This picture was taken in 1988 It is a staged production. And yet it tells a true story. The squatters in Hamburg’s Hafenstraße, their friends and sympathisers played a decisive role in the emergence of a completely new fan culture at FC St. Pauli. Political. Critical. Committed. Ready and willing to influence the club – and to change it.
When photographer Gebhard Krewitt took the photo for a Hamburg magazine, FC St. Pauli had just been promoted to the 1st Bundesliga. And also caused a media furore. Just like the disputes over Hafenstrasse, which had reached a climax in 1987. They brought an aura of coolness and rebellion to the neighbourhood – and a new audience to FC St. Pauli.