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Kicking Off with Culture

January 23, 2006

The waiting is almost over. Germany's World Cup begins on June 9 with a month of adrenaline-filled action to follow. Until then, why not fill the time with some soccer-related culture. There's plenty on offer.

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Image: dpa - Bildfunk

The waiting is almost over. Germany's World Cup begins on June 9 with a month of adrenaline-filled action to follow.

But there is still time to go. As the clock ticks down, many a thumb will be twiddled and many a glance will be directed at the calendar. If you're getting jittery waiting for the off, why not fill the time with some soccer-related culture? There's plenty on offer.

Much effort has been put into providing a full program of cultural events for those who need to keep the level of World Cup interest at an optimum.

Here DW-WORLD presents a collection of articles detailing events so far and the continuing efforts to provide a cultural schedule befitting the world's premier soccer event.

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Reports & Analysis

World Cup Gala Gets the Ax

The star-studded gala which was to open the 2006 World Cup in Berlin has been cancelled due to concerns over damage to the Olympic Stadium's pitch. Some believe the real reason is a lack of interest and rising costs.
January 13, 2006

Hip-Hop Stars Face Off in Leipzig

Leipzig has a strong musical tradition, though hip hop isn't the genre that first comes to mind. But over the weekend, it wasn't cellists and violinists at center stage, rather DJs, breakdancers and beat boxers.
September 12, 2005

Off the Pitch, Into the Concert Hall

The world's first ever football oratorio, "The Depths of Space," is a 90-minute performance of two halves that sets out to capture the highs and lows, the agony and the ecstasy of ... soccer.
September 13, 2005

Germany Plans Star-Studded Opening Gala For World Cup

World Cup host nation Germany has revealed its plans for the cultural extravanganza that will kick-off the soccer spectacular next summer.
December 1, 2005

Gods and Hooligans Clash in Soccer Opera

Ancient goddesses selling beer, soccer-mad trojans and greeks fighting in the stands and the struggle between good and evil are all part of an opera aimed at highlighting the problem of racism and violence in stadiums.
September 9, 2004

Waiting for the World Cup Tourists

Germany are set to reap the rewards of hosting the 2006 World Cup to the tune of an estimated €3 billion ($3.7 billion), according to Interior Minister Otto Schily, speaking at a tourism conference in Berlin on Tuesday.
September 21, 2004

From the Pen to the Pitch: World Literature Meets Soccer

The author crafting pitch-perfect prose and the soccer player setting up a picture-perfect goal might seem like diametric opposites. But they have more in common than you'd think, as a recent symposium in Berlin showed.
January 23, 2006

Germany Pulls Out All The Stops For Cultural World Cup

The 2006 World Cup will not only be a soccer spectacle but the run-up to the main event itself will be a cultural extravaganza which, the German organizers say, will give the prestigious event that extra dash of pizzazz.
December 20, 2005