Unconventional training at Schalke: who has the hardest header?
Yasmine Green
Dailysports's expert
Translated by the editors
German football club Schalke, currently struggling in the lower half of the 2. Bundesliga table, has adopted an unusual training method that might help improve their results in the second half of the season. In a video shared on the club's official Instagram page, players were seen taking turns striking a punching bag—designed for arcade machines—with their heads to measure the power of their headers.
- Read also: Return to Germany: Karius signs with Schalke
The activity, though amusing and somewhat odd, has attracted attention as a creative way to enhance training and boost morale during a challenging campaign.
The 2. Bundesliga resumes this weekend after the Christmas break. On January 18, Schalke faces a crucial away match against Braunschweig, one of the league’s bottom teams.
Currently sitting in 13th place, Schalke trails the second promotion spot, which guarantees a return to the Bundesliga, by nine points. The Gelsenkirchen-based club was relegated from Germany’s top division in 2023 and has since struggled to regain its former stature.
A club with a proud history, Schalke won the UEFA Cup in 1997, has been crowned German champions seven times, and has claimed five DFB-Pokal trophies.
