For a long time, Rot-Weiss Essen was missing from the list of participants in the Essen Indoor City Championship. That will change in the upcoming edition.

The winter break is approaching – and with it the indoor season. In Essen, the city championship begins on the first weekend in January, with the grouping taking place this Wednesday (7 p.m.). Rot-Weiss Essen will be in the draw for the first time in over ten years.

After a long absence, RWE has decided to enter the tournament with its second team from the Kreisliga B. “It’s also about sending out a signal as the highest-ranking club, even if we come with our reserve team,” explained RWE II coach Stefan Lorenz. “I think that’s great and I’m really looking forward to the hall.”

The fact that the Red & Whites’ abstention in recent years has not gone down well everywhere has not escaped the Bergeborbeckers. That’s why they decided back in the summer to compete in the district league. A plan supported by the management team around CEO Marcus Uhlig, says Lorenz.

Spectator interest in the already popular tournament is likely to increase once again thanks to RWE’s participation. The 3rd division is still suspended on the first two weekends at least, which is why Lorenz would be delighted if one or two fans came to support the second team in the hall.

“Many players and managers of the other teams are RWE supporters,” he adds, “although many amateur teams are critical of us as the second team and are likely to be particularly motivated in the games against us.”

A look at the table shows that the team from Essen are no ordinary B-League team and have significantly more resources than their competitors: without losing a point and with 105:11 goals, the Lorenz team leads Group 1 after 13 games. The second half of the season will show whether, unlike in previous years, it will be enough for promotion this time.

RWE II: Ideally, a place in the final round

In any case, that is the clear goal for the regular season, while the team enters the hall “humbly”. “We want to represent the club colors as well as possible and get as far as we can – ideally, we want to be there on the last weekend.”

Lorenz has not yet decided who RWE will field and whether the two top strikers Emre Kilic (34 goals) and Dominik Milaszewski (28) will be involved. That will be decided after the draw and the last league games of the year.

But one thing is clear for the ex-professional, who as coach of TuS Essen-West 81 once celebrated the indoor city championship runners-up: “I’m really looking forward to the hall. “