Jacob Sweetman on the history of football in Berlin

Jacob Sweetman is a writer, a drummer, and a keen observer of football in the Haupstadt. 

Now the lead for FC Union Berlin's english communications, Jacob has been writing about fußball and Berlin for almost two decades, since moving to the city in 2007. 

In the 2010s, he edited and published No Dice Magazine, a fanzine that covered the many football clubs in Berlin. In his role with Union, he manages the club's english Twitter feed, writes match reports, and produces video interviews with key figures at the Alte Försterei. 

In this wide ranging conversation, Jacob sahres his thoughts on: 

4:30 — Moving to Berlin
6:30 — His time editing and publishing No Dice Magazine
10:30 — Berlin's repuation, or lack thereof, as a football city
12:00 — The welcoming nature of Union's fans 
14:00 — The diverse nature of clubs and their fanbases in Berlin
18:30 — The figures that best exemplify the city's football culture and history
21:15 — The history of Union and Hertha's friendship, and subsequent rivalry
25:45 — Union's position as the people's club under the DDR, and their animosity towards BFC Dynamo
30:00 — His fandom of Union
39:00 — His hopes for the season ahead
40:30 — The best books for understanding German football

About The Bundesletter Podcast

The Bundesletter Podcast is an interview programme featuring the expert insight of observer of German football and its culture.

We'll hear from journalists, historians, analysts and fans of fußball on their experiences of following and learning the game.

This series is a companion to the Bundesletter, a weekly newsletter written, edited and published by Tom Ritchie, a journalist based in Berlin.

You can subscribe to the newsletter here: bundesletter.substack.com.