In their match against Holstein Kiel on the weekend, 2. Bundesliga side Hamburger SV featured spelling errors on two of their players’ names on the back of their shirts. But rather than a simple error, the move was done quite purposefully to draw attention to a campaign that centres around raising awareness of reading and spelling disorders in Germany.
There have been several occasions in the past when those responsible for a team’s kit have got a little confused with player names and their spellings – and who can blame them sometimes, particularly with some of the more exotic names to feature from all parts of the world. But this weekend in Hamburger SV’s match against Holstein Kiel, Moritz Heyer and Jonas Meffert both had spelling errors in their names on their shirts, with each reading “Heya" and "Meffort" respectively. However, rather than being a simple clerical error, this move was quite purposeful, raising awareness of the issue of reading and writing problems in Germany.
The campaign came about to highlight the fact that in Germany there are almost twice as many people with reading and writing difficulties than previously assumed. An estimated 6.2 million people in Germany are unable to read and write or can only insufficiently read and write, and around three million people are affected by dyslexia. The idea of the shirt name “error” was therefore to get people talking and to generally raise awareness of the issue.
HSV had previously shown their support of those with reading and writing disabilities through an earlier jersey campaign, and they once again draw attention to it and the fact that they want all fans to be able to enjoy, follow and support the club. To help with this they provide the latest news about HSV in plain language on their website. Plain or Easy language is a simplified variant of German: short sentences, simple and familiar words, and images that aid in understanding the text are essential features.
You can find more information about Hamburger SV's work for those with reading and writing disabilities at hsv.de
