The semi-final between Germany and France (8:7 n. E.) on July 8, 1982 in Seville is one of the most memorable matches in the history of the World Cup. The nerve-wracking events on the pitch threatened to put an end to the Franco-German friendship. The horrific collision between Toni Schumacher and Patrick Battiston, the tense extra time and the first penalty shoot-out at a World Cup are still on people's minds more than four decades after the spectacular clash between the two great soccer nations in the semi-finals of the XII World Cup in Spain. World Cup in Spain.

Manuel Neukirchner's documentary play removes the historical distance from the events of the time and gives the audience and spectators the impression that they themselves were standing on the pitch at the Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán in Seville on that sultry evening in the summer of 1982. They immerse themselves in the thoughts of the tragic and radiant heroes, they meet the losers and winners, they are shown the triumph and the tragedy right in front of their eyes. But nothing is invented: The dialog and monologues of the contemporary historical figures appearing in the play are taken from autobiographies, interviews, documentaries, newspaper reports, television broadcasts as well as from the author's conversations with the protagonists of the time.

Manuel Neukirchner has created a literary monument to the magical night in Seville. "This play is entertaining, highly exciting and at least as good as the more than two hours in the stadium in Seville," says Paul Breitner, the playmaker and head of the German national team at the 1982 World Cup in Spain.

Cooperation with the German Football Museum Supported by the BROST Foundation