You’ve got to be kidding! Cologne’s pitchside goat mascot is BANNED for the Bundesliga’s return in new hygiene rules… meaning ‘Hennes’ will miss a match for the first time in 12 years
- Strict hygiene rules have been put in place ahead of the Bundesliga’s return
- The health guidelines include a banning of mascots in stadiums across Germany
- Cologne’s famous goat mascot, Hennes, will not be in attendance against Mainz
- It is the first time Cologne will be without their mascot since back in 2008
Strict hygiene rules put in place ahead of the Bundesliga‘s return spells bad news for Cologne and their goat mascot Hennes.
The German Football League (DFL) have set strict health guidelines ahead of football’s return, and it includes the banning of mascots in stadiums across the country.
This means that Cologne’s famous goat, Hennes IX, will not be in attendance when they take on Mainz on Sunday afternoon at the RheinEnergieStadion.
Cologne will be without their famous goat mascot, Hennes, when they play Mainz on Sunday
Their clash with Mainz will be the first match without their mascot since back in 2008
The Bundesliga encounter, which will be played behind closed doors, will be Cologne’s first match without their mascot since all the way back in 2008.
Hennes will be joined on the Bundesliga sidelines by Eintracht Frankfurt’s famous mascot, Attila the eagle.
Attila normally flies around Frankfurt’s 51,000-seater Commerzbank Stadium before home games and helps to whip the crowd into a frenzy.
But the 16-year-old hasn’t been able to fulfil his pre-match duties since the 3-0 defeat to FC Basel in the Europa League on March 12, and the wait will now continue.
The DFL and the German Football Federation (DFB) have issued a revised set of health and safety guidelines ahead of Bundesliga’s return this weekend as they look to allow matches to go ahead as safely as possible.
Eintracht Frankfurt’s eagle mascot, Attila, will also be on the sidelines when football returns
The guidelines are based around three principles: consistent hygiene, a sense of responsibility and minimal overlap in time and physical proximity.
The DFL considers that ‘personal hygiene measures are the most important actions for protecting against infection.’
Bundesliga returns to our television screens for the first time since the beginning of March due to the coronavirus pandemic, and due to the lockdown, games will go ahead without supporters.
Cologne – nicknamed The Billy Goats – have had their famous mascot since 1950, when they were handed a circus goat and named it after coach Hennes Weisweiler.
Hennes IX became Cologne’s mascot as of August 1 2019, after Hennes VIII was retired by the club due to old age.
Cologne will take on Mainz on Sunday afternoon in Bundesliga without any fans in attendance