Through the lens of state power

The soccer stadiums of the GDR were not only venues for sporting excitement, but also places of covert political observation and subtle protest against the SED dictatorship. In the 1980s, the song "40 meters squared, minefield and barbed wire. Now you know where I live, I live in the zone", a symbol of resistance. The GDR security forces, including the Stasi, used covert methods to target soccer fans. They were transformed from spectators into observers: State security agents, disguised as harmless sports reporters, operated with cameras hidden in their buttonholes, photographically recording "suspicious" soccer enthusiasts. For many, this was the beginning of the road to political trouble and criminal prosecution. The lives of so-called "sports traitors", players who had fled to the West, were also pedantically monitored and documented. The open-air exhibition on the Rhine promenade, which can be seen from September 13 to October 19, 2025, offers visitors a view through the lenses of state power and reconstructs a world between fan culture and the surveillance apparatus. The bilingual exhibition is linked to an informative website via QR codes, which offers further content such as texts and audiovisual materials.