"A real adventure"

Young ÖFB fan can laugh again after train madness

Levi, who has his 11th birthday today, can laugh again after the train odyssey. After all, the young Viennese was still in the stadium from the 70th minute onwards. The fan has since returned home.

(Bild: Zur Verfügung gestellt)

Soccer fan Levi, who has his 11th birthday today, has been back home in Vienna since 4.30 pm. Behind him lies a wave bath of emotions. There were tears of happiness on Sunday and tears of anger on Monday. After a train odyssey, he and his dad Andreas arrived in Düsseldorf almost seven hours late. They were not in the stadium until the 70th minute.

On Sunday afternoon, Levi couldn't believe his eyes. At a family party, he received a mini stadium made out of a shoe box for his birthday. Inside was an envelope - and inside was a ticket for the Austria match against France. Tears welled up in the eyes of the ardent fan of the national team: "This is amazing." Tears of rage and another madness followed on Monday.

First Levi and his father were stranded in Passau on the journey to Düsseldorf, and later here in Würzburg.

(Bild: Zur Verfügung gestellt)

At their destination at 10 pm instead of 3.32 pm
After taking off from Vienna Central Station, dad and son were stranded in Passau with hundreds of other passengers. Only after a three-hour wait were they able to take a bus to Regensburg. Later, a train was canceled without replacement in Würzburg. In Cologne, they stood at the station for another long time before the train driver had to take a detour because of people on the tracks. As a result, the duo only reached Düsseldorf Central Station at 10 pm. The original arrival time would have been 3.32 pm.

After their train odyssey, Andreas F. and his son Levi only arrived at the Düsseldorf stadium in the 70th minute.

(Bild: Zur Verfügung gestellt)

Cab driver risked his driver's license
After everything had conspired against them beforehand, everything finally went like clockwork. A cab driver risked his driver's license and took them to the stadium at speeds that were definitely not always legal. Levi and his father ran the last kilometer to the arena. The security staff let them in despite their rucksacks and a steward allowed them to stay in the first tier. Their tickets were actually for the third tier. Andreas F. "Everyone was extremely nice to us and very understanding of our situation."

Dad and son arrived back at the main station on Tuesday afternoon. They brought a scarf with them as a souvenir. They will never forget this trip for the rest of their lives.

(Bild: Zur Verfügung gestellt)

Only 45 minutes late on the return journey
Tuesday morning, after a short night in the hotel, they were back on the train and had even returned to Vienna. This time the delay was only 45 minutes. Levi can laugh again: "It was a real adventure. And it was a dream come true to experience an Austria match live in the stadium at a EURO." Even if it was only the last 20 minutes and stoppage time.