What Would Sharks Bring from European Soccer Crowds to SAP Center?

Welcome guest writer Max Miller! 

European soccer fans are one of a kind. From their unique chants, tifos, flares, and flags, Bundesliga fans create an atmosphere that is hard to replicate in sports.

The San Jose Sharks witnessed that spectacle firsthand while attending a Hertha-Hoffenheim game at the Olympiastadion in Berlin Sunday morning. Olympiastadion’s attendance reached 41,653 and left many players in awe of the atmosphere.

Bundesliga match ✅ 🏟️

Thank you so much for the hospitality, @HerthaBSC! ⚽️💙🤍 pic.twitter.com/22YLOVWOiF

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) October 3, 2022

“I love the way European fans chant,” Sharks captain Logan Couture said. “It’s so different. I love our fans, but it’s unique here.”

Defenseman Jaycob Megna drew comparisons to a past experience he had while attending the Hertha Berlin game.

“I remember when I was in college and they would have those student sections that were just crazy,” Megna said. “It would be pretty cool to see if they had that in the NHL.”

As a European native, Timo Meier said that being at these types of events gives him goosebumps. Meier is no stranger to European soccer but to now experience it after playing in the NHL was a very different feeling for him.

“The fan culture they have here in soccer, with the whole fan section singing the entire game,” the San Jose Sharks star said. “Obviously you play sports yourself, but to just go as a fan and be in the stands and you kind of get to see those emotions from a different viewpoint.”

Although forward Noah Gregor isn’t the biggest “soccer” guy, he has attended San Jose Earthquakes games before but felt that this experience was just a bit different.

“Just like the home team’s fan section behind one net,” Gregor said. “They are just jumping and chanting the whole time and that’s pretty cool.”

Couture mentioned that he felt that the crowd felt a lot like the SAP Center fans when the team comes out of the Sharks head onto the ice. Megna also said that it was really cool to see the passion of everybody involved, including some stadium workers.

The collective cheering and all fans being bound together supporting the same thing brings emotion to any sport around the world. Could we hear some more European soccer-type chanting for San Jose Sharks games this season?

“Sharks! Sharks! Make your mark!”

“Meier, Meier! On fire!”