By james art 
TThe streets around the Millerntor-Stadion, deep in the heart of Hamburg’s St Pauli district, are covered in stickers. There are also posters and other decorations, but what catches the eye is the sheer volume of brown, white, red and black decals that dot the alley from the Reeperbahn. They celebrate FC St Pauli, as well as the numerous fan and ultragroups that swear allegiance to the Bundesliga club and the values that have helped it gain a level of global reputation that far exceeds its achievements on the pitch. Rainbow flags and anti-fascist messages also stand out on the path to the ground, as do warnings that Nazis have no place here.
On a roller shutter door next to a cafeteria is a sticker depicting captain Jackson Irvine with four teammates, their heads painted on a mountainside to create a version of Mount Rushmore. The caption is a rallying cry “geht nicht zu bruch!” which roughly translates to “this won’t break!”. It’s one of several decorations that can be found bearing the image of the Socceroo in the vicinity, but given that he’s a regular at this cafe – some of the staff even wear his wife’s Ur So Cool brand – seems a fitting place for a tribute to be found.
In charge of St. Pauli in their first season in the German top flight for 14 years, Irvine assisted both of his side’s goals in a 2-0 win over Hoffenheim last weekend to lift them out of the relegation zone. Nine weeks into the 2024-25 season, a dearth of goals means wins have proved difficult for Die Kiezkicker to come, but as Irvine points out, defensively they’ve been solid. Their 11 goals conceded are tied for fourth best and belie their status as a newly promoted outfit.
Much has been made of Irvine and St. Pauli being a match made in soccer heaven. And given their values, that’s an accurate assessment. Once a month he hosts a radio show on local station Byte FM, broadcasting from a massive converted WWII-era anti-aircraft tower that towers over Millerntor. Broadcasting in English, he spends the month between shows preparing a playlist – something he, smiling over his coffee, would probably do anyway – for the next time he’s on air, with songs from Down Under serving as the staple.
But like his club, Irvine’s off-field reputation, particularly in his native Australia, has almost begun to overshadow his on-field achievements. The Melburnian plays regularly in one of the best leagues in the world while leading a team at a level where any mistake or inconsistency is punished mercilessly. “To get something in this league, you have to be perfect on the day,” says Irvine. “And sometimes it’s not even always enough. We’re doing all the right things in terms of working for it, but it takes your absolute best to get anything.”
The 31-year-old believes the level of competition he has faced over the last few years, first during St Pauli’s promotion and then this season, has taken his game to a level he has not reached before. Since returning from Socceroos duty in the October international window, he has faced powerhouse Borussia Dortmund away on Friday night as well as RB Leipzig in the DFB Pokal.
“This Bundesliga experience is what I’ve always craved,” says Irvine. “That chance to test yourself week after week against the best players at the highest level. And not only am I finding that I’m capable of being competitive, but I’m getting better. As a footballer, that’s what you always want: just to keep developing, to keep improving. I feel like I’m still learning more every week. I feel like I’m not standing still, I’m not here and I’m not getting there, but I’m still improving.”
But a new test awaits. Probably the biggest test of Irvine’s 12-year club career. For the first time since 2011, when they left with an 8-1 win, Bayern Munich come to the Millerntor and look to extend their lead at the top of the Bundesliga. Meetings between the clubs were relatively rare given St Pauli’s extended spells in that second flight, with the side in brown only emerging triumphant twice in 50 years. The latter victory was notable enough that the club shop sells a shirt commemorating the side that took to the pitch in a 2-1 win in 2002.
Games against Bayern give St. Pauli a chance for something more; to demonstrate their values on the pitch. This is a club that has made its resistance from being anti-system Weltanschauung. This is not a team with proud traditions on the pitch and they were expected to fight for relegation this season, especially after losing coach Fabian Hürzeler, but the fight is what they came for.
after the promotion of the newsletter
Millerntor is expected to be packed when Bayern visit on Saturday. At 46,500, the club has 15,000 more members than the Millerntor can hold, and tickets for matches on the secondary market are selling out quickly – and the club’s ultras don’t look too kindly on scalpers.
Inside the Millerntor, the stickers and graffiti are ramped up, with the ultras section of the ground placed directly to the right of where the two sides exit before kickoff. This is after they exited the changing rooms and walked through a tunnel lit in dim red, with graffiti scrawled on the wall and the club’s rebellious skull and crossbones symbol projected onto the exit door. It feels as much an extension of the club and its supporters as a place, a manifestation of who and what they are in concrete and steel.
“That’s all [the supporters] sometimes I really expect that maximum effort from you, that fight,” says Irvine. “And they will go through it with you. Everyone wants to see the best level of football and the best kind of football, but there is an element of realistic expectations. And when they see the players leave everything out there … even when we were winning every week, that was always the minimum they expected.”