The 2022 Ice Hockey World Championship took place in Finland from 13 to 29 May. PENNY was there as a supporter of German ice hockey. Six employees even got the chance to cheer on the national team on site.
The employees had previously taken part in an internal PENNY competition and won: They were allowed to support the German national ice hockey team on site in Finland. The winners, known as the Supporting 6, lived together in a shared flat in Helsinki and Tampere. They attended games together and took part in fan activities. In addition, the Supporting 6 even got to know the country a little. They were accompanied by former national ice hockey players Christoph Ullmann and Christoph Schubert, who provided them with advice and support. How is the team organised tactically? How does the team prepare for the next game? What needs to be considered in the knockout phase? The former DEL professionals provided answers to these questions with a great deal of expertise.
In total, the World Cup was divided into four periods for PENNY employees. Two employees travelled to each of these periods. What were their personal highlights on site? one spoke to two of the Supporting 6: Ralf Zabel, store manager at the PENNY store in Vaihingen/Enz (Group 1), who was in Helsinki from 12 to 17 May, and Stefan Haag, store manager at the PENNY store in Ilingen (Group 4), who was in Tampere and Helsinki from 25 to 30 May.
one: Which games did you watch?
Ralf Zabel: I watched the games Germany - Canada (3:5), Slovakia - Germany (1:2) and France - Germany (2:3), whereby the game against Slovakia was very special. The game was incredibly exciting and the atmosphere was fantastic.
one: What were your personal highlights?
Ralf Zabel: The whole trip, including the supporting programme, was very professionally organised and a lot of fun. Living in a shared flat with other ice hockey fans was a special experience - not least because we all got on so well. The digital meet & greet with national team coach Toni Söderholm was very impressive, as we learnt a lot about the team's tactical set-up. As a Finn, he was able to provide us with some first-class insider tips. The canal tour and the city tour in Helsinki were among the absolute highlights of the trip.
one: Which games did you watch?
Stefan Haag: I watched the match between Germany and the Czech Republic in Helsinki, where the German national team unfortunately lost 4:1 and had to bow out of the tournament. That was a shame, of course, but it was still an incredibly exciting and high-calibre game. I also had day tickets for both matches in the semi-finals and watched the third-place match and the final in Tampere.
one: What were your personal highlights?
Stefan Haag: My highlight was the visit to the so-called fan zone, a zone in a shopping centre with various offers especially for ice hockey fans, followed by the canal tour and the city tour in Helsinki. The digital meet & greet with sports director Christian Künast and the expert guidance from former national team player Christoph Ullmann were also exciting. The fan flat share was a brilliant idea - we had a lot of fun together.
