Ronja Taubmann is 24 years old and a soccer player. At the age of seven, she had soccer fever and hasn't let go since then. When she had to move due to her studies and no women's soccer was offered in her new home in Wasserburg, she quickly trained with the men.
And how. Because in her last game for now, the Munich-born woman scored the first goal in Germany by a woman in a men's team.
We met them and talked about their careers, women's soccer in general and why goals scored by women should also be normal in men's teams.
At the age of seven, ballets are actually the number one sport for Ronja. But when her brother opts for soccer, the only thing left for her is round leather. And she stayed there too. First with the boys and then with girls' and women's teams in Karlsfeld.
“For me, soccer is something that has always been there in my life and has helped me a lot.” For Ronja Taubmann, who is based in the central midfield position, soccer has always been an important part of her life. A constant, as with so many other passionate soccer players.
Football has also given her unique friendships and, in her specific case, also had the strength to be able to quickly integrate into a new environment.
Finding a new home quickly was also necessary for the 24-year-old. Because when she moved to Wasserburg am Inn to study physiotherapy, she had to leave her familiar surroundings in northern Munich behind and was left to her own devices from then on. Innschleife instead of banks of the Isar.
As she jogged past the soccer field one evening, she quickly decided to lace up shoes for TSV 1880 Wasserburg in the future.
The catch: There is currently no team for women in Wasserburg. Ronja then called the department manager of the “Wasserburger Löwen” to ask him if she could just play with the boys: “Kevin (Kevin Klammer, head of TSV department) told me that it was no problem at all. It would only be important that the boys agree and that the quality of the team does not deteriorate.” That's how their adventure in men's soccer began.
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What was it like to be on the field with your new teammates for the first time? Nervousness and pressure without end. But not because the new players were demanding so much, but because Ronja thought she would now suddenly have to defend the entire reputation of all women: “I wanted to do extra well and thought with every bad pass that they now have the wrong image of women's soccer. ”
But — and this is where the power of soccer comes into play once again — this pressure was quickly relieved of her. The teammates simply saw her as a player. Not as a woman playing along. A soccer player, not a women's soccer player. “From the very first training session, it didn't matter that I was a girl; if I made a mistake, I was snapped at — and rightly so. ”
When they did a lot together as a team even off the pitch and the typical soccer team spirit took hold, the pressure was finally gone. Ronja was able to play liberated from now on. And finally show their full potential.
So it was somewhat normal that the coach trusted her - and ordered her straight into the storm in the 80th minute of the game.
It happened as it had to happen: A few turns of the hands after her replacement, she was still without her own contact with the ball, the outside track player pulled along the line, split the opponent and fit Ronja in the middle. The goal, she says, was an absolute team effort. “Osman, my teammate, could have finished right away, but he played with me. That actually best reflects the spirit of this team. ”
In this, hers, moment, she didn't think of anything, just felt. The feeling: endless happiness.
But that's also part of the story: it was just a goal. And it should be completely normal for women who play in men's teams to score goals.
When the BFV, as a national association, decided that men's teams would also be accessible to women in the future, it was astonished — after all, this was rather spontaneous. That this is made possible is a great thing. Players like Ronja in particular, who was unable to find a suitable team near her after moving house, benefit from this. They can continue to pursue their great passion.
Paradoxically, however, what somewhat diminishes Ronja and Co.'s performance is the media coverage. From icons to role models — the subject matter was pretty highly stylized in the gazettes. Wouldn't it be better to report it as though it were completely normal? A goal like any other.
By the way, the premiere goalscorer herself has a similar view: “It wasn't anything special. It was a goal like any other. I would like women to be able to score a normal goal as well. ”
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