Kutte

The “Kutte” on display at Hubert's belongs to Gerd Kolbe (*1945). He had been press spokesperson for Borussia Dortmund from 1976 to 1981 and co-initiator of the Dortmund-fan meetings before international matches of Borussia Dortmund. He thereby layed the foundation for the fan parties during the world cup in 2006 when he was press spokesperson for the city of Dortmund and world-cup delegate. Now Kolbe has retired but continues to be a valued interlocutor in discussion panels on the subject of football history and also wrote books about that topic.

Kolbe gladly remembers becoming a “Kutte” fan, “the huge public viewing during the world cup of 2006 happening on the Friedensplatz took place, supplemented by one at the Südwall for the semifinals of Germany vs. Italy and additionally at the Hansaplatz for the final match. The world cup was a massive team effort by all citizens of Dortmund and many institutions of the city. In the process, the showpeople of Dortmund played a central role in providing the entire culinary care of the fan miles. One of them, Gabi Esken, who unfortunately is no longer with us, fondly called me the “personified summer’s fairy tale”. After the final I commemorated my farewell from my post for the city at which I had worked for 47 years. Gabi and her husband Rudolf gave me this handcrafted “Kutte” as a personal token of friendship and gratitude for the good teamwork. It has been taking up a special place at my home for 18 years now and it will keep doing so in the future.

By the way: “Kutte” refers to a “vest worn by football fans, mostly adorned with patches of their team or with condescending messages toward adverse teams. Often it is made from blue denim, sometimes made of genuine denim vests or denim jackets with their arms cut off. It also serves as a reminder of the “good, old days” of football. Wearers are usually older than members of the “ultra”-movement and had attended the matches at the stadium for a longer time.

Text: Daniela Berglehn
Translation: Matthias Fabry