Handball with heart and talent

Julian Köster no longer has very precise memories of his first appearance with VfL Gummersbach. That was 12 or 13 years ago. At that time he threw goals for the E-Youth of TuS SW Brauweiler. His team had just become district champions and, as a reward, the nine and ten-year-olds were allowed to run into what was then their home ground, the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, before a Bundesliga game, accompanied by the VfL pros. Whose hand held his? "I really don't remember anymore," says Köster and laughs. The story was too exciting for him.

Today Köster is a professional himself at VfL Gummersbach. And he has good reason to be excited again. Because on September 1st he starts his first Bundesliga season against TBV Lemgo Lippe. "I'm really looking forward to the start of the Bundesliga. A lot of new things are coming my way. New halls and, of course, strong teams that I've never played against," says the 22-year-old. Köster is one of the formative players of the new VfL. Many hopes are associated with him at the traditional club. After three years in the second division, the twelve-time German champion is now back in the top German division.

Köster wants to develop further in league 1 and wants to do his part to ensure that his club stays in class. Ahead of the season, the young star extended his contract with the Oberbergische until 2025, although there were certainly other options. After all, Köster not only threw himself into the limelight at the European Championships, but also put himself on the wish lists of some big clubs. Experts see a very complete player growing up in Köster. The two-meter-tall Schlaks nails the balls in rows from the back into the net, also has a very good eye for the team-mates and is strong in defence. Germany's national coach Alfred Gislason recently described Köster as "one of our greatest talents".

“Of course we are happy that we were able to retain Julian for the long term. He has developed extremely well with us over the past two years,” says VfL Managing Director Christoph Schindler. The signature of the talent is a sign for other players, but also to the outside: At VfL Gummersbach something is happening again.

Köster is said to help shape a “new path” for the club, which was one of the best German and European handball clubs, especially in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Great successes were achieved with players like Heiner Brand or Andreas Thiel. In addition to the twelve German championships, there have been five cup victories in the club's history, five titles in the European Cup of Champions and other successes in other European competitions to celebrate.

“We are aware of this tradition and also proud of it. But tradition doesn't score goals and doesn't pay bills," says Schindler. And so a new course was set a few years ago. Debts were reduced, the team was supposed to be younger, they wanted to focus more on youngsters. So far the concept seems to be working. The rise also sparked new euphoria in the environment. More than 1,500 season tickets were sold for home games: a record.

The expectations of the fans are by no means exaggerated. You have a good sense of what is possible. "I'll be happy if we don't have anything to do with relegation in the next two years," says Claudia Thamm. She is the chairwoman of the 200-strong fan club "Blue White Dynamite". The club also supported the team in the Second Bundesliga. "Now we're really happy that we're back in the premier league," said Thamm.

The team is happy to take the enthusiasm with them. The team can use any support to achieve the goal of staying up. Whether it will be enough in the end is difficult to assess. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that a lot has changed in terms of personnel. Eight players were given up after promotion, seven new ones have to be integrated. In order to bring the team together, coach Gudjon Valur Sigurdsson organized a training camp right at the start of the preparations. "We'll definitely need a few more matches before everything settles in, but we're on the right track," said Schindler.

A large part of the young team – eleven players were born in 1999 or younger – is also facing the first Bundesliga season, like Captain Köster. However, Köster does not see this as a problem. "We go into every match with the will to win the game," he assures. It doesn't matter who's on the other side of the plate.

And VfL Managing Director Schindler observed that the team “is the most diligent in training that I have ever seen. We have great talent in the team. And one thing is certain: they will leave their hearts on the field."

Before the start of the Bundesliga on September 1st at TBV Lemgo Lippe, Gummersbach will play the first competitive game of the season against HSG Konstanz in the cup on August 27th.