Before the Champions League game between FC Bayern and Benfica Lisbon, there was major chaos on the subway route on Wednesday evening. Massive delays were the result on the U6 from the city center to Fröttmaning. That’s why the game had to start 15 minutes later.
There were several reasons for the problems. One was an operation by the fire brigade: the fire alarm system in the subway station at Marienplatz had triggered an alarm because, according to the fire brigade, football fans had set fire to the Bengalos platform. The fire department responded with 45 firefighters at 6:45 p.m., but when they arrived they could only detect slight smoke. Nothing had to be deleted anymore.
The smoke alarm was also triggered at Odeonsplatz. A spokesman for the Munich Transport Company (MVG) said a Bengalo had been set on fire in the subway. According to MVG, the two train stations Marienplatz and Odeonsplatz could not be reached for half an hour due to the fire service. Trains passed through without stopping, which also helped clear the smoke.
In addition to the pyrotechnic incidents, there was also a signal box malfunction in the pine garden, which led to additional problems. The subways were unable to run between the student town and Garching for two hours. The problem was only resolved at 8:30 p.m. The football fans who wanted to get off in Fröttmaning had to get there by another route.
In the arena, the stadium announcer informed the spectators about the delay around ten minutes before the actual start of the game at 9 p.m. The reaction: whistles, but also applause. After all, “thousands of fans” were still on their way to the arena at this point, as stadium spokesman Stephan Lehmann reported.
