Tickling in your stomach at Wembley Stadium

Julia Simic (formerly FC Bayern) only experienced a fully professional women's soccer league in England.

She knows why German professionals follow the call to foreign countries. 

• Julia Simic played for Bayern Munich for eight years.

  After working for German clubs, she moved to England in 2018. 

• In the interview she talks about the progress, the breathtaking things the English league has made and explains where German women's football has to catch up. 

• Melanie Behringer, 2007 world champion, is also demanding more from German women's football and clubs. 

Munich

-

Julia Simic

is German champion, DFB Cup winner and former national player. She had to be 29 years old to experience a fully professional women's soccer league. The

FA Women's Cup Final

between

Manchester City

and West

Ham United

was one of the greatest days of her career. At that moment she knew: moving to England was the best decision. Even today, Simic gets

goose bumps

when she talks about it: “Even the way through the tunnel to the stadium

makes your stomach tingle

. Out to

Wembley Stadium

with

48,000 spectators

. The view into the audience while the West Ham anthem is playing. Plus the fireworks! I only know that from the NBA. "

In 2018 Julia Simic moved

to

West Ham United in

England

after holding positions at FC Bayern Munich (2005 to 2013),

VfL Wolfsburg

and

SC Freiburg

.

“After 13 years in Germany, I was attracted to other countries.

In recent years, the other European countries have caught up extremely, the English league has now overtaken the German.

The upswing is amazing! ”Ten years ago, the move of a Bundesliga player abroad would have been unimaginable.

Today the top players are drawn to England and France.

Pauline Bremer

went to Olympique Lyon in 2015.

Sara Däbritz

moved to Paris-Saint Germain in 2019.

Melanie Leupolz,

Captain and star at FC Bayern, joined Chelsea in 2020.

Women's football: The top stars are under contract in the English league

The women's Bundesliga is becoming less attractive.

The big stars play in France or England.

Lucy Bronze is FIFA World Player of the Year 2020. The female version of Sergio Ramos plays for Manchester City.

Tobin Heath is two-time world champion with the USA.

She is the Messi among women.

She also moved to Manchester United.

German women's football: lack of spectators, investments and serious signals

Fame and fans await players in the Women's Soccer League.

48,000 fans came to the stadium for the 2019 FA Cup final between Manchester City and West Ham United, and more than 2.2 million watched the game live on screen.

The 2019 DFB Cup final between VfL Wolfsburg and SC Freiburg in Cologne was watched live by around 17,000 spectators.

There were around three million in front of the television.

To blame a lack of interest on the audience in Germany would be too easy.

The problem starts with the professional clubs: only 17 of the 56 professional clubs have a professional women's team.

In England every first and second division club invests money in a serious women's division.

Tobias Bracht: "The DFB has to position itself!"

“The DFB still has all options in hand. In order to be able to shape women's football professionally in the long term, the DFB has to position itself on how it should continue, ”says

Tobias Bracht

. The 32-year-old provides strategic advice to the women's Bundesliga clubs. Bracht collected all the wishes of the women's Bundesliga clubs and presented them to the DFB. Instead of drawing horror scenarios, he names construction sites that women's football must tackle as quickly as possible: the

broadcasting rights of the games

and the

infrastructure of the women's teams

.

Even in the regional league, upscale amateur footballers often have better opportunities than female professionals.

In England fans can watch all women's games live for free.

In Germany, only the top women's games run on the payment channel

Magenta

.

Julia Simic: "In Freiburg we weren't allowed to train on the men's heated lawn."

In terms of infrastructure, the players in England have

top conditions

at their disposal.

Even with relegated players in the first division, the players hardly lack anything, says Julia Simic.

From the

sauna

to the

treatment rooms

, the

lawn heating

to the

canteen

and the

fitness studios

, everything is state-of-the-art

In winter we often had to drive to SC Freiburg as far as Switzerland because we weren't allowed to train on the men's heated lawn. ”

The work off the pitch is also at a higher level abroad:

“ In Germany, often only the coaches and goalkeeping coaches are permanently employed.

In England, on the other hand, the physiotherapists and video analysts also work full-time.

That offers you completely new possibilities and strengthens the cohesion, ”explains Julia Simic.

"In England, most men's professional clubs take their own women's team very seriously."

International comparison: Even the top teams in Germany will soon be overtaken 

In Germany, the women's teams often only serve to improve the

image

or are viewed as irrelevant.

Compared to

Tobias Bracht draws Julia Simic's

horror scenario

: “Wolfsburg and Bayern can currently

beat

any team in the

Women's Soccer League

.

But here, too, it is foreseeable that the

level of performance

in England will continue to rise and the top teams in Germany will be overtaken. "

World champion Behringer also sees the men's clubs as responsible

Melanie Behringer

,

2007 world champion

and former

captain

of

FC Bayern Munich

, is hoping for more support from the Bundesliga side.

The clubs have to invest money and use their reach to drum for women's football: “Women just need men.

You are behind with the money. " 

+

Melanie Behringer celebrated the men's and women's championship at FC Bayern in 2016 as captain together with Philipp Lahm. 

© imago / MIS 

There are serious signals from German clubs like

Behringer suggests: “With

Sydney Lohmann was able to attract a player to Bayern who, at 20 years of age, is one of the best.

For me she will be the figurehead at the DFB.

That is an important sign that such players can be kept in Germany. "

+

Sydney Lohmann (20) extended until 2024 at Bayern Munich. 

Julia Simic calls for players voice, initiative and investment

Julia Simic demands that all players in the German league should be professionals: "We must continue to invest in the league in order to make it more professional." In contrast to the German top teams, players from the other teams often practice one in addition to football Main job. “The focus on football is missing. For more prestige and quality, football must become a

main job

for all women's Bundesliga

professionals

. But Simic wants more than money and reach. The players should and are allowed to

demand

recognition and money

because they have worked hard for the respect.

"My appeal is: take it into your own hands!"

According to Simic, many more women should use social networks so that their own player voice can be heard.

The 31-year-old calls for a rethink:

help create instead of running along

.

Johanna Grimm