it’s debatable how a lot they really care about that.

There was a transparent sense from folks at each golf equipment, extra so Pink Bull, that they simply needed to get this sport out of the way in which and return to regular life as shortly as doable.

Pink Bull Salzburg mount an assault (Austria Salzburg)

However, after all, the sport did truly matter.

It was broadcast on nationwide tv, on the Austrian equal of the BBC, with an anticipated viewers of round a million, which isn’t dangerous in a rustic of eight million folks.

Regardless of the rivalry, there wasn’t any important bother, however that didn’t cease precautions from being taken. One Austria employees member stayed on the Grodig stadium late into the earlier night time lest some Pink Bull followers determine to strive one thing naughty. Some did present up, however had been scared off by safety.

When the 405 Pink Bull followers did seem, by extra official means, it was in 4 coaches specifically laid on to keep away from the 2 teams mixing away from the bottom. They’d extra luck than the Pink Bull workforce, whose bus was delayed coming into the bottom by a rogue automobile parked in the way in which of their entrance. A quick announcement over the general public tackle system was required earlier than they may acquire entry, which means the kick-off was delayed by half an hour.

The polizei presence was heavy across the floor: at a tough estimate, there will need to have been a minimum of 200 current, funnelling followers this fashion and that, usually wanting intimidating. For a crowd of simply over 4,000, that may be a fairly strong ratio: for context, on the most high-profile Premier League video games you are likely to get something between 500-1,000 cops, and that’s for a crowd of as much as 70,000.

We’ve bought this far with out actually discussing precise soccer, however that nearly felt like a minor ingredient of the entire event.

No person anticipated it to be a contest and it wasn’t, the Champions League workforce giving the facet who often play within the regional divisions a little bit of a chasing, within the early and latter levels of the sport notably.

Pink Bull Salzburg, maybe spooked by their defeat within the league to Blau-Weiss Linz just a few days beforehand, picked a fairly robust workforce and took the lead within the eighth minute via Amar Dedic. Austria Salzburg compelled their approach into the sport just a little extra after that and gallantly held the guests at bay till the 63rd minute however, ultimately, Pink Bull ran in three extra — Forson Amankwah with two and Strahinja Pavlovic with the opposite — to say the tie 4-0.

Rigidity boils over (Austria Salzburg)

However, fairly than the sport, your eyes had been constantly drawn to the place essentially the most vocal Austria Salzburg followers had been at one finish, in fixed deafening voice, unveiling an more and more elaborate number of banners and tifos all through.

Some expressed solidarity with different golf equipment who’ve supported them, however the majority appeared to hold anti-Pink Bull messages. One appeared to depict Mozart bashing a pink bull over the top with a violin, massive Wolfgang after all being well-known for his violence. One other mentioned Pink Bull solely cares about profitable, which, for readability, was meant as an insult. One other unfavourably in contrast them to pigs.

The Pink Bull followers, squirrelled away within the nook, did their greatest to contribute to the noise. They usually had been spectacular in their very own approach, however didn’t stand an opportunity towards the volleys of invective thrown their approach. Tempting as it’s to be indignant about their complete undertaking, a complete technology of followers has grown up not understanding something aside from an Austrian soccer world with Pink Bull Salzburg in it. They’re solely normalised, even when they’re damagingly dominant, so you’ll be able to’t essentially blame folks for supporting them.

However in the end, this night time was about Austria Salzburg, though they misplaced and solely as soon as significantly regarded like scoring, by no means thoughts profitable.

Simply earlier than the beginning of the second half, the house followers set off an astonishing assortment of fireworks and different assorted pyrotechnics from the stand, which will need to have been a well being and security nightmare however regarded extraordinary. These events usually are not all the time in regards to the soccer. On this occasion, it didn’t really feel near an important factor.

The house gamers applaud their followers (Austria Salzburg)

Simply after the fourth purpose went in, an Austria Salzburg fan within the stands, cradling a beer, shrugged. “No less than we’re not them,” he mentioned.

As a result of this was solely partly a soccer match. For them, it was extra the validation of a motion, proof {that a} vibrant soccer membership can exist with out putting victory above all different issues.

“It reveals us that what we did was not for nothing,” says Schaider.

And that, for Austria Salzburg, is what issues greater than anything.

Salzburg’s Hohensalzburg Fortress (Dave Etheridge-Barnes/Getty Pictures)

(Pictures in high design: Austria Salzburg; Getty Pictures. Designed by Sam Richardson)