Yorkshire Schalker

Hello and welcome to our website for Schalke fans in English. We are a bunch of Schalke fans who live in Yorkshire and follow the fortunes of our favourite Bundesliga club from afar.
So, how is it that a group of British guys are so fanatical about a footy club from another country? Well, it all started back in November 1997. One of us was spending a year in the Ruhrgebiet as part of his studies when the necessity to watch live football in his new area got a hold of him. A glance at the fixture list for that particular weekend revealed FC Schalke 04 at home to Karlsruher SC. Gelsenkirchen (where Schalke are based, kind of like Everton is in Liverpool) was only a short train journey away so Chris dragged his mate along with him to sample Bundesliga for the first time.

From the moment that he stepped off the train at the station in Gelsenkirchen, he was amazed by the Schalke fans, their sea of blue and white colour, their noise, their passion.

The game itself was nothing special, a 2-0 win but the experience created by the Nordkurve and its residents were to make a lasting impression.

A year later, Chris returned to Schalke with Jim who was similarly impressed. Andy followed soon after and the interest and influence of Schalke and the phenomenon continues to grow.

Joe disgarded his Hanover roots for a day and Ray experienced Schalke fans at their best away in Munich and winning the derby against bxb. Matt climbed on board and was soon followed in 2009 by Richard, Jonny and Fishy. Chris was asked to do a newspaper interview with the WAZ and was then the subject of a TV video report from derwesten.de. The Yorkshire Schalker are now an officially affiliated member of the Schalker Fanclub Verband (SFCV) and no doubt our friendship with the Lofoten from Marl will grow too. Everyone now has their own full array of S04 merchandise and we make regular trips; time, holidays and finance permitting back to Gelsenkirchen to see Schalke live.

So, next time you’re in the Nordkurve and see a bunch of lads kitted out in blue and white and speaking English, you know who we are.