It’s a friendly match but the poster is enticing. Racing Club de Strasbourg faces Liverpool on Sunday July 31 at the mythical Anfield in their last warm-up match (start of the match at 8:30 p.m.). Even if the meeting is without stake, more than fifty Racing supporters are expected to make the trip.
When I saw Liverpool-Racing, I first thought it was a joke
When he saw the poster against Liverpool, even in a friendly match, Corentin Engel, a supporter for almost 15 years, did not really hesitate. “It’s still quite incredible to see Racing play against Liverpool. I really want to see the players to evolve in this stadium”.
Especially since Racing, despite a good season last year, will not compete in the European Cup this year. “When I saw Liverpool-Strasbourg, I first thought it was a joke”, laughs Christophe Seng, the president of the “Paris section”, which brings together the supporters of Racing based in the capital. Bought him twelve tickets at the Meinau counter for members of the association. “I devoted myself to making the round trip from Paris during the day because I had to collect the physical tickets.”
A galley move
With his eleven companions, he is lucky enough to be able to fly to Beauvais. “The one-way ticket was really cheap. So we decided to take the opportunity to have an English football weekend, going to see a match at Old Trafford (Manchester United stadium) then another match of English D4. And then we will see Racing at the end. Cherry on the cake, as the English say”says Christophe Seng.
Travel is much less simple for supporters leaving from Strasbourg, most of which will take off from Frankfurt for an arrival in Manchester before taking a train back to Liverpool. Not to mention the cancellations of Lufthansa flights. “My outward ticket and my return ticket were canceled, I spent an hour and a half with them to be sure to be able to leave and return”blows Corentin Engel.
Even though he booked just days after the game was announced, the tickets were also very expensive. “We are in the middle of school holidays so the prices have gone up. All in, it’s a weekend at 500-600 euros. But I had missed the matches against Frankfurt in particular. This was an opportunity to discover what big stadium and let yourself be carried away by the atmosphere of the city.”