The semi-finals of the 1983–84 DFB-Pokal were some of the most memorable matches in the history of German football due to the unusual play patterns and results. Bayern Munich,

Werder Bremen Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen (), Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen, Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, they are best known for the ...

, and Borussia Mönchengladbach of the

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...

, along with

second division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

side

Schalke 04 Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as FC Schalke 04 (), Schalke 04 (), or abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional German football and multi-sports club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine ...

had all advanced from the

quarter-finals A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

. The draw resulted in the following pairings: * Borussia Mönchengladbach vs Werder Bremen * Schalke 04 vs Bayern Munich These were the first two semi-final matches of the DFB-Pokal broadcast live on German television.Jörg Criens: Vom Joker zum Stammspieler

Westdeutsche Zeitung The ''Westdeutsche Zeitung'' (''WZ'') ( en, West German Newspaper) is one of the largest regional newspaper in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Its headquarters is in Wuppertal with additional offices in Düsseldorf and Krefeld Krefeld ( , ; ...

vom 23. April 2009, accessed on 8. März 2010 The matches took place on 1 and 2 May 1984, both which went to extra time, along with a replay one week later on 9 May. It took a total of 26 goals, none of which were penalties, in three matches to determine the teams which would take part in the 1984 DFB-Pokal Final, making the 1984 semi-finals the highest scoring round in DFB-Pokal history. In 2009, on the 25th anniversary of the matches, German newspaper ''

Die Welt ''Die Welt'' ("The World") is a German national daily newspaper, published as a broadsheet by Axel Springer SE. ''Die Welt'' is the flagship newspaper of the Axel Springer publishing group. Its leading competitors are the ''Frankfurter All ...

'' called the semi-finals "the two most spectacular cup ties ever".

Semi-final 1: Borussia Mönchengladbach vs Werder Bremen

In the first semi-final match, contested at the

Bökelbergstadion The Bökelbergstadion () was a Association football, football stadium in Mönchengladbach, Germany. History It was the home of Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach before Borussia-Park opened in 2004. The stadium had a capacity of up to 34, ...

Mönchengladbach Mönchengladbach (, li, Jlabbach ) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located west of the Rhine, halfway between Düsseldorf and the Dutch border. Geography Municipal subdivisions Since 2009, the territory of Mönchengladbac ...

on 1 May 1984 was between fourth in the 1983–84 Bundesliga table, Borussia Mönchengladbach, and fifth in the table at the time,

. The match started out as an even game, but as the match progressed Borussia began to take control before the crowd of 34,500 spectators. Five minutes before half-time Mönchengladbach went ahead by a goal from

Lothar Matthäus Lothar Herbert Matthäus (; born 21 March 1961) is a German football pundit and former professional player and manager. After captaining West Germany to victory in the 1990 FIFA World Cup where he lifted the World Cup trophy, he was awarded the ...

, but just two minutes later Norbert Meier equalised for Bremen. Another two minutes later

Norbert Ringels Norbert Ringels (Mönchengladbach, 16 September 1956) is a retired Germany, German Association football, football player. He spent ten seasons in the Fußball-Bundesliga, Bundesliga with Borussia Mönchengladbach, where he was known as "Nonno" t ...

restored Gladbach's lead to 2–1 at half-time. In the 76th minute, Borussia's lead was further extended to 3–1 via

Uwe Rahn Uwe Rahn (born 21 May 1962) is a German former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. Career Rahn played 318 Bundesliga matches in his professional career, scoring the majority of his 107 Bundesliga goals in his eight ...

. Within six minutes, Werder turned the tie around and lead 4–3 going into stoppage time after goals from Benno Möhlmann in the 77th minute, Wolfgang Sidka in the 80th minute, and Uwe Reinders in the 82nd minute. After the Bremen's third goal, Gladbach coach Jupp Heynckes substituted striker

Hans-Jörg Criens Hans-Jörg Criens (18 December 1960 – 26 December 2019) was a German footballer who played as a striker. He spent most of his 15-year professional career with Borussia Mönchengladbach, amassing Bundesliga totals of 303 games and 94 goals o ...

into the match, which would prove to be vital. In the 88th minute,

Wilfried Hannes Wilfried Hannes (born 17 May 1957) is a German former professional footballer who played as a defender, and manager, known for achieving his career despite being visually impaired after a pupil-tumour had caused him to lose his sight in his righ ...

put the ball into the back of the net, but the referee Franz-Josef Hontheim did not award the goal after it was called offside by the linesman. Bremen could not hold on however, and in the fifth minute of stoppage time substitute Hans-Jörg Criens proved decisive by netting the equaliser for Borussia, and sending the match into extra time. In extra time, both teams had numerous opportunities to score. In the end, Criens once again proved himself decisive by scoring what would be the game-winning goal for Mönchengladbach in the 107th minute, sending them to the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

Special occurrences

Midway through the second half, there was unrest within Bremen's fan blocks, which was located behind the goal of Gladbach keeper

Ulrich Sude Ulrich 'Uli' Sude (born 19 April 1956 in Korbach) is a German former footballer who became a coach. He spent 11 seasons in the Bundesliga with Borussia Mönchengladbach. As of March 2009, he works as a scout for the Borussia Mönchengladbach ...

. During the game, an object was thrown onto the pitch, which released smoke. Initially the object was thought to be a

smoke bomb A smoke bomb is a firework designed to produce a large amount of smoke upon ignition. History Early Japanese history saw the use of a rudimentary form of the smoke bomb. Explosives were common in Japan during the Mongol invasions of the 13 ...

, but after Wolfgang Sidka and

collapsed, and goalkeeper Sude contaminated by the smoke, the game had to be stopped for a few minutes. On the pitch there were scuffles between players and coaches of both teams, triggered by

Michael Frontzeck Michael Frontzeck (born 26 March 1964) is a German professional football coach and former player who is assistant coach of VfL Wolfsburg. As a player he was a left back who notably played in the Bundesliga across three spells for Borussia Mö ...

bumping into Bremen coach

Otto Rehhagel Otto Rehhagel (; born 9 August 1938) is a German former football coach and player. Rehhagel is one of only two people who, as player and manager combined, has participated in over 1,000 Bundesliga matches (the other being Jupp Heynckes). In t ...

, who had rushed onto the field, worried about Sidka. Referee Hontheim had to calm the situation. Meanwhile, the smoke was determined to be

tear gas Tear gas, also known as a lachrymator agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the early commercial aerosol, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the eye to produce tears. In ...

, which even began to affect the spectators. The police marched into Bremen's block and arrested several people. After the final whistle, Bremen's sporting director Wilfried Lemke protested against the validity of the match, but he withdrew, as both teams were affected by the incident.

Miscellaneous

The match was considered the debut of " super-sub" Hans-Jörg Criens, who had played a part in several crucial and important goals. The match was broadcast live on Das Erste by ARD, commentated by Heribert Faßbender.

Match details

Semi-final 2: Schalke 04 vs Bayern Munich

On 2 May 1984, the second semi-final took place at the

Parkstadion Parkstadion () was a multi-purpose stadium in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, that is no longer used to host any major events. The stadium was built in 1973 and hosted five matches of the 1974 FIFA World Cup.Gelsenkirchen between the "underdogs" and 1983–84 2. Bundesliga runner-up,

, and Bayern Munich, second in the Bundesliga at the time. The match would be called "the most dramatic cup game played in the history of the Pokal since the 1935 competition". The sold-out Parkstadion had an official attendance of 70,600 spectators, although unofficially there were said to be up to 78,000. Bayern quickly led 2–0 after Karl-Heinz Rummenigge opened the scoring in the 3rd minute, and

Reinhold Mathy Reinhold Mathy (born 12 April 1962) is a German former footballer who played as a forward. He played for Bayern Munich for seven years, winning four German titles and three cups. He retired due to an injury in 1993. Career Mathy joined Bayern ...

with the second in the 12th. However, Schalke quickly struck back as Thomas Kruse scored a minute later, before

Olaf Thon Olaf Thon (born 1 May 1966) is a German former professional football player and coach. Mainly a central midfielder, Thon's 19-year professional career was solely associated to Schalke 04 and Bayern Munich, having amassed more than 500 officia ...

equalised in the 19th minute. One minute later Bayern regained the lead via a goal from

Michael Rummenigge Michael Rummenigge (born 3 February 1964) is a German former professional footballer who played as a forward. Career Rummenigge was born in Lippstadt, North Rhine-Westphalia. At the beginning of his career, he did not have it easy as a playe ...

. In the second half, Thon once again equalised, with the goal coming in the 61st minute. Then, for the first time in the match, Schalke took the lead after a goal from Peter Stichler in the 72nd minute. Bayern equalised after Michael Rummenigge scored his second, sending the match into extra time after finishing 4–4. After 112 minutes, Schalke keeper Walter Junghans made a mistake, allowing

Dieter Hoeneß Dieter Hoeneß (born 7 January 1953) is a German former professional football player and executive. A forward in his playing career, Hoeneß was mainly associated with Bayern Munich. After retiring, he stayed connected with football, working ...

to score and regain the lead for Bayern. Once again Schalke leveled the tie in the 115th minute via a goal from Bernard Dietz. Three minutes later Bayern once again gained the lead after Dieter Hoeneß scored his second goal in extra time. With the last attack in stoppage time in extra time, Olaf Thon equalised for Schalke, scoring his third of the match, thereby completing a

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...

and forcing a replay in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

after a 6–6 draw. Munich - Frei Otto Tensed structures - 5302

The replay took place a week later, on 9 May 1984 at the Olympiastadion München in front of 40,000 spectators. Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Dieter Hoeneß put Bayern 2–0 at half-time, but once again Schalke came back after goals from Michael Jacob in the 50th minute and Michael Opitz in the 72nd. Seven minutes later, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge scored what turned out to be the winning goal, giving Bayern a 3–2 win and sending them to the

, where they would meet Gladbach.

Olaf Thon

, who turned 18 the day before the first match, and thus still a teenager in the Schalke ranks, scored three goals in the first match, completing a hat-trick. Bayern coach

Udo Lattek Udo Lattek (16 January 1935 – 31 January 2015) was a German professional football player and coach. Lattek is one of the most successful coaches in the history of the game, having won 15 major titles, most famously with Bayern Munich. He also ...

remarked after the game that he would pay 10 million

Deutsche Mark The Deutsche Mark (; English: ''German mark''), abbreviated "DM" or "D-Mark" (), was the official currency of West Germany from 1948 until 1990 and later the unified Germany from 1990 until the adoption of the euro in 2002. In English, it was ...

for Thon. Barely six months later, Olaf Thon was called up in the

Germany national football team The Germany national football team (german: link=no, Deutsche Fußballnationalmannschaft) represents Germany in men's international football and played its first match in 1908. The team is governed by the German Football Association (''Deuts ...

, where he earned his debut cap against

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

Reporting

The first match was broadcast live on

ZDF ZDF (, short for Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen; ; "Second German Television") is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. It is run as an independent nonprofit institution, which was founded by all fe ...

, commentated by Eberhard Figgemeier, which began at 20:15, after Bayern had already scored twice. The reporter praised the match, even 20 years later, saying: "An unbelievable game. You cannot imagine football more beautiful than this".2. Mai 2004: Vor 20 Jahren wurde gezaubert: 6:6 gegen die Bayern
Website ''100 Schalker Jahre'' vom 2. Mai 2004, accessed on 5. März 2010 The radio broadcast was commentated by Manfred Breuckmann.

Original match details

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Replay details

Replay

References

External links

Genuflection before the game (Gladbach-Bremen)

"I was like a snake" (Schalke-Bayern)

The story of Germany's legendary 1984 DFB-Pokal semifinals
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dfb-Pokal 1983-84 Semi-finals 1984 DFB-Pokal semi-finals Borussia Mönchengladbach matches SV Werder Bremen matches FC Schalke 04 matches FC Bayern Munich matches Sport in Mönchengladbach 20th century in Mönchengladbach Sports competitions in Gelsenkirchen 20th century in Gelsenkirchen Sports competitions in Munich 1980s in Munich May 1984 sports events in Europe