"Focused. Open. Motivated." This is how Mala Grohs describes herself in front of around 70 people from the fan club 'Die Roten vom Werdenfelser Land’. In response, the FCB goalkeeper is told: "You'll need that for the Werdenfelser Pentathlon today!" With FC Bayern Women not playing this weekend, Grohs and Kathi Naschenweng made their way to Farchant in Upper Bavaria, for the women's team's first fan club visit.
Pinball, beer mug lifting, beer mat catching
Mala Grohs trying her hand at so-called 'Stoßbudeln'.
The two FC Bayern players were welcomed by the fan club with thunderous applause and the ‘Star of the South’ anthem. After a short introduction, the infamous ‘Werdenfelser Pentathlon’ awaited them: 'Stoßbudeln' (a south German pinball game), beer mug lifting, beer mat catching, nailing and ball juggling. The last discipline was cancelled, as Grohs and Naschenweng had already won the contest against the fans 3-1. ‘I've already done beer mat catching a few times, so I had practice,’ laughed Naschenweng. The footballers came out on top in the pinball and nailing events. Only in one discipline did they have to admit defeat to two fan club members: "I gave it my all in the beer mug lifting, but unfortunately my opponent was unbeatable," summarised Grohs.
Hitting the nail as hard as possible with one blow of the hammer: Grohs and Naschenweng also earned points here.
'A successful evening'
Entertainment was provided by the interludes of the ‘Schuhplattler Farchant’, a traditional Bavarian folk dance in which Grohs and Naschenweng were also actively involved. The crowning glory of the evening was the long-awaited question and answer session and autograph session. The players were also awarded honorary membership of the fan club ‘Die Roten vom Werdenfelser Land’ and presented with two jerseys signed by the entire FCB women's team as a thank you.
Kathi Naschenweng during a performance of the 'Schuhplattler'.
"It was great fun," said goalkeeper Grohs. "We received a warm welcome and everyone was very happy. It's good to experience genuine interest and see that people want to get to know us." Naschenweng also gave a positive review of the evening: "It was very cool for us that the fan club specifically asked for a visit from FCB Women. That's another step in the right direction. We are close to our fans at our matches and take a lot of time for them. For fan clubs that can't come to every one of our matches, it's important to show closeness and interest in the form of such visits. That's why it was a really successful evening and we were delighted to be part of it."
FCB Women recently received the Sepp Herberger Award for their social engagement:
Topics of this article