ECKENTAL, Germany: Pierre Kaiser has truly mastered the art of ball juggling. And when it comes to the classic rondo drill, the 35-year-old is right in the thick of it. What makes it special: in 2007, Pierre lost his leg in a train accident. Since then, football has become his greatest passion.
The social worker now showcases that passion weekly with Bavarian club TSV Brand’s second team, where his remarkable determination has earned him a spot in regular league play this season.
“I moved out here, to the countryside with my wife, and our neighbor came over and said, ‘Oh, you played amputee football? Well, you’re coming along to training’,” Kaiser recalled. “At first, I didn’t really want to, but he kept asking, and eventually I joined the guys — and they were just an incredibly friendly bunch. It was so much fun.”
His impact extends beyond mere participation. Coach Ulf Forster highlights Kaiser’s tangible contribution during his debut appearance.
“He already got a run-out from us once, and everyone was absolutely thrilled. He basically helped set up the 2-1 goal by unsettling the defense,” Forster said. “That’s what led to the goal — the opponents just didn’t know how to respond.”
Kaiser’s commitment shines through in every training session, though he acknowledges certain limitations remain — matching teammates’ speed and enduring full matches present ongoing challenges. His crutches, meanwhile, follow specific rules: if he deliberately blocks the ball with them, play stops as with a handball.
Between amateur league matches, Kaiser competes at the elite level of German amputee football.
“In four or five weeks, the amputee football Bundesliga kicks off again. There are five teams competing. We have five matchdays, and the champion is decided through a playoff in October,” he explained.
While continuing his Wednesday training routine with TSV Brand, Kaiser is simultaneously working to establish an amputee football team in nearby Eckental — because football, after all, is for everyone.

BARCELONA: Thibaut Courtois watched from the other end of the pitch as Real Madrid’s forward took turns crashing against the Arsenal defense.
Courtois had done his part by stopping a penalty. But Kylian Mbappé’s best shot sailed high and wide. Rodrygo’s dribbles got him nowhere, and Vinícius needed a defensive blunder to take Madrid’s sole goal of a 5-1 aggregate defeat in the Champions League quarterfinals.
“Sometimes you have to be self-critical and have a good look at everything,” the Belgian goalkeeper said after the 2-1 home loss to Arsenal midweek.
“Maybe we need to make more team moves and not so many individual ones, because if they double-mark Vini or Mbappé they can break it once, but not three, four or five times,” Courtois said. “We can’t always rely on one of our four attacking players dribbling past three defenders and scoring a great goal, we have to attack and defend better as a team.”
Exiting from the competition they have won five times in the last decade was not what Madrid expected when they added Mbappé to a squad that was coming off a record 15th European Cup and Spanish league title last season.
The France captain has scored a glut of goals in his first season with Madrid but failed to come up big in the biggest games, including two lopsided losses to Barcelona. Jeers were heard for Mbappé when he limped off the field on Wednesday with a hurt right ankle.
The hard truth is that the team have played worse with him on board. Madrid have had injuries in defense and they lost midfielder Toni Kroos to retirement but their attack has failed to click, with Mbappé having to adapt to a central striker role as Vinícius’ production dropped.
Courtois even called into question the range of attacking options for a squad that also counted on Endrick and Brahim Díaz as sparks off the bench. The goalie said Madrid were missing the tall, big striker who could win balls in the box like Joselu Mato, who scored critical goals in last season’s Champions League.
“It was difficult to find openings and we had little success. We were also unlucky with balls into the box. This year we don’t have a Joselu who can win those duels,” Courtois said. “Now we have to analyze what we can do better because we still have the (Spanish) league, the final of the Copa del Rey and the Club World Cup, and we want to get everything right.”
Athletic Bilbao up next in La Liga
There will be little let up for Madrid with a strong Athletic Bilbao arriving on Sunday aiming to dig into the wound left by Arsenal.
Madrid must try to overhaul a four-point deficit to Barcelona in La Liga as they try to salvage the season by defending their domestic title.
Madrid could be facing a seven-point gap with Barcelona by kickoff, if the front-runner beat Celta Vigo at home on Saturday.
Madrid will also face Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final next week, but coach Carlo Ancelotti will likely also need his team to retain the league crown to keep his job. The Italian manager admitted his future was in doubt after his team was outplayed by Arsenal, while also attempting to dampen speculation.
“I’m only thinking about preparing for the next game to stay in the fight for the league title and try to win the Copa del Rey,” he said.