Dortmund is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city of Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the largest city of the Ruhr, Germany's largest urban area with some 5.1 million inhabitants, as well as the largest city of Westphalia. On the Emscher and Ruhr rivers, it lies in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region and is considered the administrative, commercial, and cultural center of the eastern Ruhr. Dortmund is the second-largest city in the Low German dialect area after Hamburg.
Bochum, with a population of 364,920 (2016), is the sixth largest city of the most populous German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the 16th largest city of Germany. On the Ruhr Heights (Ruhrhöhen) hill chain, between the rivers Ruhr to the south and Emscher to the north, it is the second largest city of Westphalia after Dortmund, and the fourth largest city of the Ruhr after Dortmund, Essen and Duisburg. It lies at the centre of the Ruhr, Germany's largest urban area, in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region, and belongs to the region of Arnsberg. Bochum is the sixth largest and one of the southernmost cities in the Low German dialect area. There are nine institutions of higher education in the city, most notably the Ruhr University Bochum, one of the ten largest universities in Germany, and the Bochum University of Applied Sciences.
Gelsenkirchen is the 25th most populous city of Germany and the 11th most populous in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia with 262,528 (2016) inhabitants. On the Emscher River, it lies at the centre of the Ruhr, the largest urban area of Germany, of which it is the fifth largest city after Dortmund, Essen, Duisburg and Bochum. The Ruhr is located in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region, one of Europe's largest urban areas. Gelsenkirchen is the fifth largest city of Westphalia after Dortmund, Bochum, Bielefeld and Münster, and it is one of the southernmost cities in the Low German dialect area. The city is home to the football club Schalke 04, which is named after Gelsenkirchen-Schalke. The club's current stadium Veltins-Arena, however, is located in Gelsenkirchen-Erle.
The Dortmund–Ems Canal is a 269-kilometre (167 mi) long canal in Germany between the inland port of the city of Dortmund and the seaport of Emden. The artificial southern part of the canal ends after 215 kilometres (134 mi) at Herbrum lock near Meppen. The route then takes the river Ems for 45 kilometres (28 mi) to Oldersum lock. From there, the canal continues along a second artificial segment of 98 kilometres (61 mi). This latter section was built because inland ships at the time of the construction of the canal were not built for the open sea, which they would have faced at the Dollart and the entry to the sea port of Emden. It is connected to the Ems-Jade Canal from Emden to Wilhelmshaven.
The Bochum-Gelsenkirchener Straßenbahnen AG, abbreviated BOGESTRA, is a public transport operator in the Ruhr area, most notably in the cities of Bochum, Gelsenkirchen and Herne. As of 2012, the company operated, in whole or in part, 9 rail lines, and 65 bus lines. In 2012, BOGESTRA transported a total of 144.9 million passengers. The company is a member of the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr (VRR) public transport association.
The Rhine–Herne Canal is a 45.6-kilometre-long (28.3 mi) transportation canal in the Ruhr area of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with five canal locks. The canal was built over a period of eight years and connects the harbour in Duisburg on the Rhine with the Dortmund-Ems Canal near Henrichenburg, following the valley of the Emscher. It was widened in the 1980s. The Rhein-Herne canal ship was designed specifically for this canal; normally of about 1300–1350 ton capacity, it has a maximum draft of 2.50 metres (8.2 ft), a length of approximately 80 metres (260 ft), and maximum beam of 9.50 metres (31.2 ft).
The Museum Ostwall is a museum of modern and contemporary art in Dortmund, Germany. It was founded in the late 1940s, and has been located in the Dortmund U-Tower since 2010. The collection includes paintings, sculptures, objects and photographs from the 20th century, plus over 2,500 graphics, spanning Expressionism through classic modern art to the present day.
Stadion Rote Erde is a 25,000 capacity football and athletics stadium in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It serves as the home stadium to Borussia Dortmund II and several athletic clubs. The stadium was built in between 1924 and 1926 at a cost of 1.8 million German Mark. The stadium was inaugurated in 1926, with a match between the City of Dortmund and FC Wacker München (1-11).
Duisburg Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in the city of Duisburg in western Germany. It is situated at the meeting point of many important national and international railway lines in the Northwestern Ruhr valley.
The Home Deluxe Arena is a multi-use stadium in Paderborn, Germany, that was built between July 2005 and July 2008, as a replacement for the Hermann-Löns-Stadion. The opening match between SC Paderborn and Borussia Dortmund (1–2) was attended by 15,000 spectators, the stadium's full capacity.
Essen Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in the city of Essen in western Germany. It is situated south of the old town centre, next to the A 40 motorway. It was opened in 1862 by the Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn. However, the station was not the first in Essen: as the station called Essen on the Köln-Mindener Eisenbahn was opened in 1847.
Gelsenkirchen Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in the German city of Gelsenkirchen. It connects the city to the regional and long-distance rail service of Deutsche Bahn and other railway companies in Germany.
Wanne-Eickel Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in the former city of Wanne-Eickel, now part of Herne in western Germany.
The Welver–Sterkrade railway is a former through railway line from the Westphalian town of Welver to Sterkrade in the western Ruhr region in Germany, which is now broken into four disconnected sections. Because its route ran along the Emscher river it was known as the Westphalian Emscher Valley Railway.
Jürgen Rynio is a German retired professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Born in Gelsenkirchen, Rynio played in the Bundesliga for Karlsruher SC, 1. FC Nürnberg, Borussia Dortmund, Rot-Weiss Essen, FC St. Pauli and Hannover 96, appearing in over 450 games in the top two tiers of German football during his career.
The Bochum/Gelsenkirchen tramway network is a network of tramways focused on Bochum and Gelsenkirchen, two cities in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
The Essen tramway network is a 52.4-kilometer (32.6 mi) network of tramways forming part of the public transport system in Essen, a city in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Parts of the system also serve the neighbouring city of Gelsenkirchen.
Weiße Wiese, also known as Borussia Sportpark, was the first home stadium of Borussia Dortmund. It was located at Wambeler street near the Borsigplatz and factory of Hoesch AG in northern Dortmund.
Group 2 of the 1974 FIFA World Cup was contested between 13 and 22 June 1974, with matches played in three cities: Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen and Frankfurt.
Group A was one of two groups in the second group stage of the 1974 FIFA World Cup finals. It was the first time that this stage of the competition was played in a group format. Matches were played in three cities between 26 June and 3 July 1974. The group was composed of the winners of Groups 1 and 3 from the first group stage, and the runners-up of Groups 2 and 4.
