''Fußball ist unser Leben'' (German for "football is our life") is a German football (soccer) drama/comedy
movie, centering on supporters of
FC 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 Rhi ...
. It was directed by , with
Uwe Ochsenknecht and
Ralf Richter in the main roles.
Plot
Hans Pollak (Ochsenknecht) is a hard core fan of Schalke 04. Together with his best friend Mike (Richter), he is member of the fanclub "Dios Knappen Gelsenkirchen", named after their idol, the (fictional) Schalke star player Pablo Di Ospeo (). Pollak is so single-minded that he neglects the birth of his second child to watch his favorite club, and takes his family and girlfriend () for granted.
One day, Pollak decides to bet his house that Di Ospeo will score in the next game. He is shocked to see that his idol is addicted to
cocaine, abducts him and chains him into his room to make him quit
cold turkey. Then, Pollak's neglected girlfriend has an affair and Pollak's mother dies of a
coronary; Di Ospeo has tried to rescue her but could not reach her because he was shackled. Desperate Pollak decides to hang himself so that his family — he assumes that his house is lost — will at least get his life insurance. But his friends save him from the gallows with a Schalke flag, and a rehabilitated Di Ospeo scores the winning goal in the next game. Having won the bet after all, Pollak keeps his house and makes up with his girlfriend.
Guest roles
Many persons related to Schalke 04 have guest roles. Manager
Rudi Assauer
Rudolf "Rudi" Assauer (30 April 1944 – 6 February 2019) was a German football player and executive. After his professional career for Borussia Dortmund and Werder Bremen, Assauer served as the general manager of FC Schalke 04 for many years ...
, coach
Huub Stevens
Hubertus Jozef Margaretha "Huub" Stevens (; born 29 November 1953) is a Dutch former professional football manager and player.
Playing career
Stevens was born in Sittard. While active, he played for Fortuna Sittard and PSV. During his time at P ...
, player
Yves Eigenrauch
Yves Eigenrauch (born 24 April 1971) is a German former professional footballer who played mainly as a right back.
Football career
Eigenrauch was born in Minden, North Rhine-Westphalia. After beginning his career with Arminia Bielefeld, he went ...
, masseur and ex-coach
Helmut Schulte
Helmut Schulte (born 14 September 1957) is a German football coach and manager.
Coaching career
His best result as a coach in Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a pro ...
have cameos, just like prominent fans like reporter , radio commentator and disc jockey
Dirk Oberschulte-Beckmann.
Awards
*
Bavarian Film Awards: Uwe Ochsenknecht (best actor) and Marita Marschall (best supporting actress)
Fussball ist Unser Leben (2000)
/ref>
* German Film Awards: Uwe Ochsenknecht (best actor)
Footnotes
External links
*
Official site
2000 films
1990s German-language films
German association football films
Films about kidnapping
Football mass media in Germany
1990s German films
2000s German films
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