Oktoberfest ride operator distributes free shorts to protect women from upskirting

Ride operator introduces protective shorts

Elisabeth Polaczy, the 80-year-old operator of the Teufelsrad at Munich's Oktoberfest, has distributed more than 100 pairs of cycling shorts to female visitors during the 16-day festival. The Teufelsrad, or Devil's Wheel, is one of the oldest attractions at the traditional Bavarian beer festival. The ride features a large, rotating circular platform that accelerates until participants lose their balance and slide off. The combined physical movement and centrifugal force frequently cause women's skirts or traditional dirndls to fly upward as they fall. Polaczy began offering free shorts three years ago to protect women and girls wearing skirts from onlookers recording non-consensual footage. Although purchasing the extra garments creates additional operating costs, Polaczy stated that the expense is worthwhile for her peace of mind.

Polaczy described her commitment to maintaining a safe environment at the attraction:

I want to do everything I can to make people feel secure.

Online dissemination and monetization

Non-consensual recordings captured at the attraction have spread widely across social media networks. Munich daily newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung reported that at least 32,000 videos showing women on the Teufelsrad have been in circulation online. Several of these video clips have accumulated millions of views across various platforms. In some instances, original clips were digitally modified to depict the featured women naked. Investigations by Bavarian public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk established that individuals have profited financially from the material. The broadcaster identified a production network consisting of Bavarian residents and professional YouTubers from Ukraine, noting that one woman earned €9,000 (£7,650) from publishing a single video clip.

Police enforcement at the Munich festival

Signs and police advisory posters printed in both German and English hang inside the Teufelsrad tent to warn festival attendees against filming beneath clothing. A Bavarian police spokesman confirmed that authorities have maintained a dedicated poster campaign at Oktoberfest since 2025. During the 2026 festival, officers arrested a 45-year-old Swiss national for using a mobile telephone to record under a German woman's dirndl dress. Festival staff have also adjusted their own routines, with several Oktoberfest waitresses choosing to wear cycling shorts beneath their dirndls during shifts.

Legal loopholes and digital safety concerns

Filming under a person's skirt is a criminal offense in Germany that carries a statutory penalty of up to two years in prison. Legal advocates and victim support organizations, however, state that existing statutory provisions fail to cover every scenario involving accidental exposure. Josephine Ballon, head of the digital violence support organization HateAid, explained that German law targets individuals who intentionally position cameras to record beneath skirts. This specific definition creates legal ambiguities when clothing lifts unintentionally due to the movement of an amusement ride. Ballon also warned of emerging surveillance hardware, such as camera-equipped eyeglasses, and argued that criminal liability should explicitly include individuals who publish non-consensual footage on online platforms.