Schalke 04 Review Hospitality & Sport ticket

Sportz Guru visited Bundesliga giants Schalke 04. Schalke holds a long-standing rivalry with Ruhr neighbours Borussia Dortmund, arguably the most widespread and well-known rivalry in German football, and matches between the two teams are referred to as the Revierderby. Schalke 04 Review Sport Hospitality Ticket

Overall: 8,3
Atmosphere & Entertainment: 8,0
F&B: 8,5
Seating & Facilities: 9,5
Price: 7,0

Sport: Football
League: Bundesliga

Country: Germany
State: North Rhine-Westphalia
City: Gelsenkirchen

Veltins-Arena originally Arena Auf Schalke is a football stadium in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It opened in 2001, as the new home ground for German Bundesliga club Schalke 04.

It hosted the 2004 UEFA Champions League final and 5 matches in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, including a quarter-final. It has a league capacity of 62,271 (standing and seated) and an international capacity of 54,740 (seated only).

The stadium has a retractable roof and a retractable pitch. The naming rights to the stadium were sold on 1 July 2005 to the German brewery Veltins.

The Veltins-Arena features a Teflon-coated fiberglass canvas retractable roof, which spans the entire stadium. The roof is supported by a rectangular truss that is suspended above the field, which is in turn connected to the main building via 24 steel pylons. The center of the roof can be opened into two halves, allowing for an opened or covered stadium, depending on weather and event. In order to reduce the exterior noise of up to 105 decibels during concerts, a second layer of Teflon-coated fiberglass canvas was added over the first, creating a dampening air cushion. Hanging 25 m over the center of the pitch are four video screens, each with a surface area of 35 m2. The centrally suspended scoreboard, similar to those found inside indoor sports arenas, was the first of its kind in football stadia, and has since been copied in the Commerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt and the Esprit Arena in Düsseldorf.

Like the Sapporo Dome in Japan, the University of Phoenix Stadium in the U.S. state of Arizona and the Gelredome in the Netherlands, the Veltins-Arena features a slide out pitch. Supported by 11,400 t substructure, the playing field can be moved in and out of the stadium within 4 hours.

Hospitality Package: VIP Lounge East “Glückauf-Club”

– Admission to VIP Lounge East “Glückauf-Club”
– Reserved shared table seating
– Inclusive of Schalke 04 scarf
– Executive seating in East stand
– Buffet and all inclusive drinks package including Sekt
– Parking ticket
– Man of the match presentations

There are 2 VIP areas, one on the West stand and one on the East stand. There is no real difference with respect to East versus West, however the West area has a separate hospitality entrance/main reception that looks a little bit more professional. In order to enter both the West and East VIP area one first has to queue up in the regular ticket lines before entering the stadium area. As these queues are relatively long it is strange why Schalke 04 did not facilitate a separate line for its VIP guests.

High quality food and drinks are included in the package. Great variety of wines and Sekt as well as food. There are various food stations each of them where cooks prepare your meal. Think about salmon, pasta, prosciutto, ‘’Currywurst’’, ‘’Bratwurst’’, ham, bread selection, salads, waffles and sweets.

The waiting staff accommodated the quests very well, also listing their favorite drinks for half-time and after the game.

As one would expect, the food was renewed and prepared fresh during the entire duration of the hospitality package, so also up and until 2 hours after the game ended.

The VIP lounge East can be entered by climbing two outside staircases (rain protected). At the entrance there is a little reception area where guests are handed over their VIP bracelets. The lounge itself is big and decorated for business type purposes. Just as with some other stadiums in Germany, both the executive boxes and the business seats share this lounge so there is a good mixture of various VIP guests. Part of the package is a reserved shared table seating.

The lounge has pitch facing views across the halfway line. You can enter the lounge two hours before kick-off until two hours after the match has ended.

Very good quality leather seats that Sportz Guru specifically requested at the hospitality team of Schalke 04. They were located right outside the VIP lounge at a separate balcony with only two rows of seats. We were allowed to bring our drinks in plastic cups, so what better way to view a match! Schalke 04 Review Sport Hospitality Ticket

Next to the stadium is the Marriott Courtyard Gelsenkirchen Hotel. An excellent place to stay and to spot your favorite player!

The following hotels are nearest to the stadium:
1. Marriott Courtyard Gelsenkirchen
2. Ambient Hotel zum Schwan, Gelsenkirchen
3. Maritim Hotel Gelsenkirchen

Do you want to go to Schalke 04 and enjoy this hospitality package? We can help you book this great package. Just send us an email with your request. We have also made it easy for you to book your hotel. Just click on the banner below and search direct for the city or hotel name you want to stay.

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Making a reservation can be quite tricky in terms of planning. We can make it easy for you. Please email us your contact details, the country or club you want to go to and when you would like to go. We will then make a proposal for you.

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Disclaimer: This is not a paid review and we haven’t been asked to write this. All views and words are our own and have not been influenced by anyone else.