When pressure mounts and energy dips, culture becomes the 12th player. It’s what carries a team through tough games and hard seasons, the unseen force that says, keep going.
There’s nothing like the first home match of the season. The Weserstadion alive with chants, scarves in the air, and 42,000 fans dressed in green and white, ready to be the 12th player.
The season hasn’t been easy a new coach, a young team, injuries. Within minutes, Leverkusen scored. Then another. Soon it was 3:1 down. The setback could have silenced the crowd, but not in the Weserstadion. The fans know their role: to lift the team, no matter what.
And then, just after half-time, our captain saw red. Not just any player, the leader. Gone after a second yellow card. For the last half hour, 10 men carried the work of 11. That’s the weight of a red card: one person’s mistake becomes everyone’s burden.
The stadium’s energy drove every move by the team, every opening, every kick, every run. It was as if 42,000 voices were pushing the ball toward the goal. In the final minutes, 18-year-old Karim Coulibaly answered that call for the fans. The Weserstadion erupted. 3:3. On paper, just a draw. In the stadium, it felt like victory.
I’m no football expert, I often have to ask my husband to explain what just happened on the pitch. But that’s part of why I love going. Beyond the tactics and rules, I always leave with something else: inspiration. The atmosphere, the emotion, the way people respond to setbacks and pressure it all translates so clearly into lessons for life and leadership.
In football, discipline is never just about the player. A yellow or red card may be shown to one, but its weight is carried by all. The team must instantly reorganize, cover the gaps, and push harder. In management, we often handle mistakes quietly, behind closed doors, to protect someone’s dignity. But while the words are whispered, the impact is still shared the rest of the team feels the strain, even if they don’t know the reason.
As leaders, we have to find the balance. To hold people accountable without breaking their spirit. To protect the team while guiding the individual. And to keep the belief alive, even when mistakes are made, even when you’re playing with a man down.
In football, the fans are the 12th player. Their belief can lift a team when legs are heavy and hope is fading. In business, it’s our culture that plays this role. A strong culture carries us when we’re under pressure when resources are stretched, when mistakes are made, or when wins are few. It shows itself in colleagues stepping in without being asked, in loyal customers who stay with us through difficult times, and in mentors or leaders who remind us why the work matters. Culture is the collective voice that says keep going. No team, on the pitch or in the office, wins alone.
Sometimes leadership is like that 3:3… resilience is the real victory.
