12 May, 2020 15:41

Packing the stands: Borussia Monchengladbach fans order 12,000 CARDBOARD CUT-OUTS of themselves for Bundesliga return (PHOTOS)

The fans of Bundesliga side Borussia Monchengladbach will pack the stands at Borussia-Park for the return of the Bundesliga this weekend, even though they won't be there in person.

More than 12,000 fans have ordered cardboard cut-outs of themselves to be placed in the stands in a bid to help fill their home stadium for their team's return to action.

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The campaign website www.seidabei-trotzdem.de allows fans the chance to order cardboard cut-outs of themselves to give them the chance to have a presence at matches, while also raising money for good causes.

The cardboard cut-out representations of the fans will be placed in the stands for all of the team's home fixtures while games are played behind closed doors, with fans seemingly more than happy to pay the $20 fee to create and ship a cutout of themselves to their club. Proceeds from the sale of the cutouts are being donated to local charities.

The home stands are filling up nicely though! Over 4,500 cut-outs in place and 12,000+ ordered 😍The website is now live in English too to give our international fans a chance to order their cut-out for €19.00 via bank transfer! 🐎💚🇬🇧 https://t.co/TbCsi5ICk3 #DieFohlen pic.twitter.com/uqoznBnlHP
— Gladbach (@borussia_en) May 6, 2020

"The campaign organizers are regularly overrun with orders; we can hardly keep up trying to install them all," explained Gladbach fan representative Thomas Weinmann.

"But we're obviously delighted with the overwhelming support it's received."

The 12,000 number is certainly an impressive one, but the club's fans are going to have to generate many more cutouts if they're to come close to filling the stands at their 54,014-capacity stadium.

Matches in the German top flight will resume this Saturday, with six games set to take place in empty stadiums across Germany. Two more matches will follow on Sunday with another on Monday as the league gets back up and running with a full slate of fixtures.

The relaxed guidelines in Germany have allowed the Bundesliga to return to action, but on condition that matches are played behind closed doors, with no more than 213 people in the stadium, including players, officials and staff.

Monchengladbach currently sit fourth in the Bundesliga standings, just four points behind current leaders Bayern Munich, and resume their season this weekend away at Eintracht Frankfurt.

But when they return to action at their home stadium, their fans will be waiting in the stands for them... sort of.