Borussia Dortmund chief moved by brilliant Newcastle United gesture

Newcastle United fans have been praised by the Bundesliga side for showing support for their 'socially-minded' ticketing prices back in November last year

Borussia Dortmund chief Hans-Joachim Watzke has hailed Newcastle United supporters after their Champions League match back in November last year.

While the Bundesliga side came out on top on the night thanks to goals from Niclas Fullkrug and Julian Brandt, there was a significant following of away support for the Magpies - something that many put down to the cheap ticket prices in German football.

Of the top five European leagues, Germany has often been seen as the country that is most in touch with its footballing fanbase, with clubs being majority owned by supporter groups and Bundesliga tickets being readily available for prices far cheaper than you'd see in the Premier League.

READ MORE: Newcastle United can't ignore FFP truth but Bruno Guimaraes transfer reality is clear

READ MORE: Newcastle United fans won't see Joe Willock or Elliot Anderson this month as injury woes continue

That was again the case for the Champions League, with Dortmund only charging supporter £17 per ticket - a far cry from what you'd see in England. To show their support, Newcastle fans unfurled two banners before the clash kicked off, with one reading 'Change from £20, thanks BVB' and the other saying 'Twenty's plenty.'

Following the gesture, Watzke highlighted the concerns he had around the increasing financial gap between his club and those with significant backing like Newcastle, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City and why the Bundesliga selling their TV rights over the next 20 years in return for about €1billion (£860m, $1.1bn) shouldn't worry supporters.

He told the Athletic: "Building streaming offerings and investing in international marketing will help make the Bundesliga more popular and accessible abroad. It helps us to compete financially with the Italians and the Spanish, who have the same problems as us.

"And it can help us to distribute the story of the unique German football. There’s one exceptional league: the Premier League. It exists on a whole different planet in terms of revenue streams, and has a very different historical background as well as the advantage of the English language. It’s a fantastic competition — even if that famous atmosphere in the grounds isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be.

"We can’t just say we don’t care about what’s going on around us. On the contrary, the special Bundesliga story — its clubs, its strong connection to the fans, its spectacular atmosphere — needs to be told abroad. I found it remarkable to see PSG and Newcastle fans thanking us on huge banners for the socially-minded pricing of our away tickets. People abroad do notice these things. But in the first place, they have to see and to know us."

Get Newcastle United transfer news to your phone with WhatsApp

Did you know that you can get daily NUFC news sent straight to your device as soon as it happens through WhatsApp? With the January transfer window open, you won't want to miss out.

It's quick and easy to join. Just click this link and select 'Join Community' to get started.

Your informational will be hidden, you'll only ever receive messages from the Chronicle Live sports team, and you can leave any time you like. For more information, click here. You can read our Privacy Notice here.