After the BEKO BBL had showcased the Allstar game in big 10,000 plus arenas in Cologne and Mannheim the last years, they decided to display the leagues best players in a smaller venue in Bonn in 2010. This turned out to be a big success as the Telekom dome was sold out and the atmosphere was as breathtaking as taking in a Boston Redsox-New York Yankees game at the legendary Fenway Park.
Why should the BEKO BBL continue to have the Allstar game in a huge complex like the SAP arena in Mannheim where one feels overwhelmed when looking around and seeing the magnitude of the arena and where 6,000-7,000 people make the arena look as lifeless as the Pontiac Dome in Detriot as Detroit Lions Football fans had to encounter a miserable 0-16 season in 2008. The Telekom Dome only had 6,000 spectators, but every inch was filled and the arena was about as loud as any as I have ever seen in the BEKO BBL.
“It was a good decision to move it to a smaller venue. It has been sold out for two weeks and I think that it is simply better for the players to play in front of a sold out crowd”, stressed German National coach Dirk Bauermann.