This archive report was first published on 12 May 2020.
As the Bundesliga prepares to resume on Saturday, German football fans are facing a daunting challenge: staying away from empty stadiums.
With the league set to return two months after it was halted by the spread of coronavirus, fans are being warned to avoid gathering outside grounds, lest matches be halted.
German football will be blazing a trail among Europe's top leagues by resuming behind closed doors, but its strategy is fraught with risks.
According to Saxony's Interior Minister Roland Woeller, fans must not use matches as an excuse to gather in front of stadiums or elsewhere, as this could lead to matches being stopped.
His concerns are justified, given the precedent set by a recent match in Moenchengladbach, where several hundred fans gathered when the hosts beat Cologne 2-1 on March 11.
Eintracht Frankfurt have appealed to their supporters before they resume their season against 'Gladbach on Saturday, urging them not to show up at the stadium.
Under German league rules, the home side is responsible for ensuring fans do not try to approach the stadium to support their team from a distance.
Christian Seifert, CEO of the Bundesliga, does not expect fans to play into the hands of critics who fear they will mass outside grounds despite large public events being banned in Germany.
Seifert accused critics of making "sweeping statements" and said all the talks he had held on the issue "do not give any indication" that supporters will gather.
The centrepiece of Saturday's return to action is Borussia Dortmund at home to Schalke in the Ruhr derby, a match which would usually draw a crowd of 82,000 to Signal Iduna Park.
Instead, it will be the first time this fixture is played behind closed doors since it began in 1925.
