Special Exhibition

You will find the interventions at the end of the permanent exhibition "Forced Labour in the Daily Round 1938-1945" in Barrack 2.

All of Europe kicked in Berlin

Football and forced labour under the Nazis

31 May - 3 November 2024

What is astonishing today: Forced labourers deported to Germany played football - albeit under strict regulations. Men from Poland and the Soviet Union were banned from playing the game for racist reasons, but some played anyway. After all, football was a welcome distraction to forget the hardships of everyday life in a foreign country and to assert themselves. Women were only allowed to attend the tournaments as spectators.

On the occasion of the UEFA EURO 2024 for men, the exhibition is dedicated to the forced labourers who played football. It is based on the testimony of a Dutchman with photos of his compatriots playing in tournaments against other teams. The biographies of a Dutch, a Polish and a German-Jewish forced labourer are also presented.

Accompanying programme to the exhibition

Events:

30 May | 7 pm: Opening
11 July | 6 pm: Racism and football. Anti-racist fan work

Courator's Tours (German)

Sunday, 9 June | 1 p.m.
Sunday, 1 September | 1 pm

Guided Tours

No registration required, free admission.

Guided tours for school classes and interested parties:

On request: bildung_ns-zwangsarbeit(at)topographie.de | 030 / 63 90 288-27

Leaflet

Comments on the exhibition

Football and forced labour. Self-assertion on the pitch

There are still topics that take a back seat in remembrance work: For example, the Nazis used over 26 million men, women and children as forced labourers. What is little known is that some of these labourers were also allowed to play football.

By Ronny Blaschke | 05.05.2024

Deutschlandfunk