Regarding the Navy Football League, there are some things that Natsuki hides in front of Tirpitz. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 infoPeople in this era may not be able to see what kind of appeal and appeal football has, but Natsuki is very clear about this, he knows that the significance of organizing a football league in the Navy is not only about "fitness, friendship, tacit understanding", the game can make the officers and men of the Navy feel the taste of victory and defeat in advance, so that they can learn not to be shocked by honor and disgrace, no matter how bad the situation is, they must deal with it calmly, and forge a tenacious style with perseverance in adversity. At the same time, as the initiator, organizer and inevitable leader of this league, Natsuki can fully expand his prestige and influence among the officers and men of the navy, and let them, especially the young sailors, rally around him, so that he can deal with difficult battles and revolutionary storms with more ease.

Before the Navy Football League was put into practice, another cup-based football tournament initiated by him and sponsored by the royal family, the "Crown Prince Wilhelm Cup", was organized by the German Football Association. On Sunday morning, as a wedding gift from Natsuki and Princess Louise to Prince William, the "Prince William Stadium" was officially inaugurated, and its debut was the opening match of the "Prince William Cup" - Prince William, who is about to usher in the joy of his life, led the "Royal 1st Guards Regiment" team against the "Kiel Naval Academy" team led by Natsuki and the friendship of the second prince Aiter and the fifth prince Oscar.

Wearing a navy blue jersey, white pants and socks, tan sneakers, wearing this set of modern football equipment, wearing the captain's armband with a black, white and red horizontal bar pattern, and walking into the playing field from the players' tunnel with the other contestants, Natsuki seemed to return to his dream. Once upon a time, he dreamed of becoming a world-class player, dominating the field in front of the crowd and conquering everyone with spectacular passes, passes and shots. Of course, for a young man who has never trained in formal football and has not really tried to become a professional footballer, this was originally just a pure dream. Now, he stepped on this neat lawn, in the warm atmosphere created by thousands of spectators with cheers and applause, and shook hands with his opponents one by one with the calmness of a football star.

It is not only a new stadium built in the name of the crown prince, but also an event for the crown prince's wedding, the 23-year-old German crown prince Friedrich. Willian is the undisputed protagonist of this game. He and his teammates wore black jerseys, white shorts, and red socks in the colors and order of the flag of the Second German Reich from top to bottom, while the widened gold captain's armband and signature tall and lanky figure made them stand out from the crowd. Under the bright sun, the 6,000-seat stadium was packed to capacity, and not only the German Emperor Wilhelm II and Empress Victoria sat in the stands, but also the bride-to-be of Crown Prince Wilhelm, Grand Duke Friedrich of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Franz III's second daughter, Princess Cecilia, and her family, as well as the princes and nobles who had gathered from all over the empire to attend the royal wedding, as well as many officers, soldiers, and ordinary citizens who were fortunate enough to receive complimentary tickets. The stark class mentality did not prevent them from sitting in the same stadium to watch such a glamorous match, starting with the opening match, where teams from all regions of Germany will be eliminated over the next six months, with the top eight teams sharing the million-mark prize money and the winner receiving the Crown Prince Willem himself.

Pump...... Pump......

Glenn, the first secretary general of the German Football Association, personally refereed the game, and he blew the first whistle of the "Willem Cup". Compared with the first cross-regional national competition held two years ago, the scale and influence of this cup are destined to increase to a new level due to the sponsorship and participation of the royal family.

By 1905, football was widely on the rise across Europe, but it seemed to be the first time that a member of the royal family had played football in public. In order to dispel the concerns of opponents, the players who competed with the crown prince and the prince were all from aristocratic backgrounds. In the Royal Praetorian Guard, officers of noble blood abound, and it was easy to put together a football team, but at the Kiel Naval Academy, there were not many students who had both noble titles and devoted themselves to football, and Natsuki successfully invited the two brothers on this ground, so as not to be ostracized by the other brothers because of his overly ostentatious wedding gift.

The long opening whistle announced that German football had entered a new era ahead of time, and the first touch of the ball by Crown Prince Wilhelm drew enthusiastic cheers from the audience, and the army and the people expressed their respect and support for the German royal family in this way - before the establishment of the Second Reich, Germany had experienced centuries of division, especially after Napoleon's sweep of Germany, the wanton plundering and expropriation of the French army made the German national consciousness unprecedentedly high, and in 1870, when the French contemptuously declared war on Prussia, The whole German nation was united. When the Prussian army finally defeated France, and the reunification of the German Empire was proclaimed by King Wilhelm I at Versailles, the whole of Germany cheered. Since then, the national power of the empire has grown, and although the contradictions between the interests of various strata have not been eliminated, and frictions such as demonstrations and strikes still occur from time to time, the respect of the army and the people for the imperial family has always increased.

With the tacit cooperation of the players of both sides, the slender and tall Prince William scored quickly from the start, and he added a historic touch to the "Prince William Cup" with a beautiful volley. The Crown Prince was ecstatic with a cross on his forehead and chest, praying to his Creator, then raising his arms and smiling on his young face, before embracing his brother Joachim, who had dedicated the stadium to him, and Aiter and Oscar, who had come to compete. The younger generation of the Hohenzollern family greeted the audience arm in arm, and they were greeted with a tsunami of applause and cheers......

After the crown prince opened the scoring, the game began to go back and forth. The modesty of the aristocracy made the game less intense physical, but the precise passing and powerful shots of both sides still showed their good football skills, and the physical strength of the soldiers also ensured their continued performance. Of course, it is not only the football itself that determines the spectacle of a game, but also the handsome appearance of the aristocratic youth, their physical fitness and the masculine temperament they show when they exercise, all of which make the audience enjoy a rich visual feast. Every time a player scores, whether it is a continuous pass to the final score or a gorgeous dribble straight in, it will receive applause and cheers from the audience. By half-time, the scoreboard had climbed to 11-9, with Prince Willem leading the Royal 1st Guards team to maintain the lead with seven goals with his "golden right foot", while Natsuki, who has the clearest awareness of modern football, showed four more spectacular goals - a solo shot, a pick-and-roll, a curling shot and a bombardment of headers. After the influence of the Naval Academy Football League, the "Kiel Naval Academy" team is more tacit than the opponent, and the offensive fluency and imagination are also better.

Back in the players' lounge inside the stadium, a panting Prince Willem came over and put his arm around Natsuki's shoulders and said, "Hey, Jochen, my good brother, it's so enjoyable, I wish we could have one every week!" ”

A few days ago, he had just persuaded the Minister of the Navy to support his own organization of a football league within the Navy, and Natsuki happened to suggest to the Crown Prince: "Look, I have an idea, because it is not convenient for us to play football with civilian teams, why not organize such a game in the army." The contestants do not have to be nobles, but also ordinary officers, which helps to keep the army united and helps to bring us closer to the younger officers. Judging from my previous experience of organizing a football league at the Kiel Naval Academy, such a goal is definitely achievable, and we are planning to organise a league for the entire navy. If you agree, in the future we can organize competitions for the army and navy together. ”

The thin-faced crown prince grinned and said, "Your idea is very good, I personally agree with it very much." And, I'm glad you used the word 'we', we're inherently close brothers, aren't we? ”

Natsuki didn't argue, he laughed along, but his smile was not as flamboyant as the crown prince, which was in line with his usual humble and shy performance in front of his brothers.

"In addition, I have a less mature idea: to increase the motivation and loyalty of soldiers by awarding certain honors. For example, we could award the title of 'Honored Soldier' to a soldier who has performed well, have an 'Honorary Soldier' participate in our competitions, or even have a meal with the officers, what do you think? ”

Hearing this, Crown Prince Wilhelm's smile subsided, he thought for a moment, and replied in a tactful way: "As you said before, young officers are the objects of our unity, especially those with noble blood and family honor, who will be the core of the German army in the future. ”

Although it was not directly denied, the intention of the crown prince's words was very clear. The military system of the Second German Reich originated in the Prussian period, the officers were mainly from the Rongke aristocracy, and most of the landless Junkers except for the eldest son regarded the military as the main way out, they received a good education and military education from an early age, loyalty, bravery, obedience, dutifulness, and frugality, but they also brought the prejudice and arrogance of the Junkers to the army, and often treated the soldiers as if they were their peasants. Although German soldiers were known for their diligence, discipline and patience, the class antagonism between officers and soldiers invisibly reduced the cohesion of the army and its explosive power in the face of adversity. In this regard, the armies of the Third Reich in history clearly did better, not only did they have a high-quality team of officers, but the brotherly relationship between the officers and soldiers at the grassroots level also ensured the strength of the army's rock-solid combat strength.

It's not easy to change people's old beliefs in one go, and Natsuki wisely keeps his opinion. In the German Army at this time, about 60 percent of the senior officers above the rank of colonel were nobles, while the same proportion was only about 5 percent in the German Navy.

After returning to the field, the aristocratic players still played politely, calmly, and elegantly, and under this premise, Natsuki and his fellow Kiel Naval Academy continued to show their tacit cooperation, dribbling, kicking the wall, perimeter long-range shots and hanging shots, which were absolutely novel and fancy in this era after decades, and the Naval Academy team had a slight upper hand on the field, but under Natsuki's overall management, they always fell behind the crown prince in the score. With the cooperation of players from both sides, Crown Prince Willem is expected to be the leading scorer of this game, and the record of 12 goals in a single game may remain in German football for a long time.

(End of chapter)