It's TV at home as German football returns with 'ghost games'

Nicole Bartelt has been a loyal fan at all but two of Borussia Dortmund's home matches since 2008, but when the Bundesliga restarted Saturday after a two-month hiatus because of the coronavirus, she was forced to keep away from the stands.

Nevertheless, Bartelt, 44, was not complaining that the derby with Schalke was played behind closed doors.

"It's better to have 'ghost games' to slow the epidemic than to have a health catastrophe," she told AFP.

"Even if we detest Schalke, a season without such a derby doesn't have the same flavour," added Bartelt, wearing a black Dortmund jersey.

Bartelt watched the game from her friends' place.

Likewise, Marco Perz, 45, who has been a regular at Dortmund matches since 1987, was in front of the television at his friends'.

"It's sad that matches are played in empty stadiums, but it's better than nothing -- the more we keep to health rules, the sooner we can return to normality," said Perz, with a beer in hand.

It would be "absurd and dangerous" to not allow the season to run its course, said Perz, who was wearing a jacket emblazoned with a dozen Dortmund logos.

"Not necessarily for the players, who may have to buy one less Lamborghini, but for the economy that depends on it -- the technicians, gardeners, fan shops.

On a match day, some shops, including fast-food stands, rake in revenues equivalent to that of a normal week."
- 'Not very comfortable -