As longstanding supporters of CAFE and the Week of Action and home to CAFE's very own Ambassador Omar Mascarell, Schalke 04 ensured that they marked this year's celebration appropriately. 

The German Bundesliga club captured a #TotalAccess themed rendition of the Schalke 04 anthem featuring fans of the Deaf Fanclubs, who performed the song using sign language from the pitch of the Veltins-Arena. See video below:

This comes as the most recent example of the Club's efforts to raise awareness around access and inclusion and particularly with regards to their deaf and hard of hearing fanbase. The Club has provided audio-descriptive commentary (ADC) for a number of years and recently made this available via the Schalke 04 app whilst Covid-19 regulations prohibit fans from attending live games. 

For Schalke's home fixture to Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday 20 March, the Club dedicated a section of their matchday programme to the CAFE Week of Action. This featured an interview with a member of the deaf fanclub and a comment from Schalke midfielder and CAFE Ambassador, Omar Mascarell.

The programme also included a longer interview with CAFE Project Manager and lifelong Schalke 04 fan, Jochen Kemmer. 

We would like to extend a huge thank you to Schalke 04 for their support during the CAFE Week of Action 2021, and their continued efforts to improve the experiences of all disabled fans.

The CAFE Week of Action 2021 summary report will be published in due course, with information for the 2022 campaign to be published later in the year.

For more information regarding the CAFE Week of Action or any of the accessibility services mentioned above, please contact the CAFE team at [email protected].