The Polish fans have been enjoying themselves in the western part of the city center, although in addition to the exuberant singing and good humored fun, there have also been unpleasant minor clashes with the police. A dozen Poles have been detained by police after setting off pyrotechnics.
Before Poland’s previous match with the Netherlands in Hamburg the Polish fans were also out in force, but the streets were dominated by the orange colors of the Dutch supporters.
Polish fans had begun congregating by the Brandenburg Gate from around midday - two hours later, their number had swelled to thousands.
The fans have been in fine voice, particularly embracing their version of the song ‘Oto jest dzień, który dał nam Pan’ (This is the day the Lord has given us).
The authorities found the crowd awkward to manage after fans met in a different place than the organizers had planned. Police had difficulty moving on some of the slightly more confrontational fans.
Police detained more than a dozen people after flares were set off. “We would like to remind you about the ban on the use of pyrotechnics,” the police told supporters via loudspeakers.
Poland kick-off their second match of the tournament against Austria at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin at 6 p.m. local time. Having lost their opener the Poles need at least a draw to give themselves a fighting chance going into their final Group D match against France.
