Club Crawl: FC Bayern Supporters San Diego

FC Bayern fan clubs from around the world each celebrate their fandom in unique yet familiar ways. We are giving these clubs the opportunity to share their stories and experiences. Thus far we have stopped in Canada, India, Washington DC and Brazil and today we are making our way to the west coast of the United States.

Marc

January 31, 2019

In this edition of Club Crawl, we travel to San Diego where the president of San Diego Bayern, Martin, tells us how he and his club support Bayern from 9800 kilometers away.

Location	Bluefoot Bar and Lounge San Diego, California USA
Founding Year	2014
Active Members	70
Social Media	Facebook, Twitter, Instagram

Tell us the story of how your fan club was founded and what the fan club means to you and your members.

I was not the original founder, so I don’t know the details of how it was founded. I strive to create an atmosphere of closeness and family among the club. We have a wonderful bar for us to gather for all the matches as well as an active Facebook group where we are free to discuss the team and other relating issues.

**San Diego likes to have fun and has created a familyesque environment**
(Image: FC Bayern Supporters San Diego)

Where and how do you watch Bayern games? Do you have special traditions (e.g. chants, food, beer, etc.) that you follow on matchday?

We watch our matches at a local bar called Bluefoot Bar and Lounge. We have a tradition of bringing in food for our early morning matches as well as a club potluck for the bigger matches such as Der Klassiker.

**San Diego Bayern frequently brings food and desserts to match viewings for everyone to share.**
(Image: FC Bayern Supporters San Diego)

What has been your best experience as a fan so far?

My personal best experience as a fan so far has been the trip I took to Miami, Florida this year for the Audi Summer Tour. All the events that the Bayern US office put together for the fans as well as meeting a lot of the team and having happy birthday sung to me by fans, Bayern Legends, and Stephen Lehmann was pretty amazing. It was topped off by an autographed new 2018 home trikot autographed by Bayern Legends.

**Martin, the president of San Diego Bayern, made his way to Miami last year for his birthday and met a few of the Bayern players while he was there.**
(Image: FC Bayern Supporters San Diego)

Which event of your fan club are you most proud of?

The Spring 2017 Der Klassiker watch party. We had a massive spread of food, a large crowd made up of Bayern and BVB fans, and of course, we thrashed BVB!

Has your club made a trip to see Bayern live as a group? What was the experience like?

Our club hasn’t done it as a large group; however, we have had groups of four and six of us watching a match together. Our experiences of going together have been awesome! Such an amazing atmosphere at the stadiums in Germany as well as a closer sense of family among the group members.

**Members of San Diego Bayern have even traveled together to the Allianz for a few Bayern home games.**
(Image: FC Bayern Supporters San Diego)

What do your family and friends think about you watching all those Bayern games early in the morning/late at night?

They are impressed by the dedication of myself and other members of our group to show up for 06:30 kickoffs as well as having a bar that opens for us at that time. My girlfriend has come around to being a Bayern fan as she saw how much fun it is to be a supporter when she experienced her first match at Allianz.

How did you become a Bayern supporter in the first place?

My dad’s side of the family is originally from Bavaria, so it began with me finding a team that I had a connection with.