Teams from German companies played football together

The event was organised in the spirit of community building, healthy living and the importance of German language skills.

A small football tournament called Deutsche Liga 2023 was held on the 6th of May 2023 on the Böszörményi út campus of the University of Debrecen, organised by the Debrecen German Cultural Forum with the support of the municipality. 

The tournament was first held in 2017, and traditionally teams from German companies played ten-minute round-robin matches against each other. 

This sporting event is a good example of how the municipality, the Debrecen German Cultural Forum and companies with some connection to the German language are joining forces to encourage the people of Debrecen to learn the language. 

In recent years, the team of the Municipality of Debrecen has also participated in the German League. In addition to a strong economic presence, there is also an increasingly vibrant cultural scene with German-affiliated companies. 

“The Municipality of Debrecen, the Swiss, Austrian and German Embassies support the year-long programme. The Debrecen School District, the Debrecen Vocational Training Centre and German-connected businesses were actively involved in the implementation of the project,” Marcell Grunda, the host of the Deutsche Liga and the Cultural Forum’s economic officer, said in his opening speech.

“We want to reinforce the awareness among students and employees that, in addition to the priority of English, German also offers real career opportunities and a wide range of possibilities in the labour market. He pointed out that ” German is a necessary PLUS!” in Debrecen. 

In his welcome speech, the Deputy Mayor of Debrecen Lajos Barcsa mentioned three reasons for the Deutsche Liga: sport builds community, health is important for everyone, and this sporting event can also highlight the fact that “in Debrecen, German language skills have become increasingly important in recent years”.

There are about 6,000 employees in German-owned or German-owned companies, and there are companies mainly in the service industry that need German-speaking employees.

Source: debrecen.hu | dehir.hu