The club said this week it is now just one baby short of a team that since the service was set up in cooperation with a local hospital a few months ago.

The idea for the room, which is decked out in Hannover’s green, black and white colours, came from two football-crazy midwives at the clinic.

The mother of the latest baby born at the clinic, Ben, who came into the world on March 2 “instilled with the ’96 virus from his first breath,” said it was a “great idea.”

Nevertheless, she admitted that “on the day of the birth, you have other things on your mind and the decor does tend to fade into the background,” she said.

“This project could allow children to identify very quickly with their club,” said the appropriately named club president Martin Kind – whose surname means “child” in German meaning.

However, Hannover fans of all ages have had plenty to cry about this season, with the club going through one of the most difficult periods in its history.

The two-time champions of Germany are currently languishing in 16th place in the Bundesliga and are battling to avoid relegation – enough to make even the most die-hard fan throw a temper tantrum.