Germany's 'absolutely insane' second tier rivalling Europe's best
According to figures from the German Football Leagues (DFL), midway through the 2024-25 season, the second-tier average attendance of 30,329 was greater than the Spanish and French first divisions.
La Liga games averaged crowds of 29,875 with those in France's Ligue 1 attracting 27,173 spectators per game.
On one matchday in February 2024, the Bundesliga 2 averaged more fans than the German top flight -- the best attended of any football league in the world -- for the first time, a feat which has since been repeated on several occasions.
World Cup-winning striker Jurgen Klinsmann played 61 games in the German second division for Stuttgarter Kickers, scoring 22 times, before moving to first-division rivals Stuttgart.
Now living in California, Klinsmann still keeps up with the German second division, calling the atmosphere "absolutely insane".
"The second Bundesliga is really fun to watch," Klinsmann told AFP from his Los Angeles home.
"I watch it quite a lot."
'Completely unpredictable'
In the 2023-24 season, the total revenue of the 18-team Bundesliga 2 crossed the one billion euro ($1.14 billion) mark for the first time, easily generating more money than any other second-division league.
The Championship, the 24-team English second tier, made £749 million (875 million euros) in 2022-23, the last season for which figures are available.
With 947 goals scored last season in the German second division, the most in 22 years, fans get plenty of bang for their buck.
In the Bundesliga, Bayern are on course for their 12th title in the past 13 seasons. In the Bundesliga 2, there have been 10 different champions in the past decade.
Manu Veth, a Canadian-German journalist for Forbes and Transfermarkt, told AFP "the football is very good and the league is completely unpredictable," but also cited structural factors in football-mad Germany.
"Germany is Europe's most populous country with the largest economy by a big margin. With just 18 clubs (in the top flight), big clubs from major cities are stuck in the lower divisions."
Hamburg and Schalke are joined in the second division by Cologne, Nuremberg, Kaiserslautern, Hertha Berlin, Hannover and Fortuna Duesseldorf -- all former German champions who retain huge followings despite falling on harder times.
David Wagner, who coached Norwich City to a Premier League promotion as well as German giants Schalke, said the big names have boosted the second division's popularity.
"We've had a Bundesliga 2 season which perhaps we've never had before," Wagner told AFP. "With so many big, big clubs."
'Enjoy the ride'
Klinsmann said fan loyalty among relegated clubs was also a major factor.
"Over the past 10 years, the second league became so interesting and so popular. You have these traditional powerhouses, who for whatever reasons got relegated, which of course is a disaster for them.
"But they have a fan base from over 100 years who sticks with them and is there for them. The identification with the teams is still so high, that fans just kind of enjoy the ride in the second Bundesliga."
Klinsmann, who also played in England, Italy, France and the United States, said the culture was unique in Germany.
"I compare it to the Serie B, the Italian second league, because my son (Jonathan) plays for Cesena," he said.
"They also have bigger teams who were in the first (division), but they don't have that fascinating aspect that the stadiums are packed still even if they're one league lower.
"But in Germany, the phenomenon is that even if you get relegated, the fans stick with them."
Veth agreed.
"Fans in Germany are very loyal and they seem to come out in big numbers when clubs need them," he said.
"Clubs are community or membership owned. That means they are embedded in the local communities and that creates momentum when times are tough."