Arne Friedrich. Born in 1979 in Bad Oeyenhausen. For eight years, from 2002 to 2010, he played for Hertha. At the same time, he was part of the national football team for nine years. He became third with Germany twice in the World Cup, and in 2008, he was runner-up in the European Championship. He ended his career as a professional footballer in 2013. That's what Wikipedia says. But what does a successful athlete do after retiring?
After the storm often comes the calm. For many professional athletes, it's not an easy time. Arne Friedrich used it to his advantage. In 2015, amid the major refugee crisis, he founded the Arne Friedrich Foundation, which aims to effectively help children and improve their lives. In addition to his activities as an expert for international media, this is where he now directs his full commitment. If you'd like to support the foundation, donations are always wisely invested money!
The foundation supports, for example, children's hospice work, as seen in the Berlin Caritas Children's Hospice Center LEO, where the isolation and lack of social life of children with terminal illnesses particularly touched him. Another focus of the foundation is education and integration. With programs like "Education Wins," they become active in schools to bring together children from all backgrounds. The Charité Heart Center also benefits from the foundation's commitment.
Like many people, he has learned a lot about himself during the crises in his life. During Hertha's descent in 2009/2010 or the setbacks in the first World Cup match in his own country against Costa Rica in 2006. And, of course, at the end of his career in 2013, which coincided with the end of his long-term relationship. How others deal with change is also a topic in his podcast "From Done to Dare," where he interviews guests from various fields about their approach to new beginnings.
In 2019, he joined Hertha's management for three years and has since been living in Berlin again. Naturally, he has discovered plenty of favourite places in his current city over the years. He has revealed ten of them to us, including places that we didn't even know about. Join Arne Friedrich on a discovery tour through Berlin.
Click on the orange marked names to find out more about the individual locations!
Over the last six months, Oliveto in Neukölln has become his favorite place for Italian cuisine. Here, he enjoys one of the best pizzas he's had in Berlin, but everything else is also excellent. The ambiance is cozy, and the owners are incredibly kind.
Oliveto |
Pannierstraße 9a | 12047 Berlin-Neukölln
He's been friends with the owner of this Greek restaurant on Spanische Allee in Schlachtensee for years. "Incredibly good Greek cuisine is served here," he says. "Of course, there's the traditional gyros. But also dishes that aren't found on every menu." Everything is very fresh and partly prepared from products directly from Greece. Moreover, he jokes that you can watch football there during important tournaments.
Pikilia |
Spanische Allee 72 | 14129 Berlin-Schlachtensee
His favorite lunch spot is the Schüsseldienst on Akazienstraße in Schöneberg. He first visited a year ago and has since raved about the regularly changing dishes on the menu. The food is super fresh and prepared quickly once ordered. He likes the friendly people there, and he says the food offers great value for money.
Schüsseldienst |
Akazienstraße 7 | 10823 Berlin-Schöneberg
Not far from the Schüsseldienst, also on Akazienstraße, lies the Double Eye, a tiny coffee bar with its own roastery, where he, as a passionate coffee drinker, likes to get his coffee. He discovered the "Espresso Shop" many years ago and has been a regular guest ever since.
DoubleEye |
Akazienstraße 22 | 10823 Berlin-Schöneberg
And since he enjoys coffee so much, he doesn't just have one favorite café, but another one as well. He has been to Betty'n Caty on Knaakstraße in Prenzlauer Berg countless times. Lately, he's been there a bit less often because some close friends of his no longer live in the area, so he doesn't visit as frequently. "Although that's actually nonsense," he laughs, "because one of my favorite places is also the Soho House not far from here."
Betty'n Caty |
Knaackstraße 26 | 10405 Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg
The Soho House, a complete lifestyle concept comprising a hotel, café, restaurant, bar, and a concept store on Torstraße, represents a symbiosis of work and sport for Arne Friedrich. He comes here to meet people in a work context or to eat. For many years, he also worked out in the gym in the building, occasionally still doing so today. However, he now often goes to another one of his favorite places for that, the John Reed Club.
Soho House Berlin |
Torstraße 1 | 10119 Berlin-Mitte
Arne Friedrich's favorite gym is the John Reed Fitness Club on Saarbrücker Straße, right next to the Soho House. He is there at least six times a week and finds everything he needs there. He already knows the concept from LA, where everyone who's anyone trains because the concept is so great.
John Reed Fitness |
Saarbrücker Straße 4 | 10405 Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg
He regularly visits the jazz club on Hauptstraße in Friedenau. He enjoys listening to jazz, especially here. The musicians are great, and thanks to the pleasant size of the venue, there's always a good atmosphere, he raves.
Zig Zag Jazz Club Berlin |
Hauptstraße 89 | 12159 Berlin-Friedenau
He doesn't often go to bars, but when he does, he usually goes to the Stairs Bar on Uhlandstraße in Wilmersdorf. It's a place that you can easily overlook because it's so unassuming from the outside. He has walked past it many times himself without noticing it. However, it is a "Great bar, beautiful atmosphere!"
Stairs Bar |
Uhlandstraße 133 | 10717 Berlin-Wilmersdorf
His favorite ice cream parlor is located on Goltzstraße in Schöneberg, he says with shining eyes. Since his apartment is in Tiergarten, he doesn't have far to go to Schöneberg. Recently, he often walks here on foot.
Jones Ice Cream |
Goltzstraße 3 | 10781 Berlin-Schöneberg
